28,729 research outputs found
Equivalence Constraint Satisfaction Problems
The following result for finite structures Gamma has been conjectured to hold for all countably infinite omega-categorical structures Gamma: either the model-complete core Delta of Gamma has an expansion by finitely many constants such that the pseudovariety generated by its polymorphism algebra contains a two-element algebra all of whose operations are projections, or there is a homomorphism f from Delta^k to Delta, for some finite k, and an automorphism alpha of Delta satisfying f(x1,...,xk) = alpha(f(x2,...,xk,x1)). This conjecture has been confirmed for all infinite structures Gamma that have a first-order definition over (Q;<), and for all structures that are definable over the random graph. In this paper, we verify the conjecture for all structures that are definable over an equivalence relation with a countably infinite number of countably infinite classes.
Our result implies a complexity dichotomy (into NP-complete and P) for a family of constraint satisfaction problems (CSPs) which we call equivalence constraint satisfaction problems. The classification for equivalence CSPs can also be seen as a first step towards a classification of the CSPs for all relational structures that are first-order definable over Allen\u27s interval algebra, a well-known constraint calculus in temporal reasoning
New Algebraic Tools for Constraint Satisfaction
The Galois correspondence involving polymorphisms and co-clones
has received a lot of attention in regard to constraint satisfaction problems.
However, it fails if we are interested in a reduction giving equivalence
instead of only satisfiability-equivalence. We show how a similar
Galois connection involving weaker closure operators can be applied for
these problems. As an example of the usefulness of our construction, we
show how to obtain very short proofs of complexity classifications in this
context
The complexity of general-valued CSPs seen from the other side
The constraint satisfaction problem (CSP) is concerned with homomorphisms
between two structures. For CSPs with restricted left-hand side structures, the
results of Dalmau, Kolaitis, and Vardi [CP'02], Grohe [FOCS'03/JACM'07], and
Atserias, Bulatov, and Dalmau [ICALP'07] establish the precise borderline of
polynomial-time solvability (subject to complexity-theoretic assumptions) and
of solvability by bounded-consistency algorithms (unconditionally) as bounded
treewidth modulo homomorphic equivalence.
The general-valued constraint satisfaction problem (VCSP) is a generalisation
of the CSP concerned with homomorphisms between two valued structures. For
VCSPs with restricted left-hand side valued structures, we establish the
precise borderline of polynomial-time solvability (subject to
complexity-theoretic assumptions) and of solvability by the -th level of the
Sherali-Adams LP hierarchy (unconditionally). We also obtain results on related
problems concerned with finding a solution and recognising the tractable cases;
the latter has an application in database theory.Comment: v2: Full version of a FOCS'18 paper; improved presentation and small
correction
Constraint satisfaction problems for reducts of homogeneous graphs
For n >= 3, let (Hn, E) denote the n-th Henson graph, i.e., the unique countable homogeneous graph with exactly those finite graphs as induced subgraphs that do not embed the complete graph on n vertices. We show that for all structures Gamma with domain Hn whose relations are first-order definable in (Hn, E) the constraint satisfaction problem for Gamma is either in P or is NP-complete. We moreover show a similar complexity dichotomy for all structures whose relations are first-order definable in a homogeneous graph whose reflexive closure is an equivalence relation. Together with earlier results, in particular for the random graph, this completes the complexity classification of constraint satisfaction problems of structures first-order definable in countably infinite homogeneous graphs: all such problems are either in P or NP-complete
Constraint Satisfaction Problems for Reducts of Homogeneous Graphs
For n >= 3, let (Hn, E) denote the n-th Henson graph, i.e., the unique countable homogeneous graph with exactly those finite graphs as induced subgraphs that do not embed the complete graph on n vertices. We show that for all structures Gamma with domain Hn whose relations are first-order definable in (Hn, E) the constraint satisfaction problem for Gamma is either in P or is NP-complete. We moreover show a similar complexity dichotomy for all structures whose relations are first-order definable in a homogeneous graph whose reflexive closure is an equivalence relation. Together with earlier results, in particular for the random graph, this completes the complexity classification of constraint satisfaction problems of structures first-order definable in countably infinite homogeneous graphs: all such problems are either in P or NP-complete
On the relations between SAT and CSP enumerative algorithms
AbstractWe show the equivalence between the so-called Davis–Putnam procedure (Davis et al., Comm. ACM 5 (1962) 394–397; Davis and Putnam (J. ACM 7 (1960) 201–215)) and the Forward Checking of Haralick and Elliot (Artificial Intelligence 14 (1980) 263–313). Both apply the paradigm choose and propagate in two different formalisms, namely the propositional calculus and the constraint satisfaction problems formalism. They happen to be strictly equivalent as soon as a compatible instantiation order is chosen. This equivalence is shown considering the resolution of the clausal expression of a CSP by the Davis–Putnam procedure
Tractable Combinations of Global Constraints
We study the complexity of constraint satisfaction problems involving global
constraints, i.e., special-purpose constraints provided by a solver and
represented implicitly by a parametrised algorithm. Such constraints are widely
used; indeed, they are one of the key reasons for the success of constraint
programming in solving real-world problems.
Previous work has focused on the development of efficient propagators for
individual constraints. In this paper, we identify a new tractable class of
constraint problems involving global constraints of unbounded arity. To do so,
we combine structural restrictions with the observation that some important
types of global constraint do not distinguish between large classes of
equivalent solutions.Comment: To appear in proceedings of CP'13, LNCS 8124. arXiv admin note: text
overlap with arXiv:1307.179
The complexity of global cardinality constraints
In a constraint satisfaction problem (CSP) the goal is to find an assignment
of a given set of variables subject to specified constraints. A global
cardinality constraint is an additional requirement that prescribes how many
variables must be assigned a certain value. We study the complexity of the
problem CCSP(G), the constraint satisfaction problem with global cardinality
constraints that allows only relations from the set G. The main result of this
paper characterizes sets G that give rise to problems solvable in polynomial
time, and states that the remaining such problems are NP-complete
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