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Bioinspired evolutionary metaheuristic based on COVID spread for discovering numerical association rules

Abstract

Thesocial impact and global health crisis caused by the coronavirus since late 2019 led to the development of a novel bio-inspired al gorithm. This algorithm simulates the behavior and spread of the virus, known as the Coronavirus Optimization Algorithm. It pro vides several advantages over similar approaches and serves as a basis for generalizing pattern or association identification from nu merical datasets. In this study, essential updates and modifications are proposed to adapt the CVOA algorithm for mining numeri cal association rules. These changes involve adjustments to the encoding of individuals and the infection/mutation process. Addi tionally, parameter values are updated, and a new fitness function is proposed to be maximized. The main objective is to obtain high quality numerical association rules for any dataset regardless of the number and range of attributes in the dataset. The implemented algorithm is compared to others designed for mining quantitative association rules in order to validate the results. For this reason, different datasets from the BUFA repository are used, confirming that Coronavirus Optimization Algorithm is a promising option for discovering interesting association rules within numerical datasets.

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Bioinspired evolutionary metaheuristic based on COVID spread for discovering numerical association rules

Author: Herruzo-Lodeiro, Cristina; Rodríguez-Díaz, Francesc; Troncoso, Alicia; Martínez Ballesteros, María del Mar
Publisher: ACM
Year: 2025
DOI: 10.1145/3672608.3707787
Source: https://idus.us.es/bitstreams/44e7260c-a4ff-4148-af85-544939bfb126/download
Bioinspi ed e olu iona y me aheu is ic based on COVID sp ead
o disco e ing nume ical associa ion ules.
C. He uzo-Lodei o
Depa men o Languages and Compu e Sys ems,
Uni e si y o Se ille
Se ille, Spain
[email p o ec ed]
F. Rod íguez-Díaz
Da a Science and Big Da a Lab, Pablo de Ola ide
Uni e si y
Se ille, Spain
[email p o ec ed]
A. T oncoso
Da a Science and Big Da a Lab, Pablo de Ola ide
Uni e si y
Se ille, Spain
[email p o ec ed]
M. Ma ínez-Balles e os∗
Depa men o Languages and Compu e Sys ems,
Uni e si y o Se ille
Se ille, Spain
[email p o ec ed]
Abs ac
The social impac and global heal h c isis caused by he co ona i us
since la e 2019 led o he de elopmen o a no el bio-inspi ed al-
go i hm. This algo i hm simula es he beha io and sp ead o he
i us, known as he Co ona i us Op imiza ion Algo i hm. I p o-
ides se e al ad an ages o e simila app oaches and se es as a
basis o gene alizing pa e n o associa ion iden i ica ion om nu-
me ical da ase s. In his s udy, essen ial upda es and modi ica ions
a e p oposed o adap he CVOA algo i hm o mining nume i-
cal associa ion ules. These changes in ol e adjus men s o he
encoding o indi iduals and he in ec ion/mu a ion p ocess. Addi-
ionally, pa ame e alues a e upda ed, and a new i ness unc ion
is p oposed o be maximized. The main objec i e is o ob ain high-
quali y nume ical associa ion ules o any da ase ega dless o he
numbe and ange o a ibu es in he da ase . The implemen ed
algo i hm is compa ed o o he s designed o mining quan i a i e
associa ion ules in o de o alida e he esul s. Fo his eason,
di e en da ase s om he BUFA eposi o y a e used, con i ming
ha Co ona i us Op imiza ion Algo i hm is a p omising op ion o
disco e ing in e es ing associa ion ules wi hin nume ical da ase s.
CCS Concep s
•In o ma ion sys ems
→
Associa ion ules;•Theo y o com-
pu a ion →E olu iona y algo i hms.
Keywo ds
E olu iona y algo i hms, nume ical associa ion ules, bioinspi ed
me aheu is ic, COVID
ACM Re e ence Fo ma :
C. He uzo-Lodei o, F. Rod íguez-Díaz, A. T oncoso, and M. Ma ínez-
Balles e os. 2025. Bioinspi ed e olu iona y me aheu is ic based on COVID
sp ead o disco e ing nume ical associa ion ules.. In The 40 h ACM/SIGAPP
∗Co esponding au ho
This wo k is licensed unde a C ea i e Commons A ibu ion 4.0 In e na ional License.
SAC ’25, Ma ch 31-Ap il 4, 2025, Ca ania, I aly
©2025 Copy igh held by he owne /au ho (s).
ACM ISBN 979-8-4007-0629-5/25/03
h ps://doi.o g/10.1145/3672608.3707787
Symposium on Applied Compu ing (SAC ’25), Ma ch 31-Ap il 4, 2025, Ca ania,
I aly. ACM, New Yo k, NY, USA, 8 pages. h ps://doi.o g/10.1145/3672608.
3707787
1 In oduc ion
A e mo e han 4 yea s since he Wo ld Heal h O ganiza ion (WHO)
decla ed co ona i us disease 2019 (COVID-19) a global pandemic,
new in ec ions and dea hs caused by he i us known as se e e
acu e espi a o y synd ome co ona i us 2 (SARS-CoV-2) a e s ill
being eco ded a ound he wo ld. Cu en ly, he numbe o con-
i med COVID-19 cases epo ed o he WHO is 768,237,788, in-
cluding 6,951,677 dea hs [
24
]. Al hough he WHO decla ed he end
o COVID-19 as an in e na ional public heal h eme gency on May
2023, his does no mean ha i has ceased o be a h ea o global
heal h o a global public heal h p io i y [
17
]. Fo his eason, i is
necessa y o con inue collec ing da ase s ha allow us o analyze
and unde s and he sp ead o his and po en ial u u e diseases.
Me aheu is ics a e app oxima ion algo i hms, high-le el s a e-
gies ha allow explo a ion o he solu ion space h ough a wide
a ie y o me hods. Popula ion-based me aheu is ics mimic he be-
ha io o li ing o ganisms in na u e and aim o sol e op imiza ion
p oblems by sea ching o he bes esul wi hin he solu ion space.
The sea ch p ocess in ol es, on one hand, measu ing each agen ’s
p oximi y o he bes solu ion h ough he i ness unc ion, and
on he o he hand, pe o ming he mechanisms o explo a ion, o
collec in o ma ion, and exploi a ion, which uses ha in o ma ion
o explo e a o able a eas o he sea ch space in de ail. Bio-inspi ed
me aheu is ics, d awing om biological phenomena and na u al
p ocesses, ha e been widely de eloped and s udied o e he pas
ew decades [4].
