Deep Neural Network Structures Solving Variational Inequalities

We propose a novel theoretical framework to investigate deep neural networks using the formalism of proximal fixed point methods for solving variational inequalities. We first show that almost all activation functions used in neural networks are actually proximity operators. This leads to an algorithmic model alternating firmly nonexpansive and linear operators. We derive new results … Read more

Stochastic Approximations and Perturbations in Forward-Backward Splitting for Monotone Operators

We investigate the asymptotic behavior of a stochastic version of the forward-backward splitting algorithm for finding a zero of the sum of a maximally monotone set-valued operator and a cocoercive operator in Hilbert spaces. Our general setting features stochastic approximations of the cocoercive operator and stochastic perturbations in the evaluation of the resolvents of the … Read more

Asynchronous Block-Iterative Primal-Dual Decomposition Methods for Monotone Inclusions

We propose new primal-dual decomposition algorithms for solving systems of inclusions involving sums of linearly composed maximally monotone operators. The principal innovation in these algorithms is that they are block-iterative in the sense that, at each iteration, only a subset of the monotone operators needs to be processed, as opposed to all operators as in … Read more

Stochastic Quasi-Fejér Block-Coordinate Fixed Point Iterations with Random Sweeping

This work investigates the properties of stochastic quasi-Fejér monotone sequences in Hilbert spaces and emphasizes their pertinence in the study of the convergence of block-coordinate fixed point methods. The iterative methods under investigation feature random sweeping rules to select the blocks of variables that are activated over the course of the iterations and allow for … Read more

There is no variational characterization of the cycles in the method of periodic projections

The method of periodic projections consists in iterating projections onto $m$ closed convex subsets of a Hilbert space according to a periodic sweeping strategy. In the presence of $m\geq 3$ sets, a long-standing question going back to the 1960s is whether the limit cycles obtained by such a process can be characterized as the minimizers … Read more

A Monotone+Skew Splitting Model for Composite Monotone Inclusions in Duality

The principle underlying this paper is the basic observation that the problem of simultaneously solving a large class of composite monotone inclusions and their duals can be reduced to that of finding a zero of the sum of a maximally monotone operator and a linear skew-adjoint operator. An algorithmic framework is developed for solving this … Read more

On the Effectiveness of Projection Methods for Convex Feasibility

The effectiveness of projection methods for solving systems of linear inequalities is investigated. It is shown that they have a computational advantage over some alternatives and that this makes them successful in real-world applications. This is supported by experimental evidence provided in this paper on problems of various sizes (up to tens of thousands of … Read more

A VARIATIONAL FORMULATION FOR FRAME-BASED INVERSE PROBLEMS

A convex variational framework is proposed for solving inverse problems in Hilbert spaces with a priori information on the representation of the target solution in a frame. The objective function to be minimized consists of a separable term penalizing each frame coefficient individually and of a smooth term modeling the data formation model as well … Read more

PROXIMAL THRESHOLDING ALGORITHM FOR MINIMIZATION OVER ORTHONORMAL BASES

The notion of soft thresholding plays a central role in problems from various areas of applied mathematics, in which the ideal solution is known to possess a sparse decomposition in some orthonormal basis. Using convex-analytical tools, we extend this notion to that of proximal thresholding and investigate its properties, providing in particular several characterizations of … Read more

Joint minimization with alternating Bregman proximity operators

A systematic study of the proximity properties of Bregman distances is carried out. This investigation leads to the introduction of a new type of proximity operator which complements the usual Bregman proximity operator. We establish key properties of these operators and utilize them to devise a new alternating procedure for solving a broad class of … Read more