Svc / Classifier Layer

Support Vector Classification - A powerful non-linear classification algorithm. The fit time scales at least quadratically with the number of samples and may be impractical beyond tens of thousands of samples.

Mathematical form: where:

  • is the kernel function
  • are Lagrange multipliers
  • are class labels
  • is the bias term

Key characteristics:

  • Maximum margin classification
  • Kernel-based learning
  • Non-linear capability
  • Robust to high dimensions
  • Support vector sparsity

Common applications:

  • Text classification
  • Image recognition
  • Bioinformatics
  • Pattern recognition
  • Face detection

Computational notes:

  • Time complexity: O(n²) to O(n³)
  • Space complexity: O(n²)
  • Best for n < 10,000 samples
  • Kernel computations intensive

Outputs:

  1. Predicted Table: Input data with predictions
  2. Validation Results: Cross-validation metrics
  3. Test Metric: Test set performance
  4. ROC Curve Data: ROC analysis information
  5. Confusion Matrix: Classification breakdown
  6. Feature Importances: Feature weights/coefficients

Note: For larger datasets, consider LinearSVC or SGDClassifier

Table
0
0
Predicted Table
1
Validation Results
2
Test Metric
3
ROC Curve Data
4
Confusion Matrix
5
Feature Importances

SelectFeatures

[column, ...]

Feature columns for SVM classification:

Data requirements:

  1. Preprocessing:

    • Numerical features
    • Standardized/normalized
    • No missing values
    • Finite numbers only
  2. Scaling recommendations:

    • StandardScaler: Zero mean, unit variance
    • MinMaxScaler: Bounded range
    • RobustScaler: Outlier presence
  3. Feature engineering:

    • Kernel-appropriate transforms
    • Meaningful interactions
    • Domain-specific features
  4. Quality checks:

    • Feature relevance
    • Correlation analysis
    • Scale compatibility
    • Outlier detection

Note: If empty, uses all numeric columns except target

Target column for SVM classification:

Requirements:

  1. Data format:

    • Categorical labels
    • No missing values
    • Unique class labels
    • Valid encodings
  2. Class characteristics:

    • At least two classes
    • Balanced preferred
    • Clear separation
    • Meaningful categories
  3. Quality considerations:

    • Label consistency
    • Class distributions
    • Error costs
    • Domain validity
  4. Processing needs:

    • Label encoding
    • Class weighting
    • Stratification
    • Validation strategy

Params

oneof
DefaultParams

Optimized default configuration for Support Vector Classification:

Default settings:

  1. Core parameters:

    • C = 1.0 (regularization)
    • RBF kernel (non-linear)
    • gamma = 'scale' (auto-scaling)
  2. Kernel settings:

    • degree = 3 (polynomial)
    • coef0 = 0.0 (kernel offset)
  3. Training control:

    • shrinking = true
    • tolerance = 0.001
    • cache_size = 200MB

Best suited for:

  • Medium-sized datasets
  • Unknown data distributions
  • General classification tasks
  • Initial modeling phase

Note: Provides good baseline performance for most problems

Fine-tuned configuration for Support Vector Classification:

Parameter categories:

  1. Model complexity:

    • Regularization strength
    • Kernel selection
    • Feature mapping
  2. Kernel configuration:

    • Kernel parameters
    • Feature space control
    • Similarity measures
  3. Optimization settings:

    • Numerical precision
    • Memory usage
    • Convergence control
  4. Output control:

    • Decision function
    • Probability estimation
    • Class weighting

Note: Parameter interactions significantly impact model performance

Regularization parameter (C):

Mathematical role:

Impact:

  • Controls margin width
  • Balances error vs complexity
  • Affects overfitting

Typical ranges:

  • Weak: 0.1 - 1.0
  • Medium: 1.0 - 10.0
  • Strong: 10.0 - 100.0

Note: Lower C = more regularization

Kernel

enum
Rbf

Kernel functions for non-linear feature mapping:

Role in SVM:

  • Implicit feature space mapping
  • Non-linear pattern learning
  • Similarity measurement
  • Computational efficiency

