Exploring Markov Decision Processes: A Comprehensive Survey of Optimization Applications and Techniques

Abstract

Markov decision process is a dynamic programming algorithm that can be used to solve an optimization problem. It was used in applications like robotics, radar tracking, medical treatments, and decision-making. In the existing literature, the researcher only targets a few applications area of MDP. However, this work surveyed the Markov decision process’s application in various regions for solving optimization problems. In a survey, we compared optimization techniques based on MDP. We performed a comparative analysis of past work of other researchers in the last few years based on a few parameters. These parameters are focused on the proposed problem, the proposed methodology for solving an optimization problem, and the results and outcomes of the optimization technique in solving a specific problem. Reinforcement learning is an emerging machine learning domain based on the Markov decision process. In this work, we conclude that the MDP-based approach is most widely used when deciding on the current state in some environments to move to the next state.