In this paper we analyze the behavior of a quite standard Differential Evolution (DE) algorithm applied to the objective function transformed by means of local searches. First some surprising results are presented which concern the application of this method to standard test functions. Later we introduce an application to disk- and to sphere-packing problems, two … Read more
We present a global optimization algorithm, Branch-and-Sandwich, for optimistic bilevel programming problems which satisfy a regularity condition in the inner problem. The functions involved are assumed to be nonconvex and twice continuously differentiable. The proposed approach can be interpreted as the exploration of two solution spaces (corresponding to the inner and the outer problems) using … Read more
An automatic method for constructing linear relaxations of constrained global optimization problems is proposed. Such a construction is based on affine and interval arithmetics and uses operator overloading. These linear programs have exactly the same numbers of variables and of inequality constraints as the given problems. Each equality constraint is replaced by two inequalities. This … Read more
We consider the stochastic economic lot scheduling problem (SELSP) with lost sales and random demand, where switching between products is subject to sequence-dependent setup times. We propose a solution based on simulation optimization using an iterative two-step procedure which combines global policy search with local search heuristics for the traveling salesman sequencing subproblem. To optimize … Read more
The paper presents a generalization of a known density theorem of Arrow, Barankin, and Blackwell for properly efficient points defined as support points of sets with respect to monotonically increasing sublinear functions. This result is shown to hold for nonconvex sets of a reflexive Banach space partially ordered by a Bishop–Phelps cone. CitationDepartment of Industrial … Read more
This paper follows the recent discussion on the sparse solution recovery with quasi-norms Lq; q\in(0,1) when the sensing matrix possesses a Restricted Isometry Constant \delta_{2k} (RIC). Our key tool is an improvement on a version of “the converse of a generalized Cauchy-Schwarz inequality” extended to the setting of quasi-norm. We show that, if \delta_{2k}\le 1/2, … Read more
This paper presents a branch-and-lift algorithm for solving optimal control problems with smooth nonlinear dynamics and nonconvex objective and constraint functionals to guaranteed global optimality. This algorithm features a direct sequential method and builds upon a spatial branch-and-bound algorithm. A new operation, called lifting, is introduced which refines the control parameterization via a Gram-Schmidt orthogonalization … Read more
In this paper we introduce a new numerical optimization technique, a Probabilistic-Driven Search Algorithm. This algorithm has the following characteristics: 1) In each iteration of loop, the algorithm just changes the value of k variables to find a new solution better than the current one; 2) In each variable of the solution of the problem, … Read more
In this paper we study valid inequalities for a fundamental set that involves a continuous vector variable x in [0,1]^n, its associated quadratic form x x’ and its binary indicators. This structure appears when deriving strong relaxations for mixed integer quadratic programs (MIQPs). We treat valid inequalities for this set as lifted from QPB, which … Read more
This paper presents a practical method for finding the globally optimal solution to nonlinear sum-of-ratios problem arising in image processing, engineering and management. Unlike traditional methods which may get trapped in local minima due to the non-convex nature of this problem, our approach provides a theoretical guarantee of global optimality. Our algorithm is based on … Read more