A Comprehensive Survey on Particle Swarm Optimization Algorithm and Its Applications

Particle swarm optimization (PSO) is a heuristic global optimization method, proposed originally by Kennedy and Eberhart in 1995. It is now one of the most commonly used optimization techniques. This survey presented a comprehensive investigation of PSO. On one hand, we provided advances with PSO, including its modifications (including quantum-behaved PSO, bare-bones PSO, chaotic PSO, and fuzzy PSO), population topology (as fully connected, von Neumann, ring, star, random, etc.), hybridization (with genetic algorithm, simulated annealing, Tabu search, artificial immune system, ant colony algorithm, artificial bee colony, differential evolution, harmonic search, and biogeography-based optimization), extensions (to multiobjective, constrained, discrete, and binary optimization), theoretical analysis (parameter selection and tuning, and convergence analysis), and parallel implementation (in multicore, multiprocessor, GPU, and cloud computing forms). On the other hand, we offered a survey on applications of PSO to the following eight fields: electrical and electronic engineering, automation control systems, communication theory, operations research, mechanical engineering, fuel and energy, medicine, chemistry, and biology. It is hoped that this survey would be beneficial for the researchers studying PSO algorithms

On the role of metaheuristic optimization in bioinformatics

Metaheuristic algorithms are employed to solve complex and large-scale optimization problems in many different fields, from transportation and smart cities to finance. This paper discusses how metaheuristic algorithms are being applied to solve different optimization problems in the area of bioinformatics. While the text provides references to many optimization problems in the area, it focuses on those that have attracted more interest from the optimization community. Among the problems analyzed, the paper discusses in more detail the molecular docking problem, the protein structure prediction, phylogenetic inference, and different string problems. In addition, references to other relevant optimization problems are also given, including those related to medical imaging or gene selection for classification. From the previous analysis, the paper generates insights on research opportunities for the Operations Research and Computer Science communities in the field of bioinformatics

Robust and Constrained Portfolio Optimization using Multiobjective Evolutionary Algorithms

Optimization plays an important role in many areas of science, management,economics and engineering. Many techniques in mathematics and operation research are available to solve such problems. However these techniques have many shortcomings to provide fast and accurate solution particularly when the optimization problem involves many variables and constraints. Investment portfolio optimization is one such important but complex problem in computational finance which needs effective and efficient solutions. In this problem each available asset is judiciously selected in such a way that the total profit is maximized while simultaneously minimizing the total risk. The literature survey reveals that due to non availability of suitable multi objective optimization tools, this problem is mostly being solved by viewing it as a single objective optimization problem

Symbiotic Organisms Search Algorithm: theory, recent advances and applications

The symbiotic organisms search algorithm is a very promising recent metaheuristic algorithm. It has received a plethora of attention from all areas of numerical optimization research, as well as engineering design practices. it has since undergone several modifications, either in the form of hybridization or as some other improved variants of the original algorithm. However, despite all the remarkable achievements and rapidly expanding body of literature regarding the symbiotic organisms search algorithm within its short appearance in the field of swarm intelligence optimization techniques, there has been no collective and comprehensive study on the success of the various implementations of this algorithm. As a way forward, this paper provides an overview of the research conducted on symbiotic organisms search algorithms from inception to the time of writing, in the form of details of various application scenarios with variants and hybrid implementations, and suggestions for future research directions

Bio-inspired computation: where we stand and what's next

In recent years, the research community has witnessed an explosion of literature dealing with the adaptation of behavioral patterns and social phenomena observed in nature towards efficiently solving complex computational tasks. This trend has been especially dramatic in what relates to optimization problems, mainly due to the unprecedented complexity of problem instances, arising from a diverse spectrum of domains such as transportation, logistics, energy, climate, social networks, health and industry 4.0, among many others. Notwithstanding this upsurge of activity, research in this vibrant topic should be steered towards certain areas that, despite their eventual value and impact on the field of bio-inspired computation, still remain insufficiently explored to date. The main purpose of this paper is to outline the state of the art and to identify open challenges concerning the most relevant areas within bio-inspired optimization. An analysis and discussion are also carried out over the general trajectory followed in recent years by the community working in this field, thereby highlighting the need for reaching a consensus and joining forces towards achieving valuable insights into the understanding of this family of optimization techniques

