Solving linear integer programming problems by a novel neural model.

Abstract

The paper deals with integer linear programming problems. As is well known, these are extremely complex problems, even when the number of integer variables is quite low. Literature provides examples of various methods to solve such problems, some of which are of a heuristic nature. This paper proposes an alternative strategy based on the Hopfield neural network. The advantage of the strategy essentially lies in the fact that hardware implementation of the neural model allows for the time required to obtain a solution so as not depend on the size of the problem to be solved. The paper presents a particular class of integer linear programming problems, including well-known problems such as the Travelling Salesman Problem and the Set Covering Problem. After a brief description of this class of problems, it is demonstrated that the original Hopfield model is incapable of supplying valid solutions. This is attributed to the presence of constant bias currents in the dynamic of the neural model. A demonstration of this is given and then a novel neural model is presented which continues to be based on the same architecture as the Hopfield model, but introduces modifications thanks to which the integer linear programming problems presented can be solved. Some numerical examples and concluding remarks highlight the solving capacity of the novel neural model.