Stochastic Behavior of the Nonnegative Least Mean Fourth Algorithm for Stationary Gaussian Inputs and Slow Learning

Some system identification problems impose nonnegativity constraints on the parameters to estimate due to inherent physical characteristics of the unknown system. The nonnegative least-mean-square (NNLMS) algorithm and its variants allow to address this problem in an online manner. A nonnegative least mean fourth (NNLMF) algorithm has been recently proposed to improve the performance of these algorithms in cases where the measurement noise is not Gaussian. This paper provides a first theoretical analysis of the stochastic behavior of the NNLMF algorithm for stationary Gaussian inputs and slow learning. Simulation results illustrate the accuracy of the proposed analysis.Comment: 11 pages, 8 figures, submitted for publicatio

Efficient State-Space Inference of Periodic Latent Force Models

Latent force models (LFM) are principled approaches to incorporating solutions to differential equations within non-parametric inference methods. Unfortunately, the development and application of LFMs can be inhibited by their computational cost, especially when closed-form solutions for the LFM are unavailable, as is the case in many real world problems where these latent forces exhibit periodic behaviour. Given this, we develop a new sparse representation of LFMs which considerably improves their computational efficiency, as well as broadening their applicability, in a principled way, to domains with periodic or near periodic latent forces. Our approach uses a linear basis model to approximate one generative model for each periodic force. We assume that the latent forces are generated from Gaussian process priors and develop a linear basis model which fully expresses these priors. We apply our approach to model the thermal dynamics of domestic buildings and show that it is effective at predicting day-ahead temperatures within the homes. We also apply our approach within queueing theory in which quasi-periodic arrival rates are modelled as latent forces. In both cases, we demonstrate that our approach can be implemented efficiently using state-space methods which encode the linear dynamic systems via LFMs. Further, we show that state estimates obtained using periodic latent force models can reduce the root mean squared error to 17% of that from non-periodic models and 27% of the nearest rival approach which is the resonator model.Comment: 61 pages, 13 figures, accepted for publication in JMLR. Updates from earlier version occur throughout article in response to JMLR review

Stochastic Behavior Analysis of the Gaussian Kernel Least-Mean-Square Algorithm

The kernel least-mean-square (KLMS) algorithm is a popular algorithm in nonlinear adaptive filtering due to its simplicity and robustness. In kernel adaptive filters, the statistics of the input to the linear filter depends on the parameters of the kernel employed. Moreover, practical implementations require a finite nonlinearity model order. A Gaussian KLMS has two design parameters, the step size and the Gaussian kernel bandwidth. Thus, its design requires analytical models for the algorithm behavior as a function of these two parameters. This paper studies the steady-state behavior and the transient behavior of the Gaussian KLMS algorithm for Gaussian inputs and a finite order nonlinearity model. In particular, we derive recursive expressions for the mean-weight-error vector and the mean-square-error. The model predictions show excellent agreement with Monte Carlo simulations in transient and steady state. This allows the explicit analytical determination of stability limits, and gives opportunity to choose the algorithm parameters a priori in order to achieve prescribed convergence speed and quality of the estimate. Design examples are presented which validate the theoretical analysis and illustrates its application

A Novel Family of Adaptive Filtering Algorithms Based on The Logarithmic Cost

We introduce a novel family of adaptive filtering algorithms based on a relative logarithmic cost. The new family intrinsically combines the higher and lower order measures of the error into a single continuous update based on the error amount. We introduce important members of this family of algorithms such as the least mean logarithmic square (LMLS) and least logarithmic absolute difference (LLAD) algorithms that improve the convergence performance of the conventional algorithms. However, our approach and analysis are generic such that they cover other well-known cost functions as described in the paper. The LMLS algorithm achieves comparable convergence performance with the least mean fourth (LMF) algorithm and extends the stability bound on the step size. The LLAD and least mean square (LMS) algorithms demonstrate similar convergence performance in impulse-free noise environments while the LLAD algorithm is robust against impulsive interferences and outperforms the sign algorithm (SA). We analyze the transient, steady state and tracking performance of the introduced algorithms and demonstrate the match of the theoretical analyzes and simulation results. We show the extended stability bound of the LMLS algorithm and analyze the robustness of the LLAD algorithm against impulsive interferences. Finally, we demonstrate the performance of our algorithms in different scenarios through numerical examples.Comment: Submitted to IEEE Transactions on Signal Processin

A constructive mean field analysis of multi population neural networks with random synaptic weights and stochastic inputs

We deal with the problem of bridging the gap between two scales in neuronal modeling. At the first (microscopic) scale, neurons are considered individually and their behavior described by stochastic differential equations that govern the time variations of their membrane potentials. They are coupled by synaptic connections acting on their resulting activity, a nonlinear function of their membrane potential. At the second (mesoscopic) scale, interacting populations of neurons are described individually by similar equations. The equations describing the dynamical and the stationary mean field behaviors are considered as functional equations on a set of stochastic processes. Using this new point of view allows us to prove that these equations are well-posed on any finite time interval and to provide a constructive method for effectively computing their unique solution. This method is proved to converge to the unique solution and we characterize its complexity and convergence rate. We also provide partial results for the stationary problem on infinite time intervals. These results shed some new light on such neural mass models as the one of Jansen and Rit \cite{jansen-rit:95}: their dynamics appears as a coarse approximation of the much richer dynamics that emerges from our analysis. Our numerical experiments confirm that the framework we propose and the numerical methods we derive from it provide a new and powerful tool for the exploration of neural behaviors at different scales.Comment: 55 pages, 4 figures, to appear in "Frontiers in Neuroscience