Mating pool

About: Mating pool is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 74 publications have been published within this topic receiving 61693 citations.

A fast and elitist multiobjective genetic algorithm: NSGA-II

Abstract: Multi-objective evolutionary algorithms (MOEAs) that use non-dominated sorting and sharing have been criticized mainly for: (1) their O(MN/sup 3/) computational complexity (where M is the number of objectives and N is the population size); (2) their non-elitism approach; and (3) the need to specify a sharing parameter. In this paper, we suggest a non-dominated sorting-based MOEA, called NSGA-II (Non-dominated Sorting Genetic Algorithm II), which alleviates all of the above three difficulties. Specifically, a fast non-dominated sorting approach with O(MN/sup 2/) computational complexity is presented. Also, a selection operator is presented that creates a mating pool by combining the parent and offspring populations and selecting the best N solutions (with respect to fitness and spread). Simulation results on difficult test problems show that NSGA-II is able, for most problems, to find a much better spread of solutions and better convergence near the true Pareto-optimal front compared to the Pareto-archived evolution strategy and the strength-Pareto evolutionary algorithm - two other elitist MOEAs that pay special attention to creating a diverse Pareto-optimal front. Moreover, we modify the definition of dominance in order to solve constrained multi-objective problems efficiently. Simulation results of the constrained NSGA-II on a number of test problems, including a five-objective, seven-constraint nonlinear problem, are compared with another constrained multi-objective optimizer, and the much better performance of NSGA-II is observed.

Multi-Objective Optimization Using Evolutionary Algorithms

Abstract: From the Publisher: Evolutionary algorithms are relatively new, but very powerful techniques used to find solutions to many real-world search and optimization problems. Many of these problems have multiple objectives, which leads to the need to obtain a set of optimal solutions, known as effective solutions. It has been found that using evolutionary algorithms is a highly effective way of finding multiple effective solutions in a single simulation run. · Comprehensive coverage of this growing area of research · Carefully introduces each algorithm with examples and in-depth discussion · Includes many applications to real-world problems, including engineering design and scheduling · Includes discussion of advanced topics and future research · Features exercises and solutions, enabling use as a course text or for self-study · Accessible to those with limited knowledge of classical multi-objective optimization and evolutionary algorithms The integrated presentation of theory, algorithms and examples will benefit those working and researching in the areas of optimization, optimal design and evolutionary computing. This text provides an excellent introduction to the use of evolutionary algorithms in multi-objective optimization, allowing use as a graduate course text or for self-study.

Multiobjective evolutionary algorithms: a comparative case study and the strength Pareto approach

Abstract: Evolutionary algorithms (EAs) are often well-suited for optimization problems involving several, often conflicting objectives. Since 1985, various evolutionary approaches to multiobjective optimization have been developed that are capable of searching for multiple solutions concurrently in a single run. However, the few comparative studies of different methods presented up to now remain mostly qualitative and are often restricted to a few approaches. In this paper, four multiobjective EAs are compared quantitatively where an extended 0/1 knapsack problem is taken as a basis. Furthermore, we introduce a new evolutionary approach to multicriteria optimization, the strength Pareto EA (SPEA), that combines several features of previous multiobjective EAs in a unique manner. It is characterized by (a) storing nondominated solutions externally in a second, continuously updated population, (b) evaluating an individual's fitness dependent on the number of external nondominated points that dominate it, (c) preserving population diversity using the Pareto dominance relationship, and (d) incorporating a clustering procedure in order to reduce the nondominated set without destroying its characteristics. The proof-of-principle results obtained on two artificial problems as well as a larger problem, the synthesis of a digital hardware-software multiprocessor system, suggest that SPEA can be very effective in sampling from along the entire Pareto-optimal front and distributing the generated solutions over the tradeoff surface. Moreover, SPEA clearly outperforms the other four multiobjective EAs on the 0/1 knapsack problem.

A Fast Elitist Non-dominated Sorting Genetic Algorithm for Multi-objective Optimisation: NSGA-II

Abstract: Multi-objective evolutionary algorithms which use non-dominated sorting and sharing have been mainly criticized for their (i) O(MN3) computational complexity (where M is the number of objectives and N is the population size), (ii) non-elitism approach, and (iii) the need for specifying a sharing parameter. In this paper, we suggest a non-dominated sorting based multi-objective evolutionary algorithm (we called it the Non-dominated Sorting GA-II or NSGA-II) which alleviates all the above three difficulties. Specifically, a fast non-dominated sorting approach with O(MN2) computational complexity is presented. Second, a selection operator is presented which creates a mating pool by combining the parent and child populations and selecting the best (with respect to fitness and spread) N solutions. Simulation results on five difficult test problems show that the proposed NSGA-II, in most problems, is able to find much better spread of solutions and better convergence near the true Pareto-optimal front compared to PAES and SPEA--two other elitist multi-objective EAs which pay special attention towards creating a diverse Pareto-optimal front. Because of NSGA-II's low computational requirements, elitist approach, and parameter-less sharing approach, NSGA-II should find increasing applications in the years to come.

An Evolutionary Many-Objective Optimization Algorithm Using Reference-Point-Based Nondominated Sorting Approach, Part I: Solving Problems With Box Constraints

Abstract: Having developed multiobjective optimization algorithms using evolutionary optimization methods and demonstrated their niche on various practical problems involving mostly two and three objectives, there is now a growing need for developing evolutionary multiobjective optimization (EMO) algorithms for handling many-objective (having four or more objectives) optimization problems. In this paper, we recognize a few recent efforts and discuss a number of viable directions for developing a potential EMO algorithm for solving many-objective optimization problems. Thereafter, we suggest a reference-point-based many-objective evolutionary algorithm following NSGA-II framework (we call it NSGA-III) that emphasizes population members that are nondominated, yet close to a set of supplied reference points. The proposed NSGA-III is applied to a number of many-objective test problems with three to 15 objectives and compared with two versions of a recently suggested EMO algorithm (MOEA/D). While each of the two MOEA/D methods works well on different classes of problems, the proposed NSGA-III is found to produce satisfactory results on all problems considered in this paper. This paper presents results on unconstrained problems, and the sequel paper considers constrained and other specialties in handling many-objective optimization problems.