Due o he apid sp ead and he signi ican heal h c isis caused
by he SARS-CoV-2 i us, he Co ona i us Op imiza ion Algo i hm
(CVOA) [
13
] was de eloped as an op imiza ion algo i hm based
on he beha io and sp ead model o COVID-19. This algo i hm
o e s se e al ad an ages o e simila s a egies. One o hem is
ha , gi en he abundance o da a and s a is ics due o he global
impac and impo ance o he disease, he e is no need o a bi-
a y ini ializa ion o pa ame e s, as alues such as in ec ion and
mo ali y a es a e al eady known. Vi uses sp ead by in ec ing indi-
iduals, who can, in u n, in ec o he s, die, o eco e . The concep
138
SAC ’25, Ma ch 31-Ap il 4, 2025, Ca ania, I aly C. He uzo-Lodei o e al.
o “supe -sp eade s” also exis s, e e ing o indi iduals who in ec
a la ge numbe o people, he eby in ensi ying he sea ch space.
The numbe o ini ially in ec ed indi iduals inc eases exponen ially
o e se e al i e a ions bu e en ually s a s o decline un il no in-
di iduals emain, which is a key ad an age o he algo i hm as i
elimina es he need o de ine a s opping c i e ion.
The CVOA algo i hm can be combined wi h o he A i icial In-
elligence echniques, such as associa ion ules (AR), which aim o
ex ac co ela ions, pa e ns, o associa ions be ween he a ibu es
o a da ase . When associa ion ules a e de i ed om da ase s wi h
nume ical a ibu es, hey a e e e ed o as nume ical associa ion
ules (NAR) [
2
]. This wo k p oposes a new algo i hm based on
CVOA o ob ain NAR. Speci ically, his algo i hm, hence o h e-
e ed o as CVNAR, in oduces he necessa y modi ica ions o, on
one hand, ob ain high-quali y nume ical associa ion ules and, on
he o he , gene alize he solu ion and he sea ch o such ules o
any da ase , numbe o a ibu es, and ange o nume ical alues.
The pape is s uc u ed in o he ollowing sec ions. Sec ion 2
p esen s an analysis o he cu en s a e o he a o nume ical
associa ion ules. Sec ion 3 desc ibes he adjus men s made o he
CVOA algo i hm, adap ing i o use in NAR mining o achie e he
de ined objec i es. The esul s ob ained a e p esen ed and analyzed
in Sec ion 4. Finally, Sec ion 5 summa izes he key conclusions
d awn om he esul s and discusses he u u e wo k.
2 Rela ed wo ks
In 1993, Ag awal e al. [
1
] i s p oposed he use o AR o iden i y
ela ionships be ween a iables in da ase s. The mos popula AR
algo i hms a e Ap io i, Ecla , and FP-g ow h. These algo i hms
handle bina y and ca ego ical a ibu es, bu he eal wo ld also
consis s o nume ical a ibu es. To add ess hese challenges, NARs,
o quan i a i e associa ion ules, a e in oduced as a means o
handling nume ical da a mo e e ec i ely.
Ini ially, p oblem-sol ing wi h NAR elies on disc e iza ion, us-
ing pa i ioning and combina ion ou ines, clus e ing, and uzzy
logic. Addi ionally, o he me hods such as op imiza ion and dis-
ibu ion ha e been p oposed o u he enhance he p ocess [
23
].
These h ee main app oaches a e ex ensi ely discussed h ough-
ou he li e a u e, and a wide ange o NAR algo i hms ha e been
de eloped based on hem, as demons a ed in [7] and [8].
Al hough disc e iza ion me hods can esul in in o ma ion loss
and educe he quali y o he ules, hey emain one o he mos
popula app oaches o add essing nume ical associa ion ule min-
ing p oblems due o hei simplici y and lexibili y. Disc e iza ion
can be pe o med using echniques such as uzzi ica ion, clus e ing,
o pa i ioning and combina ion.
Clus e ing echniques g oup nume ical columns in o ca ego ies
based on alue simila i y, using me hods like hie a chical, densi y-
based, and g id-based clus e ing. Fo ins ance, ARCS [
9
] clus e s
associa ion ules wi h bi wise ope a ions, while MQAR [
26
] uses a
dense g id equen pa e n ee o gene a e non- edundan NARs
by clus e ing subspaces. Mo e ecen ly, GCQAR [
15
] combines
modula i y-based g aph clus e ing wi h NAR o unco e ela ion-
ships wi hin cohesi e subg aphs.
Simila ly, pa i ioning echniques a e widely used in disc e iza-
ion. Fo example, S ikan and Ag awal [
22
] p oposed an algo i hm
o handling nume ic a ibu es in NARM, using equi-dep h dis-
c e iza ion o pa i ion a ibu es and gene a e equen i emse s
based on minimum suppo . La e app oaches, such as Ras ogi’s al-
go i hm [
19
], le e age p ede ined in e als o disc e ize nume ical
a ibu es in o segmen s. Mo e ecen ly, Song and Ge [
21
] in o-
duced NAR-Disco e y, a di ide-and-conque algo i hm ha e i-
cien ly pa i ions a ibu es in o bucke s o mine NAR.
Finally, uzzi ica ion o e s a lexible disc e iza ion me hod whe e
in e al bounda ies a e no s ic ly de ined. Fo ins ance, OFARM
[
27
] op imized uzzy se pa i ion poin s by using mul iple objec i e
unc ions and a wo-le el i e a ion p ocess o gene a e equen
i emse s.
Many s udies ocus on op imiza ion me hods o sol ing p ob-
lems in he con ex o NAR o add ess he disad an ages o algo-
i hms based on disc e iza ion me hods. These me hods use heu is-
ic algo i hms inspi ed by na u al phenomena, such as animal be-
ha io and biological p ocesses. They a e pa icula ly no ewo hy
o hei abili y o de ec ela ionships and pa e ns wi hin la ge
da ase s, wi hou he need o de ine h esholds o pe o m dis-
c e iza ion s eps. These me hods can handle bo h nume ical and
ca ego ical da a and a e obus agains noise and missing in o -
ma ion. Howe e , disc e iza ion me hods can ace challenges wi h
con e gence, o en leading o he disco e y o local op ima, along
wi h high compu a ional complexi y and signi ican esou ce e-
qui emen s.
Op imiza ion me hods consis o wo phases: i s , all se s o
equen i ems a e iden i ied, and hen all ele an associa ion ules
a e ex ac ed. They a e di ided in o wo ca ego ies: bio-inspi ed
op imiza ion me hods and physics-based op imiza ion me hods. De-
pending on he op imiza ion objec i es, hey can also be classi ied
in o single-objec i e and mul i-objec i e app oaches.
Bio-inspi ed me hods can be ca ego ized as ollows:
•
E olu ion-based algo i hms: These algo i hms mimic he
abili y o li ing o ganisms o adap o hei en i onmen .
They le e age sea ch me hods inspi ed by na u al selec ion
and gene ics.