Selection criteria:

  • Data distribution
  • Problem non-linearity
  • Computational resources
  • Domain knowledge
Linear ~

Linear kernel:

Properties:

  • Fastest computation
  • No hyperparameters
  • Linear decision boundary
  • Memory efficient

Best for:

  • High-dimensional data
  • Text classification
  • Sparse datasets
  • Linear relationships

Note: Equivalent to LinearSVC with better small-dataset handling

Poly ~

Polynomial kernel:

Properties:

  • Degree d controls flexibility
  • Models feature interactions
  • Homogeneous (r=0) or inhomogeneous (r≠0)
  • Computationally intensive

Best for:

  • Feature interaction modeling
  • Bounded non-linearity
  • Image processing
  • Structured data

Parameters: degree (d), gamma (γ), coef0 (r)

Rbf ~

Radial Basis Function:

Properties:

  • Infinite-dimensional feature space
  • Universal approximator
  • Distance-based similarity
  • Most versatile kernel

Best for:

  • General-purpose use
  • Unknown non-linearity
  • Real-valued features
  • Default choice

Parameter: gamma (γ) controls influence radius

Sigmoid ~

Sigmoid kernel:

Properties:

  • Neural network connection
  • Non-positive definite
  • Bounded output [-1, 1]
  • Historical importance

Best for:

  • Neural network alternative
  • Binary classification
  • Specific applications

Parameters: gamma (γ), coef0 (r)

3

Polynomial kernel degree:

Effect:

Impact:

  • Feature space complexity
  • Model flexibility
  • Computational cost

Common values:

  • 2: Quadratic relationships
  • 3: Cubic (default)
  • 4+: Higher-order patterns

Note: Only affects polynomial kernel

Gamma

enum
Scale

Kernel coefficient scaling strategies:

Mathematical role:

  • Controls kernel bandwidth
  • Influences decision boundary flexibility
  • Affects model complexity
  • Impacts feature space transformation

Selection impact:

  • Training-validation trade-off
  • Model generalization
  • Computational efficiency
  • Prediction stability
Scale ~

Scale-dependent gamma:

Properties:

  • Adapts to feature variance
  • Scale-invariant behavior
  • Data-driven selection
  • Default choice

Advantages:

  • Robust to feature scaling
  • Automatic adaptation
  • Good default performance
  • Handles varying scales

Best for:

  • General use cases
  • Unknown data scales
  • Automated pipelines
Auto ~

Dimension-based gamma:

Properties:

  • Simple dimensionality scaling
  • Feature count adaptation
  • Scale-sensitive behavior
  • Legacy default

Advantages:

  • Simple computation
  • Dimensionality aware
  • Consistent behavior

Best for:

  • Normalized features
  • Legacy compatibility
  • Simple problems
Custom ~

User-specified gamma value:

Usage:

  • Manual gamma selection
  • Fine-tuned optimization
  • Expert configuration
  • Cross-validation tuning

Advantages:

  • Full control
  • Problem-specific tuning
  • Optimization potential
  • Research flexibility

Best for:

  • Expert users
  • Grid search
  • Specialized problems
  • Performance optimization
0

Custom gamma value:

Usage:

  • RBF: Inverse radius of influence
  • Polynomial: Scale of inner product
  • Sigmoid: Scale factor

Typical ranges:

  • Small: 0.001 - 0.01
  • Medium: 0.01 - 0.1
  • Large: 0.1 - 1.0

Note: Only used when gamma='custom'

0

Independent term in kernel function:

Impact in kernels: Polynomial: Sigmoid:

Typical ranges:

  • Conservative: -1.0 to 1.0
  • Extended: -5.0 to 5.0

Effect:

  • Controls decision boundary offset
  • Affects feature space mapping
  • Influences model flexibility

Note: Only significant for polynomial and sigmoid kernels

true

Whether to use the shrinking heuristic.

