Patent · US Expired

Method and apparatus for optimizing constraint models

US6031984A · kind A · utility

123Cited by
9References
18Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventor

Key dates

Filing dateMar 9, 1998
Grant dateFeb 29, 2000
Priority date
Expiry dateMar 9, 2018

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC G)Physics
  • CPC primaryG06Q10/06
  • WIPO fieldIT methods for management
  • WIPO sectorElectrical engineering

Abstract

A computer implemented system (40) for optimizing a constraint model (52) includes a memory (46) for storing the constraint model (52). The constraint model (52) is an over-constrained system model that has constraints with variables. Each variable in the constraint model (52) is assigned a current value from a domain of the variable. A processor (42) generates a current assignment of each variable in the constraint model (52), selects a constraint from a set of unsatisfied constraints, selects at least one variable of the selected constraint, selects a new value for each selected variable, changes the value of each selected variable to its new value to generate a new assignment of variables, and stores the new assignment of variables as a best assignment in a set of one or more best assignments if it satisfies all the constraints and is at least as good as a best stored assignment. The processor (42) repeats the operations of selecting a constraint, a variable, and a new value, changing the value of each selected variable to its new value to generate a new assignment, and storing the new assignment until the new assignment satisfies all the constraints and is approximately optimal…

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.