•
Swa m-in elligence-based algo i hms: These can be u he
di ided in o wo sub-op imiza ion me hods:
–
Pa icle Swa m Op imiza ion: An algo i hm based on an-
imal beha io s, such as he collec i e mo emen o bi d
locks o ish schools, and designed o popula ion-based
op imiza ion o non-linea unc ions.
–
Wol Sea ch Algo i hm: A bio-inspi ed heu is ic op imiza-
ion algo i hm ha eplica es how wol es sea ch o ood
and su i e by a oiding p eda o s.
Se e al e olu ion-based me hods ha e been de eloped o NARM.
GENAR [
14
], o example, le e ages gene ic algo i hms o disco e
ules wi h nume ical a ibu es, while Yan e al. p oposed EARMGA
[
25
], which inco po a es gene ic ope a o s and a i ness unc ion
ha elimina es he need o p ede ined suppo h esholds, handling
bo h ca ego ical and quan i a i e a ibu es e ec i ely.
In con as o e olu iona y app oaches, pa icle swa m op imiza-
ion o e s a di e en s a egy. Fo ins ance, Bei an and e al. in o-
duced MOPAR [
3
], a mul i-objec i e PSO algo i hm ha ex ac s
139
CVNAR: Cona i us Op imiza ion Algo i hm o disco e Nume ical Associa ion Rules SAC ’25, Ma ch 31-Ap il 4, 2025, Ca ania, I aly
NAR by op imizing h ee key objec i es: con idence, comp ehen-
sibili y, and in e es ingness. MOPAR also ede ines he adi ional
swa m componen s o mo e e ec i ely handle nume ical a ibu es.
Recen ly, Moleshi e al. p oposed HGP-QAR [
16
], a hyb id algo-
i hm combining gene ic algo i hms and pa icle swa m op imiza-
ion o enhance he e iciency o NARM. This algo i hm le e ages
GA’s selec ion, c osso e , and mu a ion wi h PSO’s eloci y and
posi ion upda es o mo e e icien explo a ion o he solu ion space.
The i ness unc ion is based on con idence, in e es ingness, and
comp ehensibili y.
On he o he hand, physics-based op imiza ion me hods simula e
he beha io and p ope ies o ma e o ollow he laws o physics.
One such me hod is he G a i a ional Sea ch Algo i hm (GSA),
an op imiza ion algo i hm inspi ed by he laws o g a i y [
18
]. In
his app oach, agen s beha e as objec s, and hei pe o mance is
measu ed by hei mass.
A e a ho ough e iew o he li e a u e, i is no ewo hy ha
he e a e s ill many challenges o be add essed in de eloping NAR
me hods o disco e pa e ns in eal-wo ld da ase s. In his pape ,
we p opose he CVNAR algo i hm, which le e ages op imiza ion
echniques and builds on he CVOA algo i hm o add ess com-
mon limi a ions, including in o ma ion loss, con e gence p oblems,
he equi emen o use -de ined h esholds, and alling in o local
minima. To add ess hese challenges, se e al no el ea u es a e
p oposed, which will be de ailed in he ollowing sec ions.
3 Desc ip ion o he CVNAR algo i hm
The CVNAR algo i hm aims o ind high-quali y NAR based on
he CVOA algo i hm. The goal is o disco e a gene alized op imal
solu ion o any nume ical da ase , ega dless o he numbe o
a ibu es o hei ange o alues.
The ollowing sec ions desc ibe and de ail he a ious phases
o he algo i hm’s me hodology. Fi s is he ini ializa ion phase,
which is esponsible o gene a ing he ini ial popula ion o indi-
iduals. In his case, he popula ion consis s o a single subjec ,
known as Pa ien Ze o (PZ). Simula ing he beha io o he co on-
a i us, PZ ep esen s he i s in ec ed indi idual and is gene a ed
andomly. Once he ini ial popula ion is c ea ed, he i e a i e e o-
lu ion phase begins. This phase in ol es applying a se ies o s eps
un il he s opping condi ion is me . In he CVNAR algo i hm, he
s opping condi ion is sa is ied when a maximum numbe o i e a-
ions is eached o when no in ec ed indi iduals emain. The s eps
co esponding o his phase a e:
S ep 1. Calcula e he i ness unc ion o each indi idual in he
in ec ed lis . I he i ness unc ion does no e u n a esul , ha is,
i e u ns an unde ined o un ep esen able alue, he indi idual is
emo ed om he in ec ed lis and mo ed o he deceased lis .
S ep 2. Main ain a global lis and upda e i in each i e a ion wi h
he en indi iduals ha ing he bes i ness unc ion. The numbe o
op solu ions o indi iduals s o ed by he algo i hm is a con igu able
pa ame e and can be adjus ed in each un.
S ep 3. Sp ead he disease. The e a e a ious scena ios ha can
occu depending on he indi idual, which di ec ly a ec he numbe
o new in ec ed indi iduals and, consequen ly, he sp ead o he
disease:
(1)
An in ec ed indi idual will die wi h a ce ain p obabili y
(
𝑃_𝐷𝐼𝐸
). In his case, he indi idual will no in ec new indi-
iduals.
(2)
Indi iduals who do no die may become o dina y sp eade s,
meaning hey in ec new indi iduals a a no mal sp ead
a e, o “supe -sp eade s”, who will p opaga e he disease
a a highe a e. The p obabili y o being a supe -sp eade
(𝑃_𝑆𝑈 𝑃𝐸𝑅𝑆𝑃𝑅𝐸𝐴𝐷𝐸𝑅) will de e mine he a e o sp ead.
(3)
Finally, he e is a p obabili y ha he indi idual will a el,
ep esen ed by
𝑃_𝑇𝑅𝐴𝑉 𝐸𝐿
, which causes he solu ions c e-
a ed h ough in ec ion o change based on he a el dis ance,
deno ed as
𝑇𝑅𝐴𝑉 𝐸𝐿_𝐷𝐼𝑆𝑇𝐴𝑁𝐶𝐸
. The same indi idual can
be bo h a “supe -sp eade” and a a ele .
S ep 4. Manage and upda e h ee indi idual lis s a each i e a ion
a e he p e ious s ep is comple ed:
(1)
Deceased. The indi iduals added o his lis will no longe
be used.
(2)
Reco e ed. Fo simplici y, in ec ed indi iduals will mo e
o he eco e ed lis i he isola ion p obabili y is sa is ied
(
𝑃_𝐼𝑆𝑂𝐿𝐴𝑇𝐼𝑂𝑁
). The e is a p obabili y o ein ec ion, which
means ha a eco e ed indi idual can e u n o he in ec ed
lis (𝑃_𝑅𝐸𝐼 𝑁 𝐹𝐸𝐶𝑇 𝐼𝑂𝑁 ).
