Robust Broad Learning System with Wave Loss for Classification under Data Uncertainty
Mushir Akhtar, A. Varshney, A. Quadir, A. Rahaman, M. Tanveer, Mohd. Arshad
Abstract
Broad Learning System (BLS) offers an efficient alternative to deep architectures by enabling fast learning through randomized feature mapping and closed-form solutions. However, its reliance on squared error loss makes it highly sensitive to noise, outliers, and corrupted labels, limiting its reliability in real-world scenarios. To address this limitation, we propose Wave-BLS, a robust broad learning framework that integrates the wave loss function, which is asymmetric, bounded, and smooth, enabling controlled penalization of large errors. The proposed formulation replaces the standard least-squares objective with a wave-loss-based optimization problem, solved efficiently using a Nesterov accelerated gradient (NAG)-based scheme without requiring matrix inversion, thereby improving scalability. Extensive experiments on 30 UCI benchmark datasets demonstrate that Wave-BLS consistently outperforms classical BLS and several robust variants. Statistical validation using Friedman and Nemenyi post-hoc tests confirms the significance of the observed improvements. Furthermore, robustness evaluations under controlled noise and outlier injection reveal that Wave-BLS exhibits substantially slower performance degradation compared to BLS, even in challenging contamination settings. These results establish Wave-BLS as a stable and robust alternative to existing broad learning models for learning under data uncertainty.