Purpose:

  • Accelerates training
  • Reduces memory usage
  • Eliminates non-support vectors
  • Optimizes solution search

Advantages:

  • Faster convergence
  • Memory efficiency
  • Solution sparsity

Trade-offs:

  • Speed vs precision
  • Memory vs accuracy
  • Early elimination risk
false

Enable probability estimates:

Method:

  • Uses Platt scaling
  • Requires additional cross-validation
  • Fits sigmoid to SVM scores

Impact:

  • Slower training (5-10x)
  • Additional memory usage
  • Probabilistic outputs
  • Calibrated predictions

Best for:

  • Uncertainty quantification
  • Risk assessment
  • Decision thresholding
  • Probability requirements

Tol

f64
0.001

Optimization convergence tolerance:

Controls:

  • Solution precision
  • Training termination
  • Optimization accuracy

Typical values:

  • Strict: 1e-4 to 1e-3
  • Standard: 1e-3 (default)
  • Relaxed: 1e-3 to 1e-2

Trade-offs:

  • Precision vs speed
  • Convergence time
  • Solution accuracy
200

Kernel cache size in MB:

Purpose:

  • Speeds up training
  • Stores kernel evaluations
  • Reduces computations

Guidelines:

  • Small (100MB): Limited memory
  • Medium (200MB): Default
  • Large (1000MB+): Fast training

Considerations:

  • Available RAM
  • Dataset size
  • Training speed needs
  • System resources
None

Class importance weighting schemes:

Purpose:

  • Handles class imbalance
  • Adjusts error penalties
  • Controls class importance
  • Influences decision boundary

Impact:

  • Classification bias
  • Model sensitivity
  • Error distribution
  • Training dynamics
None ~

Uniform class weights:

Properties:

  • Equal class importance
  • No bias adjustment
  • Standard optimization
  • Raw data distribution

Best for:

  • Balanced datasets
  • Equal error costs
  • Standard problems
  • When class balance not critical
Balanced ~

Inverse frequency weighting:

Formula:

where:

  • is weight for class i
  • is total samples
  • is number of classes
  • is samples in class i

Properties:

  • Automatic weight adjustment
  • Compensates class imbalance
  • Balanced error contribution
  • Frequency-based weights

Best for:

  • Imbalanced datasets
  • Minority class importance
  • Skewed distributions
  • Fair classification needs

Note: May increase sensitivity to noise in rare classes

-1

Maximum iterations limit:

Control:

  • Training duration
  • Optimization steps
  • Convergence limit

Values:

  • -1: No limit
  • >0: Maximum iterations

Guidelines:

  • Simple: 1000-10000
  • Complex: 10000-100000
  • Very complex: >100000

Whether to return a one-vs-rest ('ovr') decision function of shape (n_samples, n_classes) as all other classifiers, or the original one-vs-one ('ovo') decision function of libsvm which has shape (n_samples, n_classes * (n_classes - 1) / 2). However, note that internally, one-vs-one ('ovo') is always used as a multi-class strategy to train models; an ovr matrix is only constructed from the ovo matrix. The parameter is ignored for binary classification.

Impact:

  • Decision boundary construction
  • Computational complexity
  • Memory requirements
  • Prediction interpretation

Trade-offs:

  • Speed vs accuracy
  • Memory vs precision
  • Simplicity vs detail
  • Training vs prediction time
Ovr ~

One-vs-Rest strategy:

Properties:

  • n_classes binary classifiers
  • Linear memory scaling
  • Simpler decision boundaries
  • Standard approach

Advantages:

  • Memory efficient
  • Faster prediction
  • Easier interpretation
  • Common interface

Best for:

  • Many classes
  • Limited memory
  • Standard applications
Ovo ~

One-vs-One strategy:

Properties:

  • n_classes * (n_classes-1)/2 classifiers
  • Quadratic memory scaling
  • Pairwise class separation
  • Original LIBSVM approach

Advantages:

  • Better class separation
  • Handles unbalanced classes
  • More detailed boundaries
  • Original implementation

Best for:

  • Few classes
  • Complex boundaries
  • Detailed analysis needs

Random number generator seed:

Controls:

  • Data shuffling
  • Probability estimation
  • Cross-validation splits

Important for:

  • Reproducibility
  • Debugging
  • Result comparison
  • Validation stability

Hyperparameter optimization for Support Vector Classification:

