Algorithm for finding smallest collection of components
问题 I'm looking for an algorithm to solve the following problem. I have a number of subsets (1-n) of a given set (a-h). I want to find the smallest collection of subsets that will allow me to construct, by combination, all of the given subsets. This collection can contain subsets that do not exist in 1-n yet. a b c d e f g h 1 1 2 1 1 3 1 1 1 4 1 1 5 1 1 6 1 1 1 1 7 1 1 1 1 8 1 1 1 9 1 1 1 Below are two possible collections, the smallest of which contains seven subsets. I have denoted new subsets