(3)
Newly in ec ed. Re e s o he g oup o indi iduals in ec ed
in he p e ious s ep.
The goal o he CVNAR algo i hm is o iden i y he indi iduals
wi h he highes i ness unc ion alue in he en i e popula ion.
Ini ially, PZ is conside ed as he bes solu ion ound. The lis g ows
wi h each i e a ion as new indi iduals become in ec ed, un il he
p ede ined numbe o op solu ions is eached. F om ha poin
on, du ing each i e a ion whe e he disease sp eads, he algo i hm
checks whe he any in ec ed indi idual has a be e i ness alue
han he op imal s o ed solu ions, eplacing hem i necessa y. Fi-
nally, as p e iously men ioned, he size o he bes solu ions lis in
CVNAR is de e mined by an inpu pa ame e o he algo i hm.
3.1 Indi idual codi ica ion
Associa ion ules can be de ined as implica ions o he o m “i
𝑋
hen
𝑌
”, conside ing ha he occu ence o
𝑋
in a ansac ion
implies he occu ence o
𝑌
, whe e
𝑋
is de ined as he an eceden
and
𝑌
as he consequen [
1
]. In he popula ion, each indi idual
ep esen s a ule, and each o hese ules unde goes an e olu iona y
mu a ion p ocess. A he end o he p ocess, he indi idual wi h he
bes i ness unc ion is designa ed as he bes ule [10].
When he da ase is o be analyzed nume ical, i is necessa y
o pe o m a disc e iza ion o he a ibu e domain in o in e als,
de ining an uppe limi and a lowe limi o each o hem. This
can lead o a po en ial loss o in o ma ion; o his eason, he
CVOA algo i hm lea ns he wid h o he in e als in each i e a ion
[
20
]. This decision-making p ocess ega ding he in e al wid h is
explained in de ail in Sec ion 3.2.4.
The encoding employed o indi iduals ha a e candida es o be
solu ions o he CVNAR algo i hm is desc ibed below, conside ing
ha :
• he a ibu es o he da ase a e nume ical,
•
he ange o alues o each a ibu e belongs o he se o
eal numbe s,
140
SAC ’25, Ma ch 31-Ap il 4, 2025, Ca ania, I aly C. He uzo-Lodei o e al.
Figu e 1: Indi idual codi ica ion.
•
i is no ixed whe he each a ibu e belongs o he an-
eceden , he consequen , o does no belong o he ule.
The e o e, gi en a da ase wi h
𝑚
a ibu es and
𝑛
ins ances, an
indi idual consis s o 2
×𝑚
elemen s, whe e each elemen
𝑘
is an
in ege be ween
[
1
,𝑛 −
1
]
. Each a ibu e will ha e a lowe limi ,
co esponding o he odd posi ions in he lis , and an uppe limi ,
co esponding o he e en posi ions. The alue o bo h is an in ege ,
𝑘𝑖∈ [
1
,𝑛 −
1
]
o he lowe limi and
𝑘𝑠∈ [
1
,𝑛 −𝑘𝑖]
o he uppe
limi . The s uc u e o he indi idual consis s o h ee pa s:
•
Encoded alue o he limi s. This e e s o he andom alue
gene a ed be ween
[
1
,𝑛 −
1
]
o he lowe limi
𝑘𝑖
and he
andom alue gene a ed be ween
[
1
,𝑛 −𝑘𝑖]
o he uppe
limi 𝑘𝑠.
•
Decoded alue o he limi s. Fi s , all he alues om he
da ase o he a ibu e a e aken and so ed in ascending
o de . The decoded alue o he lowe limi co esponds o
he alue ound a posi ion
𝑘𝑖
, and he decoded alue o he
uppe limi co esponds o he alue ound a posi ion 𝑘𝑠.
•
A ibu e ype. Each a ibu e o he indi idual can be o one
ype:
–0 when he a ibu e does no belong o he ule,
–1 when he a ibu e belongs o he an eceden ,
–2 when he a ibu e belongs o he consequen .
Figu e 1 g aphically shows he encoding o an indi idual and an
example o a coded NAR.
In pa icula , he ule
𝑎1∈ [
98
,
98
.
5
] ∧ 𝑎2∈ [
1
,
1
]=⇒𝑎3∈
[
61
,
89
]
is ep esen ed. I can be obse ed ha he a ibu es
𝑎1
and
𝑎2
belong o he an eceden , as
𝑡1
and
𝑡2
ha e he alue 1. Simila ly,
he a ibu e
𝑎3
belongs o he consequen because
𝑡3
has he alue
2. Fo a ibu e 𝑎1, he decoded in e al alues a e 98 as he lowe
bound and 98.5 as he uppe bound. These alues co espond o he
posi ions
𝑘𝑖1=
110 and
𝑘𝑠1=
0in he da ase , whe e
𝑘𝑖1
and
𝑘𝑠1
ep esen he k- h indices o he a ibu e alues when so ed in
ascending o de . This o de ing ensu es ha he in e al bounda ies
a e accu a ely iden i ied wi hin he con ex o he da ase . Simila ly,
o a ibu e
𝑎2
, he decoded in e al alues a e bo h 1, meaning
he lowe and uppe bounds o he in e al coincide. These alues
co espond o he k- h posi ions
𝑘𝑖2=
44 and
𝑘𝑠2=
57, espec i ely,
when he alues o a ibu e
𝑎2
a e so ed om smalles o la ges .
Finally, o a ibu e
𝑎3
, he decoded in e al alues a e 61 o he
lowe bound and 89 o he uppe bound. These alues co espond
o he posi ions
𝑘𝑖3=
4and
𝑘𝑠3=
0in he da ase when a ibu e
𝑎3is o de ed in ascending o de .
3.2 Gene al p ocess o CVNAR
This sec ion desc ibes he phases o he CVNAR algo i hm, de ailing
he gene a ion o he ini ial popula ion and he execu ion o he
in ec ion p ocess, highligh ing he p oposed i ness unc ions, and
he selec ion o indi iduals based on he chosen i ness unc ion.
3.2.1 Gene a ion o he ini ial popula ion. The ini ial popula ion
o CVNAR algo i hm consis s o a single indi idual, gene a ed an-
domly. Randomness encompasses he numbe o a ibu es p esen
in he ule, he ype o each a ibu e, and hei espec i e in e als.
Rega ding he a ibu e limi s, a andom in ege
𝑘𝑖∈ [
1
,𝑛 −
1
]
is
gene a ed o he lowe limi , and ano he in ege
𝑘𝑠∈ [
1
,𝑛 −𝑘𝑖]
is gene a ed o he uppe limi . The alues om he en i e da ase
o each a ibu e a e so ed in ascending o de , and inally, he
alue a posi ion
𝑘𝑖
is selec ed o he lowe limi , while he alue
a posi ion
𝑘𝑠
is selec ed o he uppe limi . Fo he ype, a andom
numbe be ween 0, 1, and 2 is gene a ed o each a ibu e.
