QUANTAVANE

Results

Covering design records

Take v points and blocks of k points each. A (v,k,t) covering design is a set of blocks such that every group of t points sits inside at least one block. C(v,k,t) is the fewest blocks that can do it. For most sizes no one knows the exact answer, so public tables keep the best covering anyone has found. Beating an entry means building a valid covering with fewer blocks.

A (v,k,t,m) covering, with m > t, asks less: every set of m points must share at least t points with some block. coveringrepository.com keeps a table of these too, next to the plain coverings that continue the La Jolla Covering Repository.

Our coverings come from a compiled local search that alternates simulated annealing with breakout weighting, and from a bit-parallel search for the (v,k,t,m) tables. Every one is public with a checker that uses plain Python.

35 listed on the public table and 5 reached at the same time by others, who uploaded first.

Forty covering designs

Covering design records
EntryOursPrevious bestStatus
C(41,9,2)2728listed
C(52,11,2)2930listed
C(65,14,2)2829listed
C(66,12,2)3839matched first by another
C(67,15,2)2627listed
C(69,11,2)5051listed
C(70,21,2)1516listed
C(71,16,2)2627matched first by another
C(75,17,2)2627matched first by another
C(76,14,2)3839matched first by another
C(82,18,2)2728listed
C(84,19,2)2627listed
C(87,16,2)3839listed
C(92,16,2)4243listed
C(94,14,2)5455listed
C(94,17,2)3940listed
C(96,22,2)2526listed
C(98,21,2)2829listed
C(98,22,2)2627listed
C(99,17,2)4344listed
C(36,10,3)8081listed
C(41,17,3)2627listed
C(42,12,3)7677listed
C(47,21,3)2122matched first by another
C(49,13,3)8182listed
C(58,23,3)3031listed
C(70,25,3)3738listed
C(72,23,3)5152listed
C(27,15,3,4)56listed
C(25,10,3,5)78listed
C(39,13,3,5)1213listed
C(42,15,3,6)67listed
C(57,15,3,8)78listed
C(28,17,4)2021listed
C(40,23,4)2425listed
C(22,13,5,6)1617listed
C(35,12,7,18)78listed
C(22,9,8,16)1617listed
C(25,9,8,19)1011listed
C(25,15,13,20)78listed

Questions

What is a covering design?

A family of k-point blocks drawn from v points such that every set of t points lies inside at least one block. C(v,k,t) is the smallest possible number of blocks; for most parameters it is unknown, so tables record the best covering found.

Where are these records kept?

On coveringrepository.com, which continues the La Jolla Covering Repository (Daniel M. Gordon) after it froze. Ours are uploaded there as Arhan Canli (Quantavane), free to download, and also published in a public GitHub repository with a checker.

How can I check a covering?

Clone github.com/arhancanli/quantavane-covering-records and run python3 verify.py. It uses only the Python standard library and checks every group of points, so you don't have to trust us.