Search process:

  1. Model complexity:

    • Regularization (C)
    • Kernel selection
    • Kernel parameters
  2. Feature mapping:

    • Gamma values
    • Polynomial degrees
    • Kernel coefficients
  3. Optimization:

    • Numerical parameters
    • Training control
    • Convergence settings

Computational impact:

  • Time complexity: O(n_params * n_samples²)
  • Memory needs: O(n_params * cache_size)
  • Storage: O(n_params * n_support_vectors)

Best practices:

  • Start with coarse grid
  • Focus on key parameters
  • Monitor resource usage
  • Use domain knowledge

CFactor

[f64, ...]
1

Regularization parameter search space:

Common search patterns:

  1. Logarithmic scale (recommended):

    • Wide: [0.1, 1.0, 10.0, 100.0]
    • Fine: [0.1, 0.3, 1.0, 3.0, 10.0]
  2. Problem-specific:

    • Noisy data: [0.1, 0.5, 1.0]
    • Clean data: [1.0, 10.0, 100.0]

Selection strategy:

  • Start with log-spaced values
  • Refine around best performance
  • Consider noise levels
  • Monitor overfitting

Kernel

[enum, ...]
Rbf

Kernel functions for non-linear feature mapping:

Role in SVM:

  • Implicit feature space mapping
  • Non-linear pattern learning
  • Similarity measurement
  • Computational efficiency

Selection criteria:

  • Data distribution
  • Problem non-linearity
  • Computational resources
  • Domain knowledge
Linear ~

Linear kernel:

Properties:

  • Fastest computation
  • No hyperparameters
  • Linear decision boundary
  • Memory efficient

Best for:

  • High-dimensional data
  • Text classification
  • Sparse datasets
  • Linear relationships

Note: Equivalent to LinearSVC with better small-dataset handling

Poly ~

Polynomial kernel:

Properties:

  • Degree d controls flexibility
  • Models feature interactions
  • Homogeneous (r=0) or inhomogeneous (r≠0)
  • Computationally intensive

Best for:

  • Feature interaction modeling
  • Bounded non-linearity
  • Image processing
  • Structured data

Parameters: degree (d), gamma (γ), coef0 (r)

Rbf ~

Radial Basis Function:

Properties:

  • Infinite-dimensional feature space
  • Universal approximator
  • Distance-based similarity
  • Most versatile kernel

Best for:

  • General-purpose use
  • Unknown non-linearity
  • Real-valued features
  • Default choice

Parameter: gamma (γ) controls influence radius

Sigmoid ~

Sigmoid kernel:

Properties:

  • Neural network connection
  • Non-positive definite
  • Bounded output [-1, 1]
  • Historical importance

Best for:

  • Neural network alternative
  • Binary classification
  • Specific applications

Parameters: gamma (γ), coef0 (r)

Degree

[u32, ...]
3

Polynomial degree values to evaluate:

Common ranges:

  1. Standard search:

    • [2, 3, 4]: Basic polynomial orders
    • [2, 3, 4, 5]: Extended range
  2. Specialized:

    • [1, 2]: Linear to quadratic
    • [2, 3, 4, 5, 6]: Complex patterns

Considerations:

  • Computational cost grows with degree
  • Risk of overfitting increases
  • Feature space dimensionality
  • Memory requirements

Gamma

[enum, ...]
Scale

Kernel coefficient scaling strategies:

Mathematical role:

  • Controls kernel bandwidth
  • Influences decision boundary flexibility
  • Affects model complexity
  • Impacts feature space transformation

Selection impact:

  • Training-validation trade-off
  • Model generalization
  • Computational efficiency
  • Prediction stability
Scale ~

Scale-dependent gamma:

Properties:

  • Adapts to feature variance
  • Scale-invariant behavior
  • Data-driven selection
  • Default choice

Advantages:

  • Robust to feature scaling
  • Automatic adaptation
  • Good default performance
  • Handles varying scales

Best for:

  • General use cases
  • Unknown data scales
  • Automated pipelines
Auto ~

Dimension-based gamma:

