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Optimization problems are prevalent in almost all areas and hence optimization algorithms are crucial for a myriad of real-world applications. Deterministic optimization algorithms tend to be computationally costly and time-consuming. Hence, heuristic and metaheuristic algorithms are more favoured as they provide near-optimal solutions in an acceptable amount of time. Swarm intelligence algorithms are being increasingly used for optimization problems owing to their simplicity and good performance. The Dragonfly Algorithm (DA) is one which is inspired by the swarming behaviours of dragonflies, and it has been proven to have a superior performance than other algorithms in multiple applications. Hence, it is worth considering its application to the traveling salesman problem which is a predominant discrete optimization problem. The original DA is only suitable for solving continuous optimization problems and, although there is a binary version of the algorithm, it is not easily adapted for solving discrete optimization problems like TSP. We have previously proposed a discrete adapted DA algorithm suitable for TSP. However, it has low effectiveness, and it has not been used for large TSP problems. In this paper, we propose an optimized discrete adapted DA by using the steepest ascent hill climbing algorithm as a local search. The algorithm is applied to a TSP problem modelling a package delivery system in the Kuala Lumpur area and to benchmark TSP problems, and it is found to have a higher effectiveness than the discrete adapted DA and some other swarm intelligence algorithms. It also has a higher efficiency than the discrete adapted DA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bat-inspired algorithm (BA) is a robust swarm intelligence algorithm that finds success in many problem domains. The ecosystem of bat animals inspires the main idea of BA. This review paper scanned and analysed the state-of-the-art researches investigated using BA from 2017 to 2021. BA has very impressive characteristics such as its easy-to-use, simple in concepts, flexible and adaptable, consistent, and sound and complete. It has strong operators that incorporate the natural selection principle through survival-of-the-fittest rule within the intensification step attracted by local-best solution. Initially, the growth of the recent solid works published in Scopus indexed articles is summarized in terms of the number of BA-based Journal articles published per year, citations, top authors, work with BA, top institutions, and top countries. After that, the different versions of BA are highlighted to be in line with the complex nature of optimization problems such as binary, modified, hybridized, and multiobjective BA. The successful applications of BA are reviewed and summarized, such as electrical and power system, wireless and network system, environment and materials engineering, classification and clustering, structural and mechanical engineering, feature selection, image and signal processing, robotics, medical and healthcare, scheduling domain, and many others. The critical analysis of the limitations and shortcomings of BA is also mentioned. The open-source codes of BA code are given to build a wealthy BA review. Finally, the BA review is concluded, and the possible future directions for upcoming developments are suggested such as utilizing BA to serve in dynamic, robust, multiobjective, large-scaled optimization as well as improve BA performance by utilizing structure population, tuning parameters, memetic strategy, and selection mechanisms. The reader of this review will determine the best domains and applications used by BA and can justify their BA-related contributions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Bacterial Foraging Algorithm (BFOA) is a well-known swarm collective intelligence algorithm used to solve a variety of constraint optimization problems with wide success. Despite its universality, implementing the BFOA may be complex due to the calibration of multiple parameters. Moreover, the Two-Swim Modified Bacterial Foraging Optimization Algorithm (TS-MBFOA) is a state-of-the-art modification of the BFOA which may lead to solutions close to the optimal but with more parameters than the original BFOA. That is why in this paper we present the design using the Unified Modeling Language (UML) and the implementation in the MATLAB platform of a front-end for the TS-MBFOA algorithm to calibrate the algorithm parameters faster and with no need for editing lines of code. To test our proposal, we solve a numerical optimization problem with constraints known as tension/compression spring, where 30 independent executions were conducted using the TS-MBFOA and then compared with an earlier version called MBFOA. The runtime configuration and the parameter tuning were fluent using our front-end, and the TS-MBFOA obtained the better results. To date, there is no other user-friendly implementation of this specific algorithm in an open-source code, and the front-end is flexible enough to include other numerical optimization problems with minimal effort. