29,467 research outputs found
Newton-Type Methods for Non-Convex Optimization Under Inexact Hessian Information
We consider variants of trust-region and cubic regularization methods for
non-convex optimization, in which the Hessian matrix is approximated. Under
mild conditions on the inexact Hessian, and using approximate solution of the
corresponding sub-problems, we provide iteration complexity to achieve -approximate second-order optimality which have shown to be tight.
Our Hessian approximation conditions constitute a major relaxation over the
existing ones in the literature. Consequently, we are able to show that such
mild conditions allow for the construction of the approximate Hessian through
various random sampling methods. In this light, we consider the canonical
problem of finite-sum minimization, provide appropriate uniform and non-uniform
sub-sampling strategies to construct such Hessian approximations, and obtain
optimal iteration complexity for the corresponding sub-sampled trust-region and
cubic regularization methods.Comment: 32 page
Approximation of System Components for Pump Scheduling Optimisation
© 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.The operation of pump systems in water distribution systems (WDS) is commonly the most expensive task for utilities with up to 70% of the operating cost of a pump system attributed to electricity consumption. Optimisation of pump scheduling could save 10-20% by improving efficiency or shifting consumption to periods with low tariffs. Due to the complexity of the optimal control problem, heuristic methods which cannot guarantee optimality are often applied. To facilitate the use of mathematical optimisation this paper investigates formulations of WDS components. We show that linear approximations outperform non-linear approximations, while maintaining comparable levels of accuracy
The Lazy Flipper: MAP Inference in Higher-Order Graphical Models by Depth-limited Exhaustive Search
This article presents a new search algorithm for the NP-hard problem of
optimizing functions of binary variables that decompose according to a
graphical model. It can be applied to models of any order and structure. The
main novelty is a technique to constrain the search space based on the topology
of the model. When pursued to the full search depth, the algorithm is
guaranteed to converge to a global optimum, passing through a series of
monotonously improving local optima that are guaranteed to be optimal within a
given and increasing Hamming distance. For a search depth of 1, it specializes
to Iterated Conditional Modes. Between these extremes, a useful tradeoff
between approximation quality and runtime is established. Experiments on models
derived from both illustrative and real problems show that approximations found
with limited search depth match or improve those obtained by state-of-the-art
methods based on message passing and linear programming.Comment: C++ Source Code available from
http://hci.iwr.uni-heidelberg.de/software.ph
Semidefinite Relaxations for Stochastic Optimal Control Policies
Recent results in the study of the Hamilton Jacobi Bellman (HJB) equation
have led to the discovery of a formulation of the value function as a linear
Partial Differential Equation (PDE) for stochastic nonlinear systems with a
mild constraint on their disturbances. This has yielded promising directions
for research in the planning and control of nonlinear systems. This work
proposes a new method obtaining approximate solutions to these linear
stochastic optimal control (SOC) problems. A candidate polynomial with variable
coefficients is proposed as the solution to the SOC problem. A Sum of Squares
(SOS) relaxation is then taken to the partial differential constraints, leading
to a hierarchy of semidefinite relaxations with improving sub-optimality gap.
The resulting approximate solutions are shown to be guaranteed over- and
under-approximations for the optimal value function.Comment: Preprint. Accepted to American Controls Conference (ACC) 2014 in
Portland, Oregon. 7 pages, colo
Convex inner approximations of nonconvex semialgebraic sets applied to fixed-order controller design
We describe an elementary algorithm to build convex inner approximations of
nonconvex sets. Both input and output sets are basic semialgebraic sets given
as lists of defining multivariate polynomials. Even though no optimality
guarantees can be given (e.g. in terms of volume maximization for bounded
sets), the algorithm is designed to preserve convex boundaries as much as
possible, while removing regions with concave boundaries. In particular, the
algorithm leaves invariant a given convex set. The algorithm is based on
Gloptipoly 3, a public-domain Matlab package solving nonconvex polynomial
optimization problems with the help of convex semidefinite programming
(optimization over linear matrix inequalities, or LMIs). We illustrate how the
algorithm can be used to design fixed-order controllers for linear systems,
following a polynomial approach
Structural approximations to positive maps and entanglement breaking channels
Structural approximations to positive, but not completely positive maps are
approximate physical realizations of these non-physical maps. They find
applications in the design of direct entanglement detection methods. We show
that many of these approximations, in the relevant case of optimal positive
maps, define an entanglement breaking channel and, consequently, can be
implemented via a measurement and state-preparation protocol. We also show how
our findings can be useful for the design of better and simpler direct
entanglement detection methods.Comment: 18 pages, 3 figure
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