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SCHOLARPEDIA
2008

Support vector clustering

13 years 9 months ago
Support vector clustering
We present a novel method for clustering using the support vector machine approach. Data points are mapped to a high dimensional feature space, where support vectors are used to define a sphere enclosing them. The boundary of the sphere forms in data space a set of closed contours containing the data. Data points enclosed by each contourare defined as a cluster. As the width parameter of the Gaussian kernel is decreased, these contours fit the data more tightly and splitting of contours occurs. The algorithm works by separating clusters according to valleys in the underlying probability distribution, and thus clusters can take on arbitrary geometrical shapes. As in other SV algorithms, outliers can be dealt with by introducing a soft margin constant leading to smoother cluster boundaries. The structure of the data is explored by varying the two parameters. We investigate the dependence of our method on these parameters and apply it to several data sets.
Asa Ben-Hur
Added 28 Jan 2011
Updated 28 Jan 2011
Type Journal
Year 2008
Where SCHOLARPEDIA
Authors Asa Ben-Hur
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