A general mathematical framework for constrained mixed-variable blackbox optimization problems with meta and categorical variables

A mathematical framework for modelling constrained mixed-variable optimization problems is presented in a blackbox optimization context. The framework introduces a new notation and allows solution strategies. The notation framework allows meta and categorical variables to be explicitly and efficiently modelled, which facilitates the solution of such problems. The new term meta variables is used to … Read more

Handling of constraints in multiobjective blackbox optimization

This work proposes the integration of two new constraint-handling approaches into the blackbox constrained multiobjective optimization algorithm DMulti-MADS, an extension of the Mesh Adaptive Direct Search (MADS) algorithm for single-objective constrained optimization. The constraints are aggregated into a single constraint violation function which is used either in a two-phase approach, where research of a feasible … Read more

On the Complexity of Finding Shortest Variable Disjunction Branch-and-Bound Proofs

We investigate the complexity of finding small branch-and-bound trees using variable disjunctions. We first show that it is not possible to approximate the size of a smallest branch-and-bound tree within a factor of 2^(1/5) in time 2^(\delta n) with \delta < 1/5, unless the strong exponential time hypothesis fails. Similarly, for any \varepsilon > 0, … Read more