531 research outputs found
Stability and Complexity of Minimising Probabilistic Automata
We consider the state-minimisation problem for weighted and probabilistic
automata. We provide a numerically stable polynomial-time minimisation
algorithm for weighted automata, with guaranteed bounds on the numerical error
when run with floating-point arithmetic. Our algorithm can also be used for
"lossy" minimisation with bounded error. We show an application in image
compression. In the second part of the paper we study the complexity of the
minimisation problem for probabilistic automata. We prove that the problem is
NP-hard and in PSPACE, improving a recent EXPTIME-result.Comment: This is the full version of an ICALP'14 pape
Minimisation of Multiplicity Tree Automata
We consider the problem of minimising the number of states in a multiplicity
tree automaton over the field of rational numbers. We give a minimisation
algorithm that runs in polynomial time assuming unit-cost arithmetic. We also
show that a polynomial bound in the standard Turing model would require a
breakthrough in the complexity of polynomial identity testing by proving that
the latter problem is logspace equivalent to the decision version of
minimisation. The developed techniques also improve the state of the art in
multiplicity word automata: we give an NC algorithm for minimising multiplicity
word automata. Finally, we consider the minimal consistency problem: does there
exist an automaton with states that is consistent with a given finite
sample of weight-labelled words or trees? We show that this decision problem is
complete for the existential theory of the rationals, both for words and for
trees of a fixed alphabet rank.Comment: Paper to be published in Logical Methods in Computer Science. Minor
editing changes from previous versio
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Containment and equivalence of weighted automata: Probabilistic and max-plus cases
This paper surveys some results regarding decision problems for probabilistic and max-plus automata, such as containment and equivalence. Probabilistic and max-plus automata are part of the general family of weighted automata, whose semantics are maps from words to real values. Given two weighted automata, the equivalence problem asks whether their semantics are the same, and the containment problem whether one is point-wise smaller than the other one. These problems have been studied intensively and this paper will review some techniques used to show (un)decidability and state a list of open questions that still remain
A Generalised Twinning Property for Minimisation of Cost Register Automata
Weighted automata (WA) extend finite-state automata by associating with transitions weights from a semiring S, defining functions from words to S. Recently, cost register automata (CRA) have been introduced as an alternative model to describe any function realised by a WA by means of a deterministic machine. Unambiguous WA over a monoid (M, â) can equivalently be described by cost register automata whose registers take their values in M, and are updated by operations of the form x: = y â c, with c â M. This class is denoted by CRAâc(M).
We introduce a twinning property and a bounded variation property parametrised by an integer k, such that the corresponding notions introduced originally by Choffrut for finite-state transducers are obtained for k = 1. Given an unambiguous weighted automaton W over an infinitary group (G, â) realizing some function f, we prove that the three following properties are equivalent: i) W satisfies the twinning property of order k, ii) f satisfies the k-bounded variation property, and iii) f can be described by a CRAâc(G) with at most k registers.
In the spirit of tranducers, we actually prove this result in a more general setting by considering machines over the semiring of finite sets of elements from (G, â): the three properties are still equivalent for such finite-valued weighted automata, that is the ones associating with words subsets of G of cardinality at most â, for some natural â. Moreover, we show that if the operation â of G is commutative and computable, then one can decide whether a WA satisfies the twinning property of order k. As a corollary, this allows to decide the register minimisation problem for the class CRAâc(G).
Last, we prove that a similar result holds for finite-valued finite-state transducers, and that the register minimisation problem for the class CRA.c (B*) is Pspace-complete
Hyper-Minimization for Deterministic Weighted Tree Automata
Hyper-minimization is a state reduction technique that allows a finite change
in the semantics. The theory for hyper-minimization of deterministic weighted
tree automata is provided. The presence of weights slightly complicates the
situation in comparison to the unweighted case. In addition, the first
hyper-minimization algorithm for deterministic weighted tree automata, weighted
over commutative semifields, is provided together with some implementation
remarks that enable an efficient implementation. In fact, the same run-time O(m
log n) as in the unweighted case is obtained, where m is the size of the
deterministic weighted tree automaton and n is its number of states.Comment: In Proceedings AFL 2014, arXiv:1405.527
On the Complexity of the Equivalence Problem for Probabilistic Automata
Checking two probabilistic automata for equivalence has been shown to be a
key problem for efficiently establishing various behavioural and anonymity
properties of probabilistic systems. In recent experiments a randomised
equivalence test based on polynomial identity testing outperformed
deterministic algorithms. In this paper we show that polynomial identity
testing yields efficient algorithms for various generalisations of the
equivalence problem. First, we provide a randomized NC procedure that also
outputs a counterexample trace in case of inequivalence. Second, we show how to
check for equivalence two probabilistic automata with (cumulative) rewards. Our
algorithm runs in deterministic polynomial time, if the number of reward
counters is fixed. Finally we show that the equivalence problem for
probabilistic visibly pushdown automata is logspace equivalent to the
Arithmetic Circuit Identity Testing problem, which is to decide whether a
polynomial represented by an arithmetic circuit is identically zero.Comment: technical report for a FoSSaCS'12 pape
Revisiting the Equivalence Problem for Finite Multitape Automata
The decidability of determining equivalence of deterministic multitape
automata (or transducers) was a longstanding open problem until it was resolved
by Harju and Karhum\"{a}ki in the early 1990s. Their proof of decidability
yields a co_NP upper bound, but apparently not much more is known about the
complexity of the problem. In this paper we give an alternative proof of
decidability, which follows the basic strategy of Harju and Karhumaki but
replaces their use of group theory with results on matrix algebras. From our
proof we obtain a simple randomised algorithm for deciding language equivalence
of deterministic multitape automata and, more generally, multiplicity
equivalence of nondeterministic multitape automata. The algorithm involves only
matrix exponentiation and runs in polynomial time for each fixed number of
tapes. If the two input automata are inequivalent then the algorithm outputs a
word on which they differ
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