Properties:

  • Simple dimensionality scaling
  • Feature count adaptation
  • Scale-sensitive behavior
  • Legacy default

Advantages:

  • Simple computation
  • Dimensionality aware
  • Consistent behavior

Best for:

  • Normalized features
  • Legacy compatibility
  • Simple problems
Custom ~

User-specified gamma value:

Usage:

  • Manual gamma selection
  • Fine-tuned optimization
  • Expert configuration
  • Cross-validation tuning

Advantages:

  • Full control
  • Problem-specific tuning
  • Optimization potential
  • Research flexibility

Best for:

  • Expert users
  • Grid search
  • Specialized problems
  • Performance optimization

GammaF

[f64, ...]
0

Custom gamma values to evaluate:

Search spaces:

  1. Log scale (recommended):

    • Wide: [0.0001, 0.001, 0.01, 0.1, 1.0]
    • Fine: [0.001, 0.003, 0.01, 0.03, 0.1]
  2. Problem-specific:

    • Low complexity: [0.001, 0.01]
    • High complexity: [0.1, 1.0, 10.0]

Note: Only used when gamma='custom'

Coef0

[f64, ...]
0

Independent term values to evaluate:

Search ranges:

  1. Conservative:

    • [-1.0, 0.0, 1.0]
    • [-0.5, 0.0, 0.5]
  2. Exploratory:

    • [-5.0, -1.0, 0.0, 1.0, 5.0]
    • [-2.0, -1.0, 0.0, 1.0, 2.0]

Impact:

  • Polynomial kernel homogeneity
  • Sigmoid kernel shift
  • Decision boundary shape

Shrinking

[bool, ...]
true

Shrinking heuristic options:

Evaluation strategies:

  1. Single option:

    • [true]: Use shrinking
    • [false]: No shrinking
  2. Compare both:

    • [true, false]: Full evaluation

Trade-off analysis:

  • Training speed
  • Memory usage
  • Solution accuracy
  • Convergence behavior
false

Probability estimation setting:

Configuration impact:

  • Training time (5-10x slower)
  • Memory requirements
  • Output capabilities
  • Cross-validation needs

Use cases:

  • Uncertainty estimation
  • Confidence scoring
  • Risk assessment
  • Calibrated predictions

Tol

[f64, ...]
0.001

Convergence tolerance values:

Search ranges:

  1. Standard scale:

    • [1e-4, 1e-3, 1e-2]
    • [0.0001, 0.001, 0.01]
  2. Fine-tuning:

    • [0.0005, 0.001, 0.002]
    • [0.0008, 0.001, 0.0012]

Trade-offs:

  • Solution precision
  • Training time
  • Convergence guarantee
200

Kernel cache memory allocation (MB):

Common configurations:

  1. System-based:

    • Small: 100MB (limited memory)
    • Medium: 200MB (default)
    • Large: 1000MB+ (fast training)
  2. Dataset-based:

    • Small data: 100-200MB
    • Medium data: 200-500MB
    • Large data: 500MB+

Note: Fixed during grid search to manage resources

ClassWeight

[enum, ...]
None

Class importance weighting schemes:

Purpose:

  • Handles class imbalance
  • Adjusts error penalties
  • Controls class importance
  • Influences decision boundary

Impact:

  • Classification bias
  • Model sensitivity
  • Error distribution
  • Training dynamics
None ~

Uniform class weights:

Properties:

  • Equal class importance
  • No bias adjustment
  • Standard optimization
  • Raw data distribution

Best for:

  • Balanced datasets
  • Equal error costs
  • Standard problems
  • When class balance not critical
Balanced ~

Inverse frequency weighting:

Formula:

where:

  • is weight for class i
  • is total samples
  • is number of classes
  • is samples in class i

Properties:

  • Automatic weight adjustment
  • Compensates class imbalance
  • Balanced error contribution
  • Frequency-based weights

Best for:

  • Imbalanced datasets
  • Minority class importance
  • Skewed distributions
  • Fair classification needs

