Strict Complementary Slackness Research Articles

Fixed-time control under spatiotemporal and input constraints: A Quadratic Programming based approach

This paper presents a control synthesis framework for a general class of nonlinear, control-affine systems under spatiotemporal and input constraints. First, we study the problem of fixed-time convergence in the presence of input constraints. The relation between the domain of attraction for fixed-time stability with respect to input constraints and the required time of convergence is established. It is shown that increasing the control authority or the required time of convergence can expand the domain of attraction for fixed-time stability Then, we consider the problem of finding a control input that confines the closed-loop system trajectories in a safe set and steers them to a goal set within a fixed time. To this end, we present a Quadratic Programming (QP) formulation to compute the corresponding control input. We use slack variables to guarantee the feasibility of the proposed QP under input constraints. Furthermore, when strict complementary slackness holds, we show that the solution of the QP is a continuous function of the system states and establish the uniqueness of closed-loop solutions to guarantee forward invariance using Nagumo’s theorem. To corroborate our proposed methods, we present two case studies, an example of an adaptive cruise control problem and a two-robot motion planning problem.

Probability Distributions on Partially Ordered Sets and Network Interdiction Games

This article poses the following problem: Does there exist a probability distribution over subsets of a finite partially ordered set (poset), such that a set of constraints involving marginal probabilities of the poset’s elements and maximal chains is satisfied? We present a combinatorial algorithm to positively resolve this question. The algorithm can be implemented in polynomial time in the special case where maximal chain probabilities are affine functions of their elements. This existence problem is relevant for the equilibrium characterization of a generic strategic interdiction game on a capacitated flow network. The game involves a routing entity that sends its flow through the network while facing path transportation costs and an interdictor who simultaneously interdicts one or more edges while facing edge interdiction costs. Using our existence result on posets and strict complementary slackness in linear programming, we show that the Nash equilibria of this game can be fully described using primal and dual solutions of a minimum-cost circulation problem. Our analysis provides a new characterization of the critical components in the interdiction game. It also leads to a polynomial-time approach for equilibrium computation.

Error estimation in nonlinear optimization

Methods are developed and analyzed for estimating the distance to a local minimizer of a nonlinear programming problem. One estimate, based on the solution of a constrained convex quadratic program, can be used when strict complementary slackness and the second-order sufficient optimality conditions hold. A second estimate, based on the solution of an unconstrained nonconvex, nonsmooth optimization problem, is valid even when strict complementary slackness is violated. Both estimates are valid in a neighborhood of a local minimizer. An active set algorithm is developed for computing a stationary point of the nonsmooth error estimator. Each iteration of the algorithm requires the solution of a symmetric, positive semidefinite linear system, followed by a line search. Convergence is achieved in a finite number of iterations. The error bounds are based on stability properties for nonlinear programs. The theory is illustrated by some numerical examples.

The Semismooth Approach for Semi-Infinite Programming without Strict Complementarity

As a complement of our recent article [O. Stein and A. Tezel, J. Global Optim., 41 (2008), pp. 245–266], we study convergence of a semismooth Newton method for generalized semi-infinite programming problems with convex lower level problems. The semismooth Newton method is applied to a semismooth reformulation of the upper and lower level Karush–Kuhn–Tucker conditions by nonlinear complementarity problem functions into a semismooth system of equations. In the present paper we assume strict complementary slackness neither in the upper nor in the lower level. The auxiliary functions of the locally reduced problem then are not necessarily twice continuously differentiable. Still, we can show that a standard regularity condition for quadratic convergence of the semismooth Newton method holds under a natural assumption for semi-infinite programs.

