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This paper presents a new verified optimization method for the problem of finding the densest packings of nonoverlapping equal circles in a square. In order to provide reliable numerical results, the developed algorithm is based on interval analysis. As one of the most efficient parts of the algorithm, an interval-based version of a previous elimination procedure is introduced. This method represents the remaining areas still of interest as polygons fully calculated in a reliable way. Currently the most promising strategy of finding optimal circle packing configurations is to partition the original problem into subproblems. Still, as a result of the highly increasing number of subproblems, earlier computer-aided methods were not able to solve problem instances where the number of circles was greater than 27. The present paper provides a carefully developed technique resolving this difficulty by eliminating large groups of subproblems together. As a demonstration of the capabilities of the new algorithm the problems of packing 28, 29, and 30 circles were solved within very tight tolerance values. Our verified procedure decreased the uncertainty in the location of the optimal packings by more than 700 orders of magnitude in all cases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Traditionally, a multiuser problem is a constrained optimization problem characterized by a set of users, an objective given by a sum of user-specific utility functions, and a collection of linear constraints that couple the user decisions. The users do not share the information about their utilities, but do communicate values of their decision variables. The multiuser problem is to maximize the sum of the user-specific utility functions subject to the coupling constraints, while abiding by the informational requirements of each user. In this paper, we focus on generalizations of convex multiuser optimization problems where the objective and constraints are not separable by user and instead consider instances where user decisions are coupled, both in the objective and through nonlinear coupling constraints. To solve this problem, we consider the application of gradient-based distributed algorithms on an approximation of the multiuser problem. Such an approximation is obtained through a Tikhonov regularization and is equipped with estimates of the difference between the optimal function values of the original problem and its regularized counterpart. In the algorithmic development, we consider constant step-length primal-dual and dual schemes in which the iterate computations are distributed naturally across the users; i.e., each user updates its own decision only. Convergence in the primal-dual space is provided in limited coordination settings, which allows for differing step lengths across users as well as across the primal and dual space. We observe that a generalization of this result is also available when users choose their regularization parameters independently from a prescribed range. An alternative to primal-dual schemes can be found in dual schemes that are analyzed in regimes where approximate primal solutions are obtained through a fixed number of gradient steps. Per-iteration error bounds are provided in such regimes, and extensions are provided to regimes where users independently choose their regularization parameters. Our results are supported by a case study in which the proposed algorithms are applied to a multiuser problem arising in a congested traffic network. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The recently introduced proximal average of two convex functions is a convex function with many useful properties. In this paper, we introduce and systematically study the proximal average for finitely many convex functions. The basic properties of the proximal average with respect to the standard convex-analytical notions (domain, Fenchel conjugate, subdifferential, proximal mapping, epi-continuity, and others) are provided and illustrated by several examples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper we introduce three new classes of nonnegative forms (or equivalently, symmetric tensors) and their extensions. The newly identified nonnegative symmetric tensors constitute distinctive convex cones in the space of general symmetric tensors (order six or above). For the special case of quartic forms, they collapse into the set of convex quartic homogeneous polynomial functions. We discuss the properties and applications of the new classes of nonnegative symmetric tensors in the context of polynomial and tensor optimization. Numerical experiments for solving certain polynomial optimization models based on the new class es of nonnegative symmetric tensors are presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present algorithms for solving a number of new models of facility location which generalize the classical Fermat-Torricelli problem. Our first approach involves using Nesterov's smoothing technique and the minimization majorization principle to build smooth approximations that are convenient for applying smooth optimization schemes. Another approach uses subgradient-type algorithms to cope directly with the nondifferentiability of the cost functions. Convergence results of the algorithms are proved and numerical tests are presented to show the effectiveness of the proposed algorithms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A class of trust-region methods is presented for solving unconstrained nonlinear and possibly nonconvex discretized optimization problems, like those arising in systems governed by partial differential equations. The algorithms in this class make use of the discretization level as a means of speeding up the computation of the step. This use is recursive, leading to true multilevel/multiscale optimization methods reminiscent of multigrid methods in linear algebra and the solution of partial differential equations. A simple algorithm of the class is then described and its numerical performance is shown to be numerically promising. This observation then motivates a proof of global convergence to first-order stationary points on the fine grid that is valid for all algorithms in the class. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Iterative methods are proposed for certain augmented systems of linear equations that arise in interior methods for general nonlinear optimization, Interior methods define a sequence of KKT equations that represent the symmetrized (but indefinite) equations associated with Newton's method for a point satisfying the perturbed optimality conditions. These equations involve both the primal and dual variables and become increasingly ill-conditioned as the optimization proceeds. In this context, an iterative linear solver must not only handle the ill-conditioning but also detect the occurrence of KKT matrices with the wrong matrix inertia. A one-parameter family of equivalent linear equations is formulated that includes the KKT system as a special case. The discussion focuses on a particular system from this family, known as the "doubly augmented system," that is positive definite with respect to both the primal and dual variables. This property means that a standard preconditioned conjugate-gradient method involving both primal and dual variables will either terminate successfully or detect if the KKT matrix has the wrong inertia. Constraint preconditioning is a well-known technique for preconditioning the conjugate-gradient method on augmented systems. A family of constraint preconditioners is proposed that provably eliminates the inherent ill-conditioning in the augmented system. A considerable benefit of combining constraint preconditioning with the doubly augmented system is that the preconditioner need not be applied exactly. Two particular "active-set" constraint preconditioners are formulated that involve only a subset of the rows of the augmented system and thereby may be applied with considerably less work. Finally, some numerical experiments illustrate the numerical performance of the proposed preconditioners and highlight some theoretical properties of the preconditioned matrices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An active set algorithm (ASA) for box constrained optimization is developed. The algorithm consists of a nonmonotone gradient projection step, an unconstrained optimization step, and a set of rules for branching between the two steps. Global convergence to a stationary point is established. For a nondegenerate stationary point, the algorithm eventually reduces to unconstrained optimization without restarts. Similarly, for a degenerate stationary point, where the strong second order sufficient optimality condition holds, the algorithm eventually reduces to unconstrained optimization without restarts. A specific implementation of the ASA is given which exploits the recently developed cyclic Barzilai-Borwein (CBB) algorithm for the gradient projection step and the recently developed conjugate gradient algorithm CG_DESCENT for unconstrained optimization. Numerical experiments are presented using box constrained problems in the CUTEr and MINPACK-2 test problem libraries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present a primal-dual interior-point algorithm for solving optimization problems with nonlinear inequality constraints. The algorithm has some of the theoretical properties of trust region methods, but works entirely by line search. Global convergence properties are derived without assuming regularity conditions. The penalty parameter ρ in the merit function is updated adaptively and plays two roles in the algorithm. First, it guarantees that the search directions are descent directions of the updated merit function. Second, it helps to determine a suitable search direction in a decomposed SQP step. It is shown that if ρ is bounded for each barrier parameter μ, then every limit point of the sequence generated by the algorithm is a Karush -- Kuhn -- Tucker point, whereas if ρ is unbounded for some μ, then the sequence has a limit point which is either a Fritz -- John point or a stationary point of a function measuring the violation of the constraints. Numerical results confirm that the algorithm produces the correct results for some hard problems, including the example provided by Wächter and Biegler, for which many of the existing line search--based interior-point methods have failed to find the right answers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]