To ensu e ha he gene a ed indi idual ep esen s a obus ule,
he ollowing cons ain s a e conside ed:
•
The uppe limi mus be g ea e han he lowe limi . I
his condi ion is no me , he andom gene a ion p ocess
men ioned ea lie is epea ed.
•
The alue o he in e als o each a ibu e mus all wi hin
he ange o alues in he da ase .
•
The numbe o a ibu es belonging o he an eceden mus
be g ea e han o equal o 1.
•
The numbe o a ibu es belonging o he consequen mus
be g ea e han o equal o 1.
•
I he numbe o a ibu es is g ea e han 2, he numbe o
a ibu es co esponding o he an eceden mus be g ea e
han he numbe o a ibu es belonging o he consequen .
3.2.2 Fi ness unc ion. Associa ion ules ep esen quan i iable
pa e ns ha e eal dependencies be ween a ibu es in a da ase .
Typically, he numbe o ex ac ed associa ions is high, hen, i
becomes c ucial o so o il e hem based on speci ic measu es o
141
CVNAR: Cona i us Op imiza ion Algo i hm o disco e Nume ical Associa ion Rules SAC ’25, Ma ch 31-Ap il 4, 2025, Ca ania, I aly
ele ance [
12
]. Quali y measu es used in his pape a e desc ibed
as ollows:
•
Suppo (X
⇒
Y): Pe cen age o ins ances in he da ase ha
sa is y 𝑋and 𝑌.
𝑆𝑢𝑝(𝑋⇒𝑌)=(𝑃(𝑋∪𝑌))
(|𝐷|)
whe e
𝐷
is he o al numbe o ins ances o ansac ions o
he da ase .
•
Con idence(X
⇒
Y): P obabili y ha ins ances sa is ying
𝑋also sa is y 𝑌.
𝐶𝑜𝑛𝑓 (𝑋⇒𝑌)=𝑆𝑢𝑝 (𝑋⇒𝑌)
𝑆𝑢𝑝 (𝑋)
•
Accu acy(X
⇒
Y): Deg ee o coincidence o he da a ob-
ained wi h he eal da a.
𝐴𝑐𝑐(𝑋⇒𝑌)=𝑆𝑢𝑝 (𝑋⇒𝑌)
𝑆𝑢𝑝 (¬𝑋⇒¬𝑌)
•
Le e age(X
⇒
Y): P opo ion o cases co e ed by bo h
𝑋
and
𝑌
compa ed o wha would be expec ed i
𝑋
and
𝑌
we e
independen .
Le (X ⇒Y)=Sup(X ⇒Y)-Sup(X)Sup(Y)
•
Ce ain y Fac o (X
⇒
Y): P obabili y ha
𝑌
is p esen in
an ins ance when conside ing only hose ins ances whe e
𝑋
appea s.
Si Con (X ⇒Y) >Sup(Y):
FC(X⇒Y) = 𝐶𝑜𝑛𝑓 (𝑋⇒𝑌)−𝑆𝑢𝑝 (𝑌)
1−𝑆𝑢𝑝 (𝑌)
I Con (X⇒Y) ≤Sup(Y):
FC(X⇒Y) = 𝐶𝑜𝑛𝑓 (𝑋⇒𝑌)−𝑆𝑢𝑝 (𝑌)
𝑆𝑢𝑝 (𝑌)
The i ness unc ion is used o iden i y he bes indi iduals. Two
dis inc objec i e unc ions a e p oposed o maximiza ion. Bo h
unc ions a e composed o di e en measu es o in e es :
Func ion 1 =𝐴𝑐𝑐(𝑋⇒𝑌) + 𝐶𝑜𝑛𝑓 (𝑋⇒𝑌) + 𝐿𝑒𝑣(𝑋⇒𝑌)(1)
Func ion 2 =𝐹𝐶(𝑋⇒𝑌) + 𝐶𝑜𝑛𝑓 (𝑋⇒𝑌) + 𝑆𝑢𝑝(𝑋⇒𝑌)(2)
These unc ions aim o ob ain high-quali y nume ical associa ion
ules by combining measu es o in e es o add ess he disad an-
ages p esen ed by some o hem. Le e age and accu acy, in some
cases, a e insu icien , as hey only measu e co-occu ences and do
no conside implica ion. The e o e, i may be bene icial o combine
hem wi h con idence, which measu es he eliabili y o he ule. On
he o he hand, Ce ain y Fac o has he ad an age o aking in o
accoun he suppo o bo h he an eceden and he consequen , as
well as he implica ion. Gi en his con ex , a compa a i e analysis
is conduc ed o iden i y he mos e ec i e measu e o gene a ing
in e es ing nume ical associa ion ules.
3.2.3 Indi idual selec ion. As p e iously men ioned, he CVNAR
algo i hm gene a es a lis o he bes indi iduals, speci ically hose
wi h he highes i ness unc ion alues. Ini ially, he only s o ed
elemen is PZ, and he lis inc eases as new indi iduals become
in ec ed un il i eaches he de ined size.
In each i e a ion, i is checked whe he any o he indi iduals in
he in ec ed lis has a highe i ness alue han hose in he lis o
bes indi iduals. I so, he in ec ed indi idual eplaces he one wi h
he lowe i ness alue. The size o he lis o bes indi iduals is an
inpu pa ame e o he CVNAR algo i hm and can be adjus ed as
needed.
3.2.4 In ec ion/Mu a ion. The in ec ion p ocess o an indi idual
in ol es pe o ming a mu a ion on he in ec ed subjec , which
means ha he alues o he in e als and he ype o each a ibu e
encoding he indi idual a e modi ied.
On one hand, he numbe o new in ec ions will depend on
whe he he indi idual is a egula sp eade o a “supe -sp eade ”.
On he o he hand, he numbe o a ec ed in e als will depend on
𝑇𝑅𝐴𝑉 𝐸𝐿_𝐷𝐼𝑆𝑇𝐴𝑁𝐶𝐸
. The dis ance is a andom alue be ween 1
and he o al numbe o in e als.
When e e ing o in ec ing an indi idual, bo h he in e al and
he ype o a ibu e a e conside ed. As men ioned abo e, as many
in e als will be in ec ed, as indica ed by he andomly gene a ed
alue
𝑇𝑅𝐴𝑉 𝐸𝐿_𝐷𝐼𝑆𝑇𝐴𝑁𝐶𝐸
. A di e en index is main ained o
each ype o in ec ion, allowing o he mu a ion o he in e al o
he second a ibu e and he ype o he hi d o he same indi idual.
