Continuous Dynamic Constrained Optimisation – The Challenges

Many real-world dynamic problems have constraints, and in certain cases not only the objective function changes over time, but also the constraints. However, there is no research in answering the question of whether current algorithms work well on continuous dynamic constrained optimisation problems (DCOPs), nor is there any benchmark problem that reflects the common characteristics … Read more

An Exact Algorithm for Quadratic Integer Minimization using Ellipsoidal Relaxations

We propose a branch-and-bound algorithm for minimizing a not necessarily convex quadratic function over integer variables. The algorithm is based on lower bounds computed as continuous minima of the objective function over appropriate ellipsoids. In the nonconvex case, we use ellipsoids enclosing the feasible region of the problem. In spite of the nonconvexity, these minima … Read more

Multi-Variate McCormick Relaxations

G. P. McCormick [Math Prog 1976] provides the framework for convex/concave relaxations of factorable functions, via rules for the product of functions and compositions of the form F(f(z)), where F is a univariate function. Herein, the composition theorem is generalized to allow multivariate outer functions F, and theory for the propagation of subgradients is presented. … Read more

Global Optimization of Nonlinear Network Design

A novel approach for obtaining globally optimal solutions to design of networks with nonlinear resistances and potential driven flows is proposed. The approach is applicable to networks where the potential loss on an edge in the network is governed by a convex and strictly monotonically increasing function of flow rate. We introduce a relaxation of … Read more

Successive Convex Approximations to Cardinality-Constrained Quadratic Programs: A DC Approach

In this paper we consider a cardinality-constrained quadratic program that minimizes a convex quadratic function subject to a cardinality constraint and linear constraints. This class of problems has found many applications, including portfolio selection, subset selection and compressed sensing. We propose a successive convex approximation method for this class of problems in which the cardinality … Read more

Analytical formulas for calculating the extremal ranks of the matrix-valued function + BXC$ when the rank of $ is fixed

Analytical formulas are established for calculating the maximal and minimal ranks of the matrix-valued function $A + BXC$ when the rank of $X$ is fixed. Some consequences are also given. Article Download View Analytical formulas for calculating the extremal ranks of the matrix-valued function + BXC$ when the rank of $ is fixed

On optimizing the sum of the Rayleigh quotient and the generalized Rayleigh quotient on the unit sphere

Given symmetric matrices $B,D\in R^{n\times n}$ and a symmetric positive definite matrix $W\in R^{n\times n},$ maximizing the sum of the Rayleigh quotient $x^T Dx$ and the generalized Rayleigh quotient $x^T Bx/x^TWx$ on the unit sphere not only is of mathematical interest in its own right, but also finds applications in practice. In this paper, we … Read more

Non-Convex Mixed-Integer Nonlinear Programming: A Survey

A wide range of problems arising in practical applications can be formulated as Mixed-Integer Nonlinear Programs (MINLPs). For the case in which the objective and constraint functions are convex, some quite effective exact and heuristic algorithms are available. When non-convexities are present, however, things become much more difficult, since then even the continuous relaxation is … Read more

A Stochastic Gradient Method with an Exponential Convergence Rate for Strongly-Convex Optimization with Finite Training Sets

We propose a new stochastic gradient method for optimizing the sum of a finite set of smooth functions, where the sum is strongly convex. While standard stochastic gradient methods converge at sublinear rates for this problem, the proposed method incorporates a memory of previous gradient values in order to achieve a linear convergence rate. Numerical … Read more

Numerical Optimization of Eigenvalues of Hermitian Matrix Functions

The eigenvalues of a Hermitian matrix function that depends on one parameter analytically can be ordered so that each eigenvalue is an analytic function of the parameter. Ordering these analytic eigenvalues from the largest to the smallest yields continuous and piece-wise analytic functions. For multi-variate Hermitian matrix functions that depend on $d$ parameters analytically, the … Read more