Note: May increase sensitivity to noise in rare classes

MaxIter

[i64, ...]
-1

Maximum iteration limits to evaluate:

Search ranges:

  1. Conservative:

    • [-1]: No limit
    • [1000, 5000, 10000]
  2. Extensive:

    • [5000, 10000, 50000, 100000]
    • [10000, 25000, 50000]

Considerations:

  • Problem complexity
  • Convergence patterns
  • Time constraints
  • Resource limitations

Whether to return a one-vs-rest ('ovr') decision function of shape (n_samples, n_classes) as all other classifiers, or the original one-vs-one ('ovo') decision function of libsvm which has shape (n_samples, n_classes * (n_classes - 1) / 2). However, note that internally, one-vs-one ('ovo') is always used as a multi-class strategy to train models; an ovr matrix is only constructed from the ovo matrix. The parameter is ignored for binary classification.

Impact:

  • Decision boundary construction
  • Computational complexity
  • Memory requirements
  • Prediction interpretation

Trade-offs:

  • Speed vs accuracy
  • Memory vs precision
  • Simplicity vs detail
  • Training vs prediction time
Ovr ~

One-vs-Rest strategy:

Properties:

  • n_classes binary classifiers
  • Linear memory scaling
  • Simpler decision boundaries
  • Standard approach

Advantages:

  • Memory efficient
  • Faster prediction
  • Easier interpretation
  • Common interface

Best for:

  • Many classes
  • Limited memory
  • Standard applications
Ovo ~

One-vs-One strategy:

Properties:

  • n_classes * (n_classes-1)/2 classifiers
  • Quadratic memory scaling
  • Pairwise class separation
  • Original LIBSVM approach

Advantages:

  • Better class separation
  • Handles unbalanced classes
  • More detailed boundaries
  • Original implementation

Best for:

  • Few classes
  • Complex boundaries
  • Detailed analysis needs

Random number generation seed:

Controls randomization in:

  • Cross-validation splits
  • Data shuffling
  • Probability estimation

Importance:

  • Reproducible results
  • Consistent comparison
  • Debugging capability
  • Validation stability
Accuracy

Performance evaluation metrics for SVM classification:

Purpose:

  • Model selection
  • Performance evaluation
  • Cross-validation scoring
  • Hyperparameter tuning

Selection criteria:

  • Problem objectives
  • Class distribution
  • Error costs
  • Application needs
Default ~

Uses model's built-in accuracy score:

Properties:

  • Standard accuracy metric
  • Equal error weighting
  • Fast computation
  • Simple interpretation

Best for:

  • Balanced datasets
  • Quick evaluation
  • Standard problems
  • Initial testing
Accuracy ~

Standard classification accuracy:

Formula:

Properties:

  • Range: [0, 1]
  • Intuitive metric
  • Equal error weights
  • Fast computation

Best for:

  • Balanced classes
  • Equal error costs
  • Simple evaluation
BalancedAccuracy ~

Class-weighted accuracy score:

Formula:

Properties:

  • Range: [0, 1]
  • Class-normalized
  • Balanced evaluation
  • Robust to imbalance

Best for:

  • Imbalanced datasets
  • Varying class sizes
  • Fair evaluation needs

Split

oneof
DefaultSplit

Standard train-test split configuration optimized for general classification tasks.

Configuration:

  • Test size: 20% (0.2)
  • Random seed: 98
  • Shuffling: Enabled
  • Stratification: Based on target distribution

Advantages:

  • Preserves class distribution
  • Provides reliable validation
  • Suitable for most datasets

Best for:

  • Medium to large datasets
  • Independent observations
  • Initial model evaluation

Splitting uses the ShuffleSplit strategy or StratifiedShuffleSplit strategy depending on the field stratified. Note: If shuffle is false then stratified must be false.

Configurable train-test split parameters for specialized requirements. Allows fine-tuning of data division strategy for specific use cases or constraints.