Bio-inspired computation: where we stand and what's next

In recent years, the research community has witnessed an explosion of literature dealing with the adaptation of behavioral patterns and social phenomena observed in nature towards efficiently solving complex computational tasks. This trend has been especially dramatic in what relates to optimization problems, mainly due to the unprecedented complexity of problem instances, arising from a diverse spectrum of domains such as transportation, logistics, energy, climate, social networks, health and industry 4.0, among many others. Notwithstanding this upsurge of activity, research in this vibrant topic should be steered towards certain areas that, despite their eventual value and impact on the field of bio-inspired computation, still remain insufficiently explored to date. The main purpose of this paper is to outline the state of the art and to identify open challenges concerning the most relevant areas within bio-inspired optimization. An analysis and discussion are also carried out over the general trajectory followed in recent years by the community working in this field, thereby highlighting the need for reaching a consensus and joining forces towards achieving valuable insights into the understanding of this family of optimization techniques

Adaptação automática de algoritmos de otimização metaheurística

A maioria dos problemas do mundo real tem uma multiplicidade de possíveis soluções. Além disso, usualmente, são encontradas limitações de recursos e tempo na resolução de problemas reais complexos e, por isso, frequentemente, não é possível aplicar um método determinístico na resolução desses problemas. Por este motivo, as meta-heurísticas têm ganho uma relevância significativa sobre os métodos determinísticos na resolução de problemas de otimização com múltiplas combinações. Ainda que as abordagens meta-heurísticas sejam agnósticas ao problema, os resultados da otimização são fortemente influenciados pelos parâmetros que estas meta-heurísticos necessitam para a sua configuração. Por sua vez, as melhores parametrizações são fortemente influenciadas pela meta-heurística e pela função objetivo. Por este motivo, a cada novo desenvolvimento é necessária uma otimização dos parâmetros das metas heurísticas praticamente partindo do zero. Assim, e, atendendo ao aumento da complexidade das meta-heurísticas e dos problemas aos quais estassão normalmente aplicadas, tem-se vindo a observar um crescente interesse no problema da configuração ótima destes algoritmos. Neste projeto é apresentada uma nova abordagem de otimização automática dos parâmetros de algoritmos meta-heurísticos. Esta abordagem não consiste numa pré-seleção estática de um único conjunto de parâmetros que será utilizado ao longo da pesquisa, como é a abordagem comum, mas sim na criação de um processo dinâmico, em que a parametrização é alterada ao longo da otimização. Esta solução consiste na divisão do processo de otimização em três etapas, forçando, numa primeira etapa um nível alto de exploração do espaço de procura, seguida de uma exploração intermédia e, na última etapa, privilegiando a pesquisa local focada nos pontos de maior potencial. De forma a permitir uma solução eficiente e eficaz, foram desenvolvidos dois módulos um Módulo de Treino e um Módulo de Otimização. No Módulo de Treino, o processo de fine-tuning é automatizado e, consequentemente, o processo de integração de uma nova meta-heurística ou uma nova função objetivo é facilitado. No Módulo de Otimização é usado um sistema multiagente para a otimização de uma dada função seguindo a abordagem de pesquisa proposta. Com base nos resultados obtidos através da aplicação de otimização por enxame de partículas e algoritmos genéticos a várias funções benchmark e a um problema real na área dos sistemas de energia, o Módulo de Treino permitiu automatizar o processo de fine-tuning e, consequentemente, facilitar o processo de introdução no sistema de uma nova meta-heurística ou de uma nova função relativa a um novo problema a resolver. Utilizando a abordagem de otimização proposta através do Módulo de Otimização, obtém-se uma maior generalização e os resultados são melhorados sem comprometer o tempo máximo para a otimização.Most real-word problems have a large solution space. Due to resource and time constraints, it is often not possible to apply a deterministic method to solve such problems. For this reason, metaheuristic optimization algorithm has earned increased popularity over the deterministic methods in solving complex combination optimization problems. However, despite being problem-agnostic techniques, metaheuristic’s optimization results are highly impacted by the defined parameters. The best parameterizations are highly impacted by the metaheuristic version and by the addressed objective function. For this reason, with each new development it is necessary to optimize the metaheuristic parameters practically from scratch. Thus, and given the increasing complexity of metaheuristics and the problems to which they are normally applied, there has been a growing interest in the problem of optimal configuration of these algorithms. In this work, a new approach for automatic optimization of metaheuristic algorithms parameters is presented. This approach does not consist in a static pre-selection of a single set of parameters that will be used throughout the search process, as is the common approach, but in the creation of a dynamic process, in which the parameterization is changed during the optimization. This solution consists of dividing the optimization process into three stages, forcing, in a first stage, a high level of exploration of the search space, followed by an intermediate exploration and, in the last stage, fostering local search focused on the points of greatest potential. In order to allow an efficient and effective solution, two modules are developed, a Training Module and an Optimization Module. In the Training Module, the finetuning process is automated and, consequently, the process of integrating a new metaheuristic or a new objective function is facilitated. In the Optimization Module, a multi-agent system is used to optimize a given function following the proposed research approach. Based on the results obtained using particle swarm optimization and genetic algorithms to solve several benchmark functions and a real problem in the area of power and energy systems, the Training Module made it possible to automate the fine-tuning process and, consequently, facilitate the process of introducing in the system a new metaheuristic or a new function related to a new problem to be solved. Using the proposed optimization approach through the Optimization Module, a greater generalization is obtained, and the results are improved without compromising the maximum time for the optimization

