multipattern

Multipattern is a term used in various fields to describe the capacity to deal with more than one pattern or motif at once. The specific meaning depends on context, but it generally refers to detection, recognition, or analysis of multiple patterns within a dataset, stream, sequence, or design.

In computer science, multipattern (or multi-pattern) matching describes algorithms and data structures that search for many patterns simultaneously in a text or data stream. Classic approaches include the Aho-Corasick automaton, which builds a finite automaton to report all occurrences of a set of patterns in time proportional to the text length plus the total length of the patterns. Such techniques support applications like intrusion detection, content filtering, spam detection, and log analysis. Challenges include memory usage for large pattern sets and efficiently updating patterns as they change.

In data mining and time-series analysis, multipattern analysis aims to discover and model multiple frequent or significant patterns, motifs, or substrings. Methods include frequent itemset mining, sequential pattern mining, and motif discovery. These approaches help reveal recurring behavior, correlations, or structural motifs across datasets, though they may face combinatorial explosion and require post-processing to assess pattern relevance.

In genomics and molecular biology, multipattern or motif analysis evaluates multiple sequence motifs that may be conserved across different sequences. Tools search for multiple motifs concurrently, enable comparative analysis, and support understanding regulatory elements and protein-binding sites.

In design and graphics, multipattern refers to a motif strategy that combines several repeating patterns or motifs within a single composition, enabling richer textures and visual variety. See also pattern recognition, multi-pattern matching, motif discovery.