Coupling Coefficient Caching for Faster Combinatorial Optimization
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing information processing systems face limitations in processing speed due to frequent access to a storage device with large capacity, which is necessary for storing all coupling coefficients, leading to inefficiencies in solving large-scale combinatorial optimization problems.
Innovation Solution
The system employs a method where coupling coefficients are read from a storage device with large capacity and stored in a smaller, faster storage unit, allowing for reduced access frequency to the larger storage device by targeting specific sets of state variables and updating their values, thereby accelerating the problem-solving process.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Quantity of substance
If all coupling coefficients are stored in a storage device with large capacity, then the complete problem can be solved, but the access speed becomes slow
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the storage of coupling coefficients into two parts: a cache storage unit that stores frequently accessed coefficients and a main storage device that stores all coefficients. This segmentation allows the system to maintain fast access for local computations while preserving complete data storage capability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies different storage qualities to different parts of the data. Frequently accessed coupling coefficients are stored in the cache with fast access characteristics, while less frequently accessed coefficients are stored in the main storage device with larger capacity but slower access, optimizing the trade-off between speed and capacity.
2Speed
If coupling coefficients are read from storage device and stored in cache frequently, then processing speed increases, but the frequency of access to storage device increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent performs preliminary actions by pre-loading coupling coefficients into the cache storage unit before they are needed for computations. This anticipatory loading reduces the frequency of direct access to the main storage device during the actual processing, thereby improving processing speed while minimizing storage access time.
Solution Approach 2:
The cache storage unit acts as an intermediary between the main storage device and the processing unit. It buffers the coupling coefficients, allowing the processing unit to access data from the fast cache rather than directly from the slow main storage device, thus reducing the effective access time despite continued storage device usage.
3Speed
If a small storage unit is used for coupling coefficients, then access speed is fast, but not all coupling coefficients can be stored
Solution Approach 1:
The patent resolves the storage capacity constraint by adding a hierarchical dimension to the storage architecture. Instead of a single storage level, it creates a two-level system where the cache provides fast access for a subset of data and the main storage device provides comprehensive capacity, effectively extending the usable storage space without sacrificing speed for the critical data.
Data Source
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AI summary
A storage unit stores some of a plurality of coupling coefficients stored in a storage device. A processing unit takes a plurality of first state variables among a plurality of state variables as a trial target set. The processing unit performs a process of reading a plurality of first coupling coefficients corresponding to a plurality of first pairs of the first state variables belonging to the trial target set from the storage device, storing the plurality of first coupling coefficients in the storage unit, and conducting, a plurality of times, a trial on whether to update the value of any first state variable belonging to the trial target set using the plurality of first coupling coefficients. The processing unit repeats change of the trial target set and the process, so as to target all the plurality of state variables in the trials.