Parameterization of state-of-the-art performance indicators: a robustness study based on inexact TSP solvers.

Performance comparisons of optimization algorithms are heavily influenced by the underlying indicator(s). In this paper we investigate commonly used performance indicators for single-objective stochastic solvers, such as the Penalized Average Runtime (e.g., PAR10) or the Expected Running Time (ERT), based on exemplary benchmark performances of state-of-the-art inexact TSP solvers. Thereby, we introduce a methodology for analyzing the effects of (usually heuristically set) indicator parametrizations - such as the penalty factor and the method used for aggregating across multiple runs - w.r.t. the robustness of the considered optimization algorithms.