The semismooth approach for semi-infinite programming under the Reduction Ansatz

We study convergence of a semismooth Newton method for generalized semi-infinite programming problems with convex lower level problems where, using NCP functions, the upper and lower level Karush-Kuhn-Tucker conditions of the optimization problem are reformulated as a semismooth system of equations. Nonsmoothness is caused by a possible violation of strict complementarity slackness. We show that the standard regularity condition for convergence of the semismooth Newton method is satisfied under natural assumptions for semi-infinite programs. In fact, under the Reduction Ansatz in the lower level and strong stability in the reduced upper level problem this regularity condition is satisfied. In particular, we do not have to assume strict complementary slackness in the upper level. Numerical examples from, among others, design centering and robust optimization illustrate the performance of the method.

On the Classical Necessary Second-Order Optimality Conditions in the Presence of Equality and Inequality Constraints

For nonconvex optimization problems in Rn , a counterexample was recently given by Anitescu [SIAM J. Optim., 10 (2000), pp. 1116--1135] that showed that the Mangasarian--Fromovitz constraint qualification (MFCQ) is not sufficient for the classical necessary second-order optimality conditions to hold. We prove these optimality conditions with the assumptions that the set of Lagrange multipliers is a bounded line segment and a relaxed strict complementary slackness (SCS) condition holds. A new constraint qualification is presented in this paper: We assume that the MFCQ holds and the active constraint rank deficiency is 1. This assumption relaxes the linear independence constraint qualification and enforces the MFCQ. In addition, the set of Lagrange multipliers is a bounded line segment.

Extended convergence results for the method of multipliers for nonstrictly binding inequality constraints

In this paper, we extend the classical convergence and rate of convergence results for the method of multipliers for equality constrained problems to general inequality constrained problems, without assuming the strict complementarity hypothesis at the local optimal solution. Instead, we consider an alternative second-order sufficient condition for a strict local minimum, which coincides with the standard one in the case of strict complementary slackness. As a consequence, new stopping rules are derived in order to guarantee a local linear rate of convergence for the method, even if the current Lagrangian is only asymptotically minimized in this more general setting. These extended results allow us to broaden the scope of applicability of the method of multipliers, in order to cover all those problems admitting loosely binding constraints at some optimal solution. This fact is not meaningless, since in practice this kind of problem seems to be more the rule rather than the exception.

A special newton-type optimization method

The Kuhn–Tucker conditions of an optimization problem with inequality constraints are transformed equivalently into a special nonlinear system of equations T 0(z) = 0. It is shown that Newton's method for solving this system combines two valuable properties: The local Q-quadratic convergence without assuming the strict complementary slackness condition and the regularity of the Jacobian of T 0 at a point z under reasonable conditions, so that Newton’s method can be used also far from a Kuhn–Tucker point

On the rate of convergence of two minimax algorithms

We show that the sequences of function values constructed by two versions of a minimax algorithm converge linearly to the minimum values. Both versions use the Pshenichnyi-Pironneau-Polak search direction subprocedure; the first uses an exact line search to determine the stepsize, while the second one uses an Armijo-type stepsize rule. The proofs depend on a second-order sufficiency condition, but not on strict complementary slackness. Minimax problems in which each function appearing in the max is a composition of a twice continuously differentiable function with a linear function typically do not satisfy second-order sufficiency conditions. Nevertheless, we show that, on such minimax problems, the two algorithms do converge linearly when the outer functions are convex and strict complementary slackness holds at the solutions.

Unconstrained global optimization using strict complementary slackness

By using interval arithmetic, we can show that strict complementary slackness holds at the local minimizers of unconstrained optimization problems. With this idea, the parallelepiped with sides parallel to the coordinate axes can be bisected for locating such minimizers.

A superlinearly convergent method to linearly constrained optimization problems under degeneracy

Most papers concerning nonlinear programming problems with linear constraints assume linear independence of the gradients of the active constraints at any feasible point. In this paper we remove this assumption and give an algorithm and prove its convergency. Also, under appropriate assumptions on the objective function, including one which could be viewed as an extension of the strict complementary slackness condition at the optimal solution, we prove the rate of convergence of the algorithm to be superlinear.