Self-Organizing Maps

Synonyms

Kohonen maps; Self-organizing feature maps; SOM

Definition

Self-organizing map (SOM), or Kohonen Map, is a computational data analysis method which produces nonlinear mappings of data to lower dimensions. Alternatively, the SOM can be viewed as a clustering algorithm which produces a set of clusters organized on a regular grid. The roots of SOM are in neural computation (see neural networks); it has been used as an abstract model for the formation of ordered maps of brain functions, such as sensory feature maps. Several variants have been proposed, ranging from dynamic models to Bayesian variants. The SOM has been used widely as an engineering tool for data analysis, process monitoring, and information visualization, in numerous application areas.

Motivation and Background

The SOM (Kohonen 1982, 2001) was originally introduced in the context of modeling of how the spatial organization of brain functions forms. Formation of feature detectors selective to certain sensory...