The mu a ed indexed o each ype a e s o ed and no eused. The
p ocess is as ollows:
•
In ec ion o an in e al a ibu e: I consis s o inc easing o
dec easing he ampli ude o he in e al by a ce ain pe cen -
age (25%, 50%, 75%). A a iable
𝑑=|𝑎𝑓−𝑎𝑖|
is de ined, which
ep esen s he di e ence be ween he new ampli ude and
he ini ial one, and a andom numbe
𝑃
is gene a ed be ween
0 and 2. I
𝑃
= 0,
𝑑
= 0.25 x
𝑎𝑖
; i
𝑃
= 1,
𝑑
= 0.5 x
𝑎𝑖
and i
𝑃
= 2;
𝑑
= 0.75 x
𝑎𝑖
. The decision o inc ease o dec ease he
in e al is also andom. In case o inc easing,
𝑟𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑑(𝑑)/
2
( ounded down) is sub ac ed om each limi o he in e al,
and in case o dec easing,
𝑟𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑑(𝑑)/
2( ounded up) is added.
I he esul ing alue is less han 0, i is assigned 0.
•
In ec ion o a ype a ibu e: I consis s o changing he ype
o an a ibu e om 0 o 1 o 2; om 1 o 0 o 2 and om 2
o 0 o 1. I he ype o he in ec ed a ibu e does no mee
he ollowing condi ions:
–
The numbe o a ibu es belonging o he an eceden mus
be g ea e han o equal o 1.
–
The numbe o a ibu es belonging o he consequen
mus be g ea e han o equal o 1.
–
I he o al numbe o a ibu es is g ea e han 2, he num-
be o a ibu es co esponding o he an eceden mus
be g ea e han he numbe o a ibu es belonging o he
consequen .
Then, he ypes o all a ibu es o he indi idual a e in ec ed
ollowing he same p ocedu e as du ing he gene a ion o
he ini ial popula ion.
3.3 Compu a ional complexi y o CVNAR
The compu a ional complexi y o CVNAR can be exp essed as
𝑂(𝐼·𝑃·𝐹(𝑁, 𝑀))
, whe e
𝐼
ep esen s he numbe o i e a ions,
𝑃
is he a e age popula ion size pe i e a ion, and
𝐹(𝑁, 𝑀)
is he
compu a ional cos o e alua ing he i ness unc ion o each in-
di idual in he popula ion. The i ness unc ion
𝐹(𝑁, 𝑀)
e alua es
he quali y o each indi idual, NAR in his case, de i ed om he
da ase . This in ol es compu ing quali y measu es such as sup-
po , con idence, which equi e scanning he da ase o e i y he
ule condi ions. Fo a da ase wi h
𝑁
ins ances and
𝑀
a ibu es,
142

SAC ’25, Ma ch 31-Ap il 4, 2025, Ca ania, I aly C. He uzo-Lodei o e al.
𝐹(𝑁, 𝑀)=𝑂(𝑁·𝑀)
, whe e
𝑁
and
𝑀
de e mine he linea com-
plexi y o encoding and e alua ing ule condi ions.
To op imize un ime and enhance he scalabili y o CVNAR o
la ge da ase s, pa allelizing he i ness e alua ions and dynami-
cally con olling he popula ion size (e.g., adjus ing in ec ion a es
o isola ion p obabili ies) can educe execu ion ime wi hou com-
p omising pe o mance [11].
4 Expe imen a ion and Resul s
This sec ion ou lines he esul s ob ained om he execu ion o he
CVNAR algo i hm, including he execu ion pa ame e s, da ase s,
and e alua ion me ics used.
4.1 Execu ion pa ame e s
The pa ame e s used in he CVNAR algo i hm and he alue o each
a e de ailed below. These pa ame e s a e ex ac ed om a ious
sou ces, one o he mos impo an being he WHO.
(1)
Mo ali y a e: This is he p obabili y ha an in ec ed indi-
idual will die. I is calcula ed by di iding he numbe o
con i med dea hs by he numbe o con i med cases. Acco d-
ing o he da a a ailable in [
6
], a alue o
𝑃_𝐷𝐼𝐸
= 0.06 is
assigned.
(2)
P obabili y o being supe -sp eade . I is he p obabili y ha
an indi idual sp eads he disease a a highe a e. I is con-
side ed ha 10% o he popula ion a e supe -sp eade indi-
iduals, he e o e, 𝑃_𝑆𝑈 𝑃𝐸𝑅𝑆𝑃𝑅𝐸𝐴𝐷𝐸𝑅 = 0.1.
Two addi ional pa ame e s ela ed o he disease’s p opa-
ga ion a e a e aken in o accoun ,
𝑂𝑅𝐷𝐼𝑁𝐴𝑅𝑌_𝑅𝐴𝑇 𝐸
and
𝑆𝑈 𝑃𝐸𝑅𝑆𝑃𝑅𝐸𝐴𝐷𝐸𝑅_𝑅𝐴𝑇𝐸
. Bo h a e andom numbe s and
e e o he numbe o people ha can in ec . An o dina y
sp eade will in ec be ween 0 and 5 people, while a supe -
sp eade will in ec be ween 6 and 15.
(3)
T a el p obabili y: Acco ding o [
5
], i is conside ed ha 10%
o he popula ion can a el o any loca ion du ing a week
and in ec o he people, he e o e, 𝑃_𝑇 𝑅𝐴𝑉 𝐸𝐿 = 0.1.
(4)
Re-in ec ion p obabili y: The likelihood o e-in ec ion wi h
SARS-CoV-2 is es ima ed o occu in less han 1% o p e-
iously con i med cases. The e o e,
𝑃_𝑅𝐸𝐼𝑁 𝐹𝐸𝐶𝑇𝐼𝑂𝑁
=
0.001.
(5)
Isola ion p obabili y: A high alue is assigned, as i helps
educe he exponen ial g ow h o in ec ion. The selec ed
alue is 𝑃_𝐼𝑆𝑂𝐿𝐴𝑇𝐼𝑂𝑁 = 0.7.
(6)
Algo i hm i e a ions: The o al numbe o i e a ions is ep e-
sen ed by
𝑃𝐴𝑁𝐷𝐸𝑀𝐼𝐶_𝐷𝑈 𝑅𝐴𝑇𝐼𝑂𝑁
, which is se o 20. The
numbe o i e a ions wi hou social dis ancing measu es is
indica ed by
𝑆𝑂𝐶𝐼𝐴𝐿_𝐷𝐼𝑆𝑇𝐴𝑁𝐶𝐼𝑁𝐺
, wi h alues anging
om 7 o 12, inclusi e.
Table 1 summa izes he key pa ame e s and hei alues used
in he CVNAR algo i hm, o ganized acco ding o he main phases
and s eps ou lined in Sec ion 3.2.
