51,480 research outputs found
Distributed Partitioned Big-Data Optimization via Asynchronous Dual Decomposition
In this paper we consider a novel partitioned framework for distributed
optimization in peer-to-peer networks. In several important applications the
agents of a network have to solve an optimization problem with two key
features: (i) the dimension of the decision variable depends on the network
size, and (ii) cost function and constraints have a sparsity structure related
to the communication graph. For this class of problems a straightforward
application of existing consensus methods would show two inefficiencies: poor
scalability and redundancy of shared information. We propose an asynchronous
distributed algorithm, based on dual decomposition and coordinate methods, to
solve partitioned optimization problems. We show that, by exploiting the
problem structure, the solution can be partitioned among the nodes, so that
each node just stores a local copy of a portion of the decision variable
(rather than a copy of the entire decision vector) and solves a small-scale
local problem
Exploiting Chordality in Optimization Algorithms for Model Predictive Control
In this chapter we show that chordal structure can be used to devise
efficient optimization methods for many common model predictive control
problems. The chordal structure is used both for computing search directions
efficiently as well as for distributing all the other computations in an
interior-point method for solving the problem. The chordal structure can stem
both from the sequential nature of the problem as well as from distributed
formulations of the problem related to scenario trees or other formulations.
The framework enables efficient parallel computations.Comment: arXiv admin note: text overlap with arXiv:1502.0638
A unified framework for solving a general class of conditional and robust set-membership estimation problems
In this paper we present a unified framework for solving a general class of
problems arising in the context of set-membership estimation/identification
theory. More precisely, the paper aims at providing an original approach for
the computation of optimal conditional and robust projection estimates in a
nonlinear estimation setting where the operator relating the data and the
parameter to be estimated is assumed to be a generic multivariate polynomial
function and the uncertainties affecting the data are assumed to belong to
semialgebraic sets. By noticing that the computation of both the conditional
and the robust projection optimal estimators requires the solution to min-max
optimization problems that share the same structure, we propose a unified
two-stage approach based on semidefinite-relaxation techniques for solving such
estimation problems. The key idea of the proposed procedure is to recognize
that the optimal functional of the inner optimization problems can be
approximated to any desired precision by a multivariate polynomial function by
suitably exploiting recently proposed results in the field of parametric
optimization. Two simulation examples are reported to show the effectiveness of
the proposed approach.Comment: Accpeted for publication in the IEEE Transactions on Automatic
Control (2014
Conic Optimization Theory: Convexification Techniques and Numerical Algorithms
Optimization is at the core of control theory and appears in several areas of
this field, such as optimal control, distributed control, system
identification, robust control, state estimation, model predictive control and
dynamic programming. The recent advances in various topics of modern
optimization have also been revamping the area of machine learning. Motivated
by the crucial role of optimization theory in the design, analysis, control and
operation of real-world systems, this tutorial paper offers a detailed overview
of some major advances in this area, namely conic optimization and its emerging
applications. First, we discuss the importance of conic optimization in
different areas. Then, we explain seminal results on the design of hierarchies
of convex relaxations for a wide range of nonconvex problems. Finally, we study
different numerical algorithms for large-scale conic optimization problems.Comment: 18 page
Recent Advances in Computational Methods for the Power Flow Equations
The power flow equations are at the core of most of the computations for
designing and operating electric power systems. The power flow equations are a
system of multivariate nonlinear equations which relate the power injections
and voltages in a power system. A plethora of methods have been devised to
solve these equations, starting from Newton-based methods to homotopy
continuation and other optimization-based methods. While many of these methods
often efficiently find a high-voltage, stable solution due to its large basin
of attraction, most of the methods struggle to find low-voltage solutions which
play significant role in certain stability-related computations. While we do
not claim to have exhausted the existing literature on all related methods,
this tutorial paper introduces some of the recent advances in methods for
solving power flow equations to the wider power systems community as well as
bringing attention from the computational mathematics and optimization
communities to the power systems problems. After briefly reviewing some of the
traditional computational methods used to solve the power flow equations, we
focus on three emerging methods: the numerical polynomial homotopy continuation
method, Groebner basis techniques, and moment/sum-of-squares relaxations using
semidefinite programming. In passing, we also emphasize the importance of an
upper bound on the number of solutions of the power flow equations and review
the current status of research in this direction.Comment: 13 pages, 2 figures. Submitted to the Tutorial Session at IEEE 2016
American Control Conferenc
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