Related papers: Sequential Bayesian Optimisation as a POMDP for En…
Most exact algorithms for general partially observable Markov decision processes (POMDPs) use a form of dynamic programming in which a piecewise-linear and convex representation of one value function is transformed into another. We examine…
Optimizing objectives under constraints, where both the objectives and constraints are black box functions, is a common scenario in real-world applications such as scientific experimental design, design of medical therapies, and industrial…
Bayesian optimization is a class of data efficient model based algorithms typically focused on global optimization. We consider the more general case where a user is faced with multiple problems that each need to be optimized conditional on…
Computational models in fields such as computational neuroscience are often evaluated via stochastic simulation or numerical approximation. Fitting these models implies a difficult optimization problem over complex, possibly noisy parameter…
Many real-world optimisation problems are defined over both categorical and continuous variables, yet efficient optimisation methods such asBayesian Optimisation (BO) are not designed tohandle such mixed-variable search spaces. Recent…
We present a novel data-driven nested optimization framework that addresses the problem of coupling between plant and controller optimization. This optimization strategy is tailored towards instances where a closed-form expression for the…
Recent work reported that simple Bayesian optimization (BO) methods perform well for high-dimensional real-world tasks, seemingly contradicting prior work and tribal knowledge. This paper investigates why. We identify underlying challenges…
Legged robots are able to navigate complex terrains by continuously interacting with the environment through careful selection of contact sequences and timings. However, the combinatorial nature behind contact planning hinders the…
Partially Observable Markov Decision Processes (POMDPs) provide a rich framework for sequential decision-making under uncertainty in stochastic domains. However, solving a POMDP is often intractable except for small problems due to their…
In recent years, leveraging parallel and distributed computational resources has become essential to solve problems of high computational cost. Bayesian optimization (BO) has shown attractive results in those expensive-to-evaluate problems…
Zero-order optimization has recently received significant attention for designing optimal trajectories and policies for robotic systems. However, most existing methods (e.g., MPPI, CEM, and CMA-ES) are local in nature, as they rely on…
Partially Observable Monte-Carlo Planning (POMCP) is a powerful online algorithm able to generate approximate policies for large Partially Observable Markov Decision Processes. The online nature of this method supports scalability by…
Optimisation problems often have multiple conflicting objectives that can be computationally and/or financially expensive. Mono-surrogate Bayesian optimisation (BO) is a popular model-based approach for optimising such black-box functions.…
This paper studies the problem of steering a linear time-invariant system subject to state and input constraints towards a goal location that may be inferred only through partial observations. We assume mixed-observable settings, where the…
Bayesian optimization (BO) is a widely-used sequential method for zeroth-order optimization of complex and expensive-to-compute black-box functions. The existing BO methods assume that the function evaluation (feedback) is available to the…
Bayesian optimisation is a powerful method for optimising black-box functions, popular in settings where the true function is expensive to evaluate and no gradient information is available. Bayesian optimisation can improve responses to…
High-dimensional Bayesian optimization (BO) tasks such as molecular design often require 10,000 function evaluations before obtaining meaningful results. While methods like sparse variational Gaussian processes (SVGPs) reduce computational…
The multi-level, multi-disciplinary and multi-fidelity optimization framework developed at Bombardier Aviation has shown great results to explore efficient and competitive aircraft configurations. This optimization framework has been…
Air pollution is one of the leading causes of mortality globally, resulting in millions of deaths each year. Efficient monitoring is important to measure exposure and enforce legal limits. New low-cost sensors can be deployed in greater…
Autonomous Experimentation Platforms (AEPs) are advanced manufacturing platforms that, under intelligent control, can sequentially search the material design space (MDS) and identify parameters with the desired properties. At the heart of…