4.2 Da ase s
The da ase s used o alida e he pe o mance o he CVNAR algo-
i hm a e sou ced om he Bilken Uni e si y Func ion App oxi-
ma ion Reposi o y (BUFA) eposi o y. Table 2 shows he name, he
Table 1: Summa y o pa ame e s in he CVNAR algo i hm.
Phase (S ep)
Pa ame e Value
Sp ead he
disease:
In ec ion
/Mu a ion
(S ep 3)
𝑂𝑅𝐷𝐼𝑁𝐴𝑅𝑌_𝑅𝐴𝑇 𝐸 Random [0, 5]
𝑆𝑈 𝑃𝐸𝑅𝑆𝑃𝑅𝐸𝐴𝐷𝐸𝑅_𝑅𝐴𝑇𝐸 Random [6, 15]
𝑃_𝑆𝑈 𝑃𝐸𝑅𝑆𝑃𝑅𝐸𝐴𝐷𝐸𝑅 0.1
𝑃_𝑇𝑅𝐴𝑉 𝐸𝐿 0.1
𝑇𝑅𝐴𝑉 𝐸𝐿_𝐷𝐼𝑆𝑇𝐴𝑁𝐶𝐸
Random [1, o al
in e als]
Manage and
upda e lis s
(S ep 4)
𝑃_𝐷𝐼𝐸 0.06
𝑃_𝑅𝐸𝐼𝑁 𝐹𝐸𝐶𝑇𝐼𝑂𝑁 0.001
𝑃_𝐼𝑆𝑂𝐿𝐴𝑇𝐼𝑂𝑁 0.7
Global
i e a ions
𝑃𝐴𝑁𝐷𝐸𝑀𝐼𝐶_𝐷𝑈 𝑅𝐴𝑇𝐼𝑂𝑁 20 i e a ions
𝑆𝑂𝐶𝐼𝐴𝐿_𝐷𝐼𝑆𝑇𝐴𝑁𝐶𝐼𝑁𝐺 7-12 i e a ions
numbe o ins ances, and he numbe o ea u es o each o he 5
da ase s used in his pape .
Table 2: Da ase s om he BUFA eposi o y.
Da ase Ins ances Fea u es
Baske ball (BK) 96 5
Body a (FA) 252 18
Bol s (BL) 40 8
Pollu ion (PO) 60 16
Quake (QU) 2178 4
4.3 Quali y measu es
The me ics o measu emen s o in e es selec ed in his pape o
e alua e he esul s ob ained a e hose desc ibed in Sec ion 3.2.2.
Addi ionally, we include li as an addi ional me ic, which cap u es
he co ela ion be ween he an eceden and he consequen . A
li alue g ea e han 1 indica es ha he ule p o ides aluable
in o ma ion when 𝑋and 𝑌appea oge he .
Suppo , con idence and accu acy can ake alues be ween 0
and 1. The goal is o hese alues o be as high as possible, wi h 1
being he bes esul . Le e age can ake alues om -1 o 1, wi h
alues g ea e han 0 conside ed a o able; alues close o 1 indica e
high-quali y associa ion ules, while alues below 0 sugges s s ong
independence be ween
𝑋
and
𝑌
. Ce ain y ac o also anges om
-1 o 1, whe e 1 indica es ha he ule is comple ely ce ain and
p ecise.
4.4 Resul s
This sec ion p esen s in Sec ion 4.4.1 he esul s o applying he
CVNAR algo i hm o he da ase s om Sec ion 4.2, op imizing he
objec i e unc ions ou lined in Sec ion 3.2.2 o de e mine which
unc ion pe o ms be e . Then, he bes unc ion is compa ed wi h
o he exis ing algo i hm o ob ain NAR in Sec ions 4.4.2. The s op-
ping c i e ion is se o 20 i e a ions, and he 10 bes solu ions a e
being sa ed.
4.4.1 Objec i e unc ion compa ison. As desc ibed in Sec ion 3.2.2,
wo di e en objec i e unc ions a e de ined in Equa ions 1 and 2
espec i ely, o maximize and sol e he NAR op imiza ion p oblem.
143
CVNAR: Cona i us Op imiza ion Algo i hm o disco e Nume ical Associa ion Rules SAC ’25, Ma ch 31-Ap il 4, 2025, Ca ania, I aly
Table 3: Objec i e unc ion compa ison o da ase s om he
BUFA eposi o y.
A . Con (%) A . Li A . Le A . Acc (%) A . Sup (%) A . FC
BK Func ion 1100.00 96.00 0.0103 100.00 1.04 1.00
Func ion 2 100.00 1.01 0.0073 50.41 48.54 1.00
BL Func ion 1100.00 5.00 0.1600 100.00 20.00 1.00
Func ion 2 100.00 1.13 0.0472 55.00 43.50 1.00
FAFunc ion 1 100.00 173.52 0.0039 99.12 0.39 1.00
Func ion 2 100.00 1.45 0.0115 32.53 5.03 1.00
PO Func ion 133.33 7.16 0.0061 97.66 0.66 0.33
Func ion 2 100.00 1.38 0.0375 42.00 18.00 1.00
QU Func ion 1100.00 4.06 0.0003 81.67 19.49 0.80
Func ion 2 99.71 1.10 0.0138 23.48 13.82 0.96
To al A . Func ion 1 86.66 57.14 0.0361 95.69 8.32 0.83
Func ion 2 99.94 1.21 0.0235 44.36 25.78 0.99
Table 3 shows he alues o each quali y me ic o he di e en
da ase s and objec i e unc ions.
The analysis o he esul s shows ha o mos da ase s, he
measu emen alues o bo h objec i e unc ions a e wi hin he
quali y h eshold. Analyzing each me ic, i can be obse ed ha
he second objec i e unc ion achie es highe con idence han he
i s , al hough in bo h cases he alues a e high and close o 100 %.
Con idence is no sui able o de e mining which objec i e unc-
ion is mo e app op ia e, as i does no conside he suppo o
he consequen and, consequen ly, canno de ec nega i e depen-
dencies. Howe e , his is add essed by quali y measu es such as
li , le e age, o accu acy, which ake in o accoun he ela ionship
be ween he an eceden and he consequen . Al hough he alues
o hese measu es a e highe o objec i e unc ion 1, i canno be
concluded ha he associa ion ules ob ained a e mo e in e es ing
han hose om objec i e unc ion 2. This is because o he sec-
ond unc ion, he li is consis en ly g ea e han 1, he le e age is
always posi i e, and he accu acy alues a e close o 100 %. Fu -
he mo e, li , le e age, and accu acy a e no symme ic measu es,
and in some cases, his is insu icien as hey ail o accoun o he
di ec ion o he implica ion. Las ly, he ce ain y ac o conside s
no only he suppo o bo h he an eceden and consequen bu
also he di ec ion o he ule’s implica ion. In his case, he second
objec i e unc ion yields he bes esul s.