Particle Swarm Optimization

Particle swarm optimization (PSO) is a population based stochastic optimization technique influenced by the social behavior of bird flocking or fish schooling.PSO shares many similarities with evolutionary computation techniques such as Genetic Algorithms (GA). The system is initialized with a population of random solutions and searches for optima by updating generations. However, unlike GA, PSO has no evolution operators such as crossover and mutation. In PSO, the potential solutions, called particles, fly through the problem space by following the current optimum particles. This book represents the contributions of the top researchers in this field and will serve as a valuable tool for professionals in this interdisciplinary field

Nature-inspired Methods for Stochastic, Robust and Dynamic Optimization

Nature-inspired algorithms have a great popularity in the current scientific community, being the focused scope of many research contributions in the literature year by year. The rationale behind the acquired momentum by this broad family of methods lies on their outstanding performance evinced in hundreds of research fields and problem instances. This book gravitates on the development of nature-inspired methods and their application to stochastic, dynamic and robust optimization. Topics covered by this book include the design and development of evolutionary algorithms, bio-inspired metaheuristics, or memetic methods, with empirical, innovative findings when used in different subfields of mathematical optimization, such as stochastic, dynamic, multimodal and robust optimization, as well as noisy optimization and dynamic and constraint satisfaction problems

Differential Evolution in Wireless Communications: A Review

Differential Evolution (DE) is an evolutionary computational method inspired by the biological processes of evolution and mutation. DE has been applied in numerous scientific fields. The paper presents a literature review of DE and its application in wireless communication. The detailed history, characteristics, strengths, variants and weaknesses of DE were presented. Seven broad areas were identified as different domains of application of DE in wireless communications. It was observed that coverage area maximisation and energy consumption minimisation are the two major areas where DE is applied. Others areas are quality of service, updating mechanism where candidate positions learn from a large diversified search region, security and related field applications. Problems in wireless communications are often modelled as multiobjective optimisation which can easily be tackled by the use of DE or hybrid of DE with other algorithms. Different research areas can be explored and DE will continue to be utilized in this contex