Self-Organizing Maps

An introduction to the self-organizing map (SOM) algorithm, a major approach to contemporary neural network research. The author describes how SOM algorithms may be applied to pattern recognition, speech analysis, robotics, control systems, diagnostics, instrumentation and many other tasks.

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The Self-Organising Map (SOM) algorithm was introduced by the author in 1981. Its theory and many applications form one of the major approaches to the contemporary artificial neural networks field, and new technologies have already been based on it. The most important practical applications are in exploratory data analysis, pattern recognition, speech analysis, robotics, industrial and medical diagnostics, instrumentation, and control, and literally hundreds of other tasks. In this monograph the mathematical preliminaries, background, basic ideas, and implications are expounded in a manner which is accessible without prior expert knowledge.