Efficient deterministic finite automata split-minimization derived from Brzozowski's algorithm

Abstract

Minimization of deterministic finite automata is a classic problem in Computer Science which is still studied nowadays. In this paper, we relate the different split-minimization methods proposed to date, or to be proposed, and the algorithm due to Brzozowski which has been usually set aside in any classification of DFA minimization algorithms. In our work, we first propose a polynomial minimization method derived from a paper by Champarnaud et al. We also show how the consideration of some efficiency improvements on this algorithm lead to obtain an algorithm similar to Hopcroft s classic algorithm. The results obtained lead us to propose a characterization of the set of possible splitters.