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a powerful swarm intelligence metaheuristic optimization algorithm called Dynamic Cat Swarm Optimization. The formulation is through modifying the existing Cat Swarm Optimization Algorithm. The original Cat Swarm Optimization suffers from the shortcoming of "premature convergence," which is the possibility of entrapment in local optima which usually happens due to the off balance between exploration and exploitation phases. Therefore, the proposed algorithm suggests a new method to provide a proper balance between these phases by modifying the selection scheme and the seeking mode of the algorithm. To evaluate the performance of the proposed algorithm, 23 classical test functions, 10 modern test functions (CEC 2019) and a real-world scenario are used. In addition, the dimension-wise diversity metric is used to measure the percentage of the exploration and exploitation phases. The optimization results show the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm, which ranks first compared to several well-known algorithms available in the literature. Furthermore, statistical methods and graphs are also used to further confirm the outperformance of the algorithm. Finally, the conclusion and future directions to further improve the algorithm are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, improved salp swarm algorithm is proposed. The algorithm integrates (1) random opposition-based learning (2) multiple leadership and (3) simulated annealing in swarm intelligence-based metaheuristic salp swarm algorithm. This integration increases the exploration and exploitation of the original salp swarm algorithm. Hence, the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm is better for complex multi-modal problems. The algorithm is tested on several standard numerical benchmark functions and CEC-2015 benchmarks. Results are compared with some well-known metaheuristics. The results represent the merit of the proposed algorithm with respect to other algorithms. The improved salp swarm algorithm is applied for feed-forward neural network training. Performance is compared with other metaheuristic-based feedforward neural network trainers for different data sets. The results show the efficiency and effectiveness of proposed algorithm in solving complex multi-modal problems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Swarm intelligence techniques have been created to respond to theoretical and practical global optimization problems. This paper puts forward an enhanced version of the firefly algorithm that corrects the acknowledged drawbacks of the original method, by an explicit exploration mechanism and a chaotic local search strategy. The resulting augmented approach was theoretically tested on two sets of bound-constrained benchmark functions from the CEC suites and practically validated for automatically selecting the optimal dropout rate for the regularization of deep neural networks. Despite their successful applications in a wide spectrum of different fields, one important problem that deep learning algorithms face is overfitting. The traditional way of preventing overfitting is to apply regularization; the first option in this sense is the choice of an adequate value for the dropout parameter. In order to demonstrate its ability in finding an optimal dropout rate, the boosted version of the firefly algorithm has been validated for the deep learning subfield of convolutional neural networks, with respect to five standard benchmark datasets for image processing: MNIST, Fashion-MNIST, Semeion, USPS and CIFAR-10. The performance of the proposed approach in both types of experiments was compared with other recent state-of-the-art methods. To prove that there are significant improvements in results, statistical tests were conducted. Based on the experimental data, it can be concluded that the proposed algorithm clearly outperforms other approaches. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract This paper summarizes the two testbeds, datasets, and results of the IEEE PES Working Group on Modern Heuristic Optimization (WGMHO) 2017 Competition on Smart Grid Operation Problems. The competition is organized with the aim of closing the gap between theory and real-world applications of evolutionary computation. Testbed 1 considers stochastic OPF (Optimal Power Flow) based Active-Reactive Power Dispatch (ARPD) under uncertainty and Testbed 2 large-scale optimal scheduling of distributed energy resources. Classical optimization methods are not able to deal with the proposed optimization problems within a reasonable time, often requiring more than one day to provide the optimal solution and a significant amount of memory to perform the computation. The proposed problems can be addressed using modern heuristic optimization approaches, enabling the achievement of good solutions in much lower execution times, adequate for the envisaged decision-making processes. Results from the competition show that metaheuristics can be successfully applied in search of efficient near-optimal solutions for the Stochastic Optimal Power Flow and large-scale energy resource management problems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Truss structures are one of the major civil engineering members studied in the optimization research area. In this area, various optimization applications such as topology, size, cost, weight, material usage, etc., can be conducted for different truss structure types. In this scope with the present study, various optimization processes were carried out concerning two different large-scale space trusses to minimize the structural weight. According to this state, three structural models provided via two different truss structures, including 25 bar and 72 bar truss models, were handled for evaluation of six different metaheuristics together with the modification of Lèvy flight for three of the algorithms using swarm intelligence by considering both constant and variable populations, and different ranges for iterations, too. Additionally, the effects of the Lèvy flight function and whether it is successful or not in terms of the target of optimization were also investigated by comparing with some documented studies. In this regard, some statistical calculations were also realized to evaluate the optimization method performance and detection of optimum values for any data stably and successfully. According to the results, the Jaya algorithm can handle the optimization process successfully, including the case, without grouping truss members. The positive effect of Lèvy flight on swarm-based algorithms can be seen especially for the gray wolf algorithm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]