Hybrid Whale Optimization with a Firefly Algorithm for Function Optimization and Mobile Robot Path Planning

In order to solve the problems of slow convergence speed, insufficient accuracy, and easily falling into the local optimum of the traditional whale optimization algorithm (WOA) in mobile robot path planning, an improved whale optimization algorithm (IWOA) combined with the bird navigation mechanism was proposed. Specific improvement measures include using logical chaos mapping to initialize the population to enhance the randomness and diversity of the initial solution, designing a nonlinear convergence factor to prevent the algorithm from prematurely entering the shrinking surround phase and extending the global search time, introducing an adaptive spiral shape constant to dynamically adjust the search range to balance exploration and development capabilities, optimizing the individual update strategy in combination with the bird navigation mechanism, and optimizing the algorithm through companion position information, thereby improving the stability and convergence speed of the algorithm. Path planning simulations were performed on 30 × 30 and 50 × 50 grid maps. The results show that compared with WOA, MSWOA, and GA, in the 30 × 30 map, the path length of IWOA is shortened by 3.23%, 7.16%, and 6.49%, respectively; in the 50 × 50 map, the path length is shortened by 4.88%, 4.53%, and 28.37%, respectively. This study shows that IWOA has significant advantages in the accuracy and efficiency of path planning, which verifies its feasibility and superiority.

Mobile Robot is an extremely essential technology in the industrial world. Optimal path planning is essential for the navigation of mobile robots. The firefly algorithm is a very promising tool of Swarm Intelligence, which is used in various optimization areas. This study used the firefly algorithm to solve the mobile robot path-planning problem and achieve optimal trajectory planning. The objective of the proposed method is to find the free-collision-free points in the mobile robot environment and then generate the optimal path based on the firefly algorithm. It uses the A∗ algorithm to find the shortest path. The essential function of use the firefly algorithm is applied to specify the optimal control points for the corresponding shortest smooth trajectory of the mobile robot. Cubic Polynomial equation is applied to generate a smooth path from the initial point to the goal point during a specified period. The results of computer simulation demonstrate the efficiency of the firefly algorithm in generating optimal trajectory of mobile robot in a variable degree of mobile robot environment complexity.

Mobile robots, as a new type of automated equipment, are widely utilized in intelligent manufacturing production lines. This study focuses on addressing issues such as slow convergence speed, low solution accuracy, and susceptibility to local optima in the traditional whale optimization algorithm (WOA) for mobile robot path planning in intelligent manufacturing production lines. This paper presents a multi-population WOA method that integrates orthogonal learning. This algorithm effectively avoids the impact of local optima through orthogonal learning-based information exchange, enhances convergence speed through reverse learning strategies, and improves solution accuracy via nonlinear convergence factors and adaptive weighting strategies. Simulation results demonstrate significant advantages in search performance for path planning with the improved algorithm, validating its effectiveness and superiority in enhancing intelligent manufacturing efficiency. This research offers a more efficient and accurate solution to the path planning problem, which holds great significance in enhancing the efficiency and accuracy of path planning for mobile robots.

Due to the complex physical constraints in working space of robot, optimization for mobile robot operations satisfies not only one criterion but also several criteria. In this paper, a novel multi-objective method for optimal mobile robot path planning based on Whale optimization algorithm (WOA) is proposed. In the proposed method, two criteria of distance and smooth path of the robot path planning issue are transformed into a minimization one. The positions of the target and the obstacles in the environment are considered the fitness for the solution in WOA. The position of the globally best whale in each iteration is selected, and reached by the robot in sequence. In addition, the robot processor updates its information during the motion, and the environment is partially unknown for the robot due to the limit of the detection range of its sensors. Series of simulations are implemented in different static environments for the optimal path when the robot reaches its target. The results show that the proposed method provides the robot reaches its target with colliding free obstacles, and the proposed method may be the alternative method of optimization for robot planning.

