Relaxed problems

Admissible heuristics can be derived from the exact solution cost of a relaxed version of the problem If the rules of the 8-puzzle are relaxed so that a tile can move anywhere, then h1(n) gives the shortest solution If the rules are relaxed so that a tile can move to any adjacent square, then h2(n) gives the shortest solution Key points: The optimal solution cost of a relaxed problem is no greater than the optimal solution cost of the real problem Relaxed problem can be solved efficiently