已有的求图的最小顶点覆盖集近似算法或者近似比较高,或者为降低时间复杂度限制了图的规模.根据顶点的度分析了图的局部结构特征,提出了悬挂链、封闭链和稠部等重要概念,并在这些概念的基础上提出了相应的3个伪最小覆盖点选取启发式策略.运用这些伪最小覆盖点选取启发式策略设计了一个近似算法.该算法不限制图的规模,时间复杂度为O(|V|^2),近似比为4/3,接近已知的可能的近似比下界1.1666,低于2005年认为最低的近似比1.361.与同类算法相比,该算法设计思路清晰,容易理解,易于编程实现,执行效果好,是图的最小顶点覆盖集问题的近似算法的一个重要补充.
Approximate algorithms now available for solving the minimum vertex cover set of a graph either have a high ratio bound or constrain the scale of the graph intending to reduce the running time. Based on the analysis of the vertex degree, this paper proposes three important notions: pendulous link, close link and density part. According to these notions, three heuristic policies for selecting pseudo minimum-cover-vertex are proposed. With these policies, this paper presents an approximate algorithm for the minimum vertex cover set of a graph. The algorithm, without any constraint on the scale of the graph, has a total running time of O(|V|^2) and a ratio bound of 4/3, close to the known potential ratio bound of 1.166 6, and better than that of 1.361 in 2005. Compared with the existing algorithms, the proposed algorithm shows a higher efficiency. Furthermore, it has a clear clue and is easy to be programmed. The algorithm can be a valuable supplement for the approximate algorithm to find the minimum vertex cover set of a graph.