Use cases:

  • Time series data
  • Grouped observations
  • Specific train/test ratios
  • Custom validation schemes

Random seed for reproducible splits. Ensures:

  • Consistent train/test sets
  • Reproducible experiments
  • Comparable model evaluations

Same seed guarantees identical splits across runs.

true

Data shuffling before splitting. Effects:

  • true: Randomizes order, better for i.i.d. data
  • false: Maintains order, important for time series

When to disable:

  • Time dependent data
  • Sequential patterns
  • Grouped observations
0.8

Proportion of data for training. Considerations:

  • Larger (e.g., 0.8-0.9): Better model learning
  • Smaller (e.g., 0.5-0.7): Better validation

Common splits:

  • 0.8: Standard (80/20 split)
  • 0.7: More validation emphasis
  • 0.9: More training emphasis
false

Maintain class distribution in splits. Important when:

  • Classes are imbalanced
  • Small classes present
  • Representative splits needed

Requirements:

  • Classification tasks only
  • Cannot use with shuffle=false
  • Sufficient samples per class

Cv

oneof
DefaultCv

Standard cross-validation configuration using stratified 3-fold splitting.

Configuration:

  • Folds: 3
  • Method: StratifiedKFold
  • Stratification: Preserves class proportions

Advantages:

  • Balanced evaluation
  • Reasonable computation time
  • Good for medium-sized datasets

Limitations:

  • May be insufficient for small datasets
  • Higher variance than larger fold counts
  • May miss some data patterns

Configurable stratified k-fold cross-validation for specific validation requirements.

Features:

  • Adjustable fold count with NFolds determining the number of splits.
  • Stratified sampling
  • Preserved class distributions

Use cases:

  • Small datasets (more folds)
  • Large datasets (fewer folds)
  • Detailed model evaluation
  • Robust performance estimation
3

Number of cross-validation folds. Guidelines:

  • 3-5: Large datasets, faster training
  • 5-10: Standard choice, good balance
  • 10+: Small datasets, thorough evaluation

Trade-offs:

  • More folds: Better evaluation, slower training
  • Fewer folds: Faster training, higher variance

Must be at least 2.

K-fold cross-validation without stratification. Divides data into k consecutive folds for iterative validation.

Process:

  • Splits data into k equal parts
  • Each fold serves as validation once
  • Remaining k-1 folds form training set

Use cases:

  • Regression problems
  • Large, balanced datasets
  • When stratification unnecessary
  • Continuous target variables

Limitations:

  • May not preserve class distributions
  • Less suitable for imbalanced data
  • Can create biased splits with ordered data

Number of folds for cross-validation. Selection guide: Recommended values:

  • 5: Standard choice (default)
  • 3: Large datasets/quick evaluation
  • 10: Thorough evaluation/smaller datasets

Trade-offs:

  • Higher values: More thorough, computationally expensive
  • Lower values: Faster, potentially higher variance

Must be at least 2 for valid cross-validation.

Random seed for fold generation when shuffling. Important for:

  • Reproducible results
  • Consistent fold assignments
  • Benchmark comparisons
  • Debugging and validation

Set specific value for reproducibility across runs.

true

Whether to shuffle data before splitting into folds. Effects:

  • true: Randomized fold composition (recommended)
  • false: Sequential splitting

Enable when:

  • Data may have ordering
  • Better fold independence needed

Disable for:

  • Time series data
  • Ordered observations

Stratified K-fold cross-validation maintaining class proportions across folds.

Key features:

  • Preserves class distribution in each fold
  • Handles imbalanced datasets
  • Ensures representative splits

Best for:

  • Classification problems
  • Imbalanced class distributions
  • When class proportions matter

Requirements:

  • Classification tasks only
  • Sufficient samples per class
  • Categorical target variable

Number of stratified folds. Guidelines: Typical values:

  • 5: Standard for most cases
  • 3: Quick evaluation/large datasets
  • 10: Detailed evaluation/smaller datasets

Considerations:

  • Must allow sufficient samples per class per fold
  • Balance between stability and computation time
  • Consider smallest class size when choosing

Seed for reproducible stratified splits. Ensures:

  • Consistent fold assignments
  • Reproducible results
  • Comparable experiments
  • Systematic validation

Fixed seed guarantees identical stratified splits.

false

Data shuffling before stratified splitting. Impact:

  • true: Randomizes while maintaining stratification
  • false: Maintains data order within strata

Use cases:

  • true: Independent observations
  • false: Grouped or sequential data

Class proportions maintained regardless of setting.

