Bitwise MAP Algorithm for Group Testing based on Holographic Transformation

Abstract

In this paper, an exact bitwise MAP (Maximum A Posteriori) estimation algorithm for group testing problems is presented. We assume a simplest non-adaptive group testing scenario including N-objects with binary status and M-disjunctive tests. If a group contains a positive object, the test result for the group is assumed to be one; otherwise, the test result becomes zero. Our inference problem is to evaluate the posterior probabilities of the objects from the observation of M-test results and from our knowledge on the prior probabilities for objects. The heart of the algorithm is the dual expression of the posterior values. The derivation of the dual expression can be naturally described based on a holographic transformation to the normal factor graph (NFG) representing the inference problem.