Conside ing he abo e, objec i e unc ion 2 is selec ed as he
i ness unc ion. This is suppo ed by i s consis en pe o mance
ac oss all da ase s, yielding posi i e le e age, li alues g ea e
han 1, and accu acy alues close o 100%. These esul s indica e
ha objec i e unc ion 2 p o ides mo e eliable and obus ules
compa ed o objec i e unc ion 1, pa icula ly when conside ing
he di ec ionali y and dependency ela ionships in he NAR.
4.4.2 Compa a i e wi h o he NAR algo i hms. A e selec ing he
second objec i e unc ion, we compa e he esul s ob ained wi h he
CVNAR algo i hm o hose o se e al exis ing op imiza ion me hods
p esen ed in Sec ion 2. This compa ison is based on he analyses
ou lined in [
16
]. The da ase s used o he compa a i e analysis a e:
Baske ball (BK), Body a (FA), Quake (QU), Bol s (BL) and Pollu ion
(PO). The me ics analyzed include suppo and con idence, as
shown in Tables 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8.
Conside ing he de ini ions o suppo and con idence, when
suppo is low and con idence is high, ules wi h a la ge numbe
o a ibu es a e gene a ed, exp essing e y speci ic pa e ns o
beha io in he da a. On he o he hand, when suppo is high,
Table 4: Compa ison be ween CVNAR and NAR algo i hms
o he BK da ase .
Algo i hm A . Sup (%) A . Con (%)
GENAR (Ma a e al. 2001) 30.82 96.52
EARMGA (Yan e al. 2009) 2.70 100.00
MOPAR (Bei an and e al. 2014) 30.76 95.00
HGP-QAR (Moleshi e al. 2019) 62.37 97.40
CVNAR (Func ion 2 in his pape ) 48.54 100.00
Table 5: Compa ison be ween CVNAR and o he NAR algo-
i hms o he FA da ase .
Algo i hm A . Sup (%) A . Con (%)
GENAR (Ma a e al. 2001) 41.52 96.52
EARMGA (Yan e al. 2009) 4.97 100.00
MOPAR (Bei an and e al. 2014) 22.95 81.00
HGP-QAR (Moleshi e al. 2019) 65.43 98.90
CVNAR (Func ion 2 in his pape ) 5.03 100.00
Table 6: Compa ison be ween CVNAR and o he NAR algo-
i hms o he QU da ase .
Algo i hm A . Sup (%) A . Con (%)
GENAR (Ma a e al. 2001) 35.17 64.40
EARMGA (Yan e al. 2009) 3.40 100.00
MOPAR (Bei an and e al. 2014) 31.97 89.00
HGP-QAR (Moleshi e al. 2019) 63.35 99.80
CVNAR (Func ion 2 in his pape ) 13.82 99.71
Table 7: Compa ison be ween CVNAR and o he NAR algo-
i hms o he BL da ase .
Algo i hm A . Sup (%) A . Con (%)
GENAR (Ma a e al. 2001) 30.82 96.52
EARMGA (Yan e al. 2009) 11.43 100.00
MOPAR (Bei an and e al. 2014) 10.72 88.91
HGP-QAR (Moleshi e al. 2019) 81.14 89.77
CVNAR (Func ion 2 in his pape ) 43.50 100.00
less signi ican ules a e ob ained, which may esul in he loss
o hese pa e ns. Fu he mo e, when a ule co e s all eco ds, i
does no p o ide any meaning ul in o ma ion. The e o e, a high o
low suppo alue is no enough o assess he e ec i eness o an
algo i hm.
I can be obse ed ha o he i e da ase s, he suppo o he
ules gene a ed by CVNAR is nei he he highes no he lowes
bu gene ally emains in he mid- ange. Howe e , he con idence
is consis en ly highe , eaching 100% in mos cases, excep o QU,
whe e i emains a 99.8%. No ably, EARMGA is he only algo i hm
ha achie es a simila le el o con idence, bu i s suppo is sig-
ni ican ly lowe in all da ase s. The e o e, i can be concluded ha
he CVNAR algo i hm allows us o ob ain mo e eliable associa ion
ules.
144
SAC ’25, Ma ch 31-Ap il 4, 2025, Ca ania, I aly C. He uzo-Lodei o e al.
Table 8: Compa ison be ween CVNAR and o he NAR algo-
i hms published o he PO da ase .
Algo i hm A . Sup (%) A . Con (%)
GENAR (Ma a e al. 2001) 22.64 99.72
EARMGA (Yan e al. 2009) 5.36 99.90
MOPAR (Bei an and e al. 2014) 52.14 23.02
HGP-QAR (Moleshi e al. 2019) 70.66 96.60
CVNAR (Func ion 2 in his pape ) 18.00 100.00
5 Conclusions and u u e wo ks
The objec i e o his wo k was o p opose a new algo i hm, based
on he CVOA algo i hm, o disco e ing NAR. This algo i hm is in-
ended o be a gene al pu pose algo i hm and can be applied o any
da a se . To achie e his, a new indi idual enconding is p oposed,
andomly de e mining whe he each a ibu e is included in he
ule and speci ying i s ype. Addi ionally, he in ec ion p ocess was
modi ied, and wo new objec i e unc ions we e de ined o enhance
he op imiza ion p oblem.
The esul s demons a e ha he CVNAR algo i hm can handle
any nume ic da ase by lea ning, in each i e a ion, bo h he in e -
als and he a ibu es assigned o he an eceden , consequen , o
excluded om he ule. This lea ning p ocess leads o he gene -
a ion o mo e p ecise and eliable associa ion ules. Fu he mo e,
he CVNAR algo i hm enables he ex ac ion o pa e ns ha can
p edic u u e beha io s om cu en da a ac oss a ious domains
and ields.
As u u e wo k, he de ini ion o a new objec i e unc ion can be
conside ed, combining o he ele an me ics o inc ease he alue
o he lowes me ics and add essing he op imiza ion p oblem om
a mul i-objec i e p espec i e. Addi ionally, i would be ad isable
o educe he algo i hm’s execu ion ime. This could be achie ed,
o ins ance, by adding a pe ce ange o in ec ei he he in e al o
he sp eade indi idual o he ype o a ibu e, a he han always
in ec ing bo h.
Acknowledgmen s
The esea ch is suppo ed by PID2020-117954RB-C22, PID2020-
117954RB-C21, PID2023-146037OB-C21, PID2023-146037OB-C22
unded by MICIU/AEI/10.13039/501100011033. I also is suppo ed
by TED2021-131311B-C21 and TED2021-131311B-C22 unded by
MICIU/AEI/10.13039/501100011033 and he Eu opean Union Nex Gen-
e a ionEU/PRTR.
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