Random permutation cross-validator with independent sampling.

Characteristics:

  • Random sampling for each split
  • Independent train/test sets
  • More flexible than K-fold
  • Can have overlapping test sets

Advantages:

  • Control over test size
  • Fresh splits each iteration
  • Good for large datasets

Limitations:

  • Some samples might never be tested
  • Others might be tested multiple times
  • No guarantee of complete coverage

Number of random splits to perform. Consider: Common values:

  • 5: Standard evaluation
  • 10: More thorough assessment
  • 3: Quick estimates

Trade-offs:

  • More splits: Better estimation, longer runtime
  • Fewer splits: Faster, less stable estimates

Balance between computation and stability.

Random seed for reproducible shuffling. Controls:

  • Split randomization
  • Sample selection
  • Result reproducibility

Important for:

  • Debugging
  • Comparative studies
  • Result verification
0.2

Proportion of samples for test set. Guidelines: Common ratios:

  • 0.2: Standard (80/20 split)
  • 0.25: More validation emphasis
  • 0.1: More training data

Considerations:

  • Dataset size
  • Model complexity
  • Validation requirements

It must be between 0.0 and 1.0.

Stratified random permutation cross-validator combining shuffle-split with stratification.

Features:

  • Maintains class proportions
  • Random sampling within strata
  • Independent splits
  • Flexible test size

Ideal for:

  • Imbalanced datasets
  • Large-scale problems
  • When class distributions matter
  • Flexible validation schemes

Number of stratified random splits. Guidelines: Recommended values:

  • 5: Standard evaluation
  • 10: Detailed analysis
  • 3: Quick assessment

Consider:

  • Sample size per class
  • Computational resources
  • Stability requirements

Seed for reproducible stratified sampling. Ensures:

  • Consistent class proportions
  • Reproducible splits
  • Comparable experiments

Critical for:

  • Benchmarking
  • Research studies
  • Quality assurance
0.2

Fraction of samples for stratified test set. Best practices: Common splits:

  • 0.2: Balanced evaluation
  • 0.3: More thorough testing
  • 0.15: Preserve training size

Consider:

  • Minority class size
  • Overall dataset size
  • Validation objectives

It must be between 0.0 and 1.0.

Time Series cross-validator. Provides train/test indices to split time series data samples that are observed at fixed time intervals, in train/test sets. It is a variation of k-fold which returns first k folds as train set and the k + 1th fold as test set. Note that unlike standard cross-validation methods, successive training sets are supersets of those that come before them. Also, it adds all surplus data to the first training partition, which is always used to train the model. Key features:

  • Maintains temporal dependence
  • Expanding window approach
  • Forward-chaining splits
  • No future data leakage

Use cases:

  • Sequential data
  • Financial forecasting
  • Temporal predictions
  • Time-dependent patterns

Note: Training sets are supersets of previous iterations.

Number of temporal splits. Considerations: Typical values:

  • 5: Standard forward chaining
  • 3: Limited historical data
  • 10: Long time series

Impact:

  • Affects training window growth
  • Determines validation points
  • Influences computational load

Maximum size of training set. Should be strictly less than the number of samples. Applications:

  • 0: Use all available past data
  • >0: Rolling window of fixed size

Use cases:

  • Limit historical relevance
  • Control computational cost
  • Handle concept drift
  • Memory constraints

Number of samples in each test set. When 0:

  • Auto-calculated as n_samples/(n_splits+1)
  • Ensures equal-sized test sets

Considerations:

  • Forecast horizon
  • Validation requirements
  • Available future data

Gap

u64
0

Number of samples to exclude from the end of each train set before the test set.Gap between train and test sets. Uses:

  • Avoid data leakage
  • Model forecast lag
  • Buffer periods

Common scenarios:

  • 0: Continuous prediction
  • >0: Forward gap for realistic evaluation
  • Match business forecasting needs