An efficient dimer method with preconditioning and linesearch

The dimer method is a Hessian-free algorithm for computing saddle points. We augment the method with a linesearch mechanism for automatic step size selection as well as preconditioning capabilities. We prove local linear convergence. A series of numerical tests demonstrate significant performance gains. Citation http://arxiv.org/abs/1407.2817 Article Download View An efficient dimer method with preconditioning and … Read more

Formal property verification in a conformance testing framework

In model-based design of cyber-physical systems, such as switched mixed-signal circuits or software-controlled physical systems, it is common to develop a sequence of system models of different fidelity and complexity, each appropriate for a particular design or verification task. In such a sequence, one model is often derived from the other by a process of … Read more

Justification of Constrained Game Equilibrium Models

We consider an extension of a noncooperative game where players have joint binding constraints. In this model, the constrained equilibrium can not be implemented within the same noncooperative framework and requires some other additional regulation procedures. We consider several approaches to resolution of this problem. In particular, a share allocation method is presented and substantiated. … Read more

Stochastic Topology Design Optimization for Continuous Elastic Materials

In this paper, we develop a stochastic model for topology optimization. We find robust structures that minimize the compliance for a given main load having a stochastic behavior. We propose a model that takes into account the expected value of the compliance and its variance. We show that, similarly to the case of truss structures, … Read more

Linear conic optimization for nonlinear optimal control

Infinite-dimensional linear conic formulations are described for nonlinear optimal control problems. The primal linear problem consists of finding occupation measures supported on optimal relaxed controlled trajectories, whereas the dual linear problem consists of finding the largest lower bound on the value function of the optimal control problem. Various approximation results relating the original optimal control … Read more

An Accelerated Proximal Coordinate Gradient Method and its Application to Regularized Empirical Risk Minimization

We consider the problem of minimizing the sum of two convex functions: one is smooth and given by a gradient oracle, and the other is separable over blocks of coordinates and has a simple known structure over each block. We develop an accelerated randomized proximal coordinate gradient (APCG) method for minimizing such convex composite functions. … Read more

Local Convergence of an Algorithm for Subspace Identification from Partial Data

GROUSE (Grassmannian Rank-One Update Subspace Estimation) is an iterative algorithm for identifying a linear subspace of $\R^n$ from data consisting of partial observations of random vectors from that subspace. This paper examines local convergence properties of GROUSE, under assumptions on the randomness of the observed vectors, the randomness of the subset of elements observed at … Read more

Levenberg-Marquardt methods based on probabilistic gradient models and inexact subproblem solution, with application to data assimilation

The Levenberg-Marquardt algorithm is one of the most popular algorithms for the solution of nonlinear least squares problems. Motivated by the problem structure in data assimilation, we consider in this paper the extension of the classical Levenberg-Marquardt algorithm to the scenarios where the linearized least squares subproblems are solved inexactly and/or the gradient model is … Read more

Steplength Thresholds for Invariance Preserving of Discretization Methods of Dynamical Systems on a Polyhedron

Steplength thresholds for invariance preserving of three types of discretization methods on a polyhedron are considered. For Taylor approximation type discretization methods we prove that a valid steplength threshold can be obtained by finding the first positive zeros of a finite number of polynomial functions. Further, a simple and efficient algorithm is proposed to numerically … Read more

Playing with Duality: An Overview of Recent Primal-Dual Approaches for Solving Large-Scale Optimization Problems

Optimization methods are at the core of many problems in signal/image processing, computer vision, and machine learning. For a long time, it has been recognized that looking at the dual of an optimization problem may drastically simplify its solution. Deriving efficient strategies which jointly brings into play the primal and the dual problems is however … Read more