Whale Optimization Algorithm (WOA) proposed by Seyedali Mirjalili and Andrew Lewis in 2016 is popular and powerful metaheuristic algorithm to search the global solution of optimization problems. WOA is nature-inspired, metaheuristic (randomization and deterministic) algorithm, which has been widely used to solve various single objective, multi objective and multidimensional optimization problems. WOA and its variant have been introduced in engineering applications, bioinformatics, multi-level image segmentation, clustering applications, design of low pass filter, Email classification, Diabetes classification, heterogeneous networks, machine learning etc. WOA is gradient free, easy to represent, capable to explore, exploit the search space and able to avoid local optima. This paper presents overview of WOA, its variants and applications. The performance of WOA is enhanced by introducing hybridization of other methods with WOA such as WOA-PSO, WOA-Levy, WOA-BAT, WOA-ANN, WOA-SVM etc. Objective of metaheuristic algorithm is tofind best position or leader position X* which is near to optimal solution for target prey over successive iteration. Objective function could be based on minimization or maximization approach.

The rapid expansion in the industrial revolution has been aroused to utilize of the robot in various high accuracy and productivity applications. Optimal path planning is an important concern in navigation of mobile robot interesting with finding an optimal path. The firefly algorithm is considered as an increasingly promising tool of Swarm Intelligence, which is used in various optimization areas. The objective of the proposed method is to find the free-collision points in mobile robot environment and generate the optimal path based on firefly algorithm and D* algorithm. D* algorithm has been applied to find the shortest path. The essential function of applying the firefly algorithm and Quadratic parametric equations is to iterative globally search and determine the accurate positions of a set of intermediate via points within the free space and generating the corresponding smooth trajectory at a specified time respectively. The collision with obstacles can be efficiently avoided by constructing the free Cartesian space, which guarantee a free collision path planning. The simulation results illustrate the efficiency of proposed methods performance in finding and determining the optimal path and trajectory even in various degrees of environmental complexity.

Whale optimization algorithm (WOA) is one of the popular swarm-based algorithms (SA), inspired by nature. The WOA was determined by mimicking the pattern of navigation of whales while encircling preys. The humpback whale is considered in this context. These set of whales can recognize and surround the location of the prey strategically. Identifying the exact position in the a priori search space in whale is usually not imaginable. It is assumed by the WOA that the target prey is the best candidate solution. This model was implemented in MATLAB by considering 30 search agents (n = 30) and the maximum number of iterations was set to 1000. The best solution obtained by WOA is [3.0015 1.9969] and the best optimal value of the objective function found by WOA is 0.00015167. The parameter space and the objective space presented, demonstrate the problem solving capability of WOA in complex domain.

Automated navigation is an important feature of any mobile robot and is a challenge for a robot to plan the path in an unknown environment. We can categorize the path planning strategy of robots in two methods, first is the Classical Methods and second is Heuristic Methods. In this paper, a modified whale optimization algorithm is proposed that ensures an optimal collision-free path. In whale optimization algorithm (WOA) the fitness of any whale will be calculated by taking in consideration the target location and the obstacles in the search space. Many simulations were run in different search spaces to find the optimal path at the end of the iterations when the individual reaches the final destination (target location). The simulation and results show, the proposed modified WOA is feasible for mobile robot path selection problems.

We have compared the performances of six recently developed global optimization algorithms: imperialist competitive algorithm, firefly algorithm (FA), water cycle algorithm (WCA), whale optimization algorithm (WOA), fireworks algorithm (FWA), and quantum particle swarm optimization (QPSO). These methods have been introduced in the past few years and have found very limited or no applications to geophysical exploration problems thus far. We benchmark the algorithms’ results against the particle swarm optimization (PSO), which is a popular and well-established global search method. In particular, we are interested in assessing the exploration and exploitation capabilities of each method as the dimension of the model space increases. First, we test the different algorithms on two multiminima and two convex analytic objective functions. Then, we compare them using the residual statics corrections and 1D elastic full-waveform inversion, which are highly nonlinear geophysical optimization problems. Our results demonstrate that FA, FWA, and WOA are characterized by optimal exploration capabilities because they outperform the other approaches in the case of optimization problems with multiminima objective functions. Differently, QPSO and PSO have good exploitation capabilities because they easily solve ill-conditioned optimizations characterized by a nearly flat valley in the objective function. QPSO, PSO, and WCA offer a good compromise between exploitation and exploration.

Optimal path planning and execution for mobile robots using genetic algorithm and adaptive fuzzy-logic control

Feature selection (FS) in data mining is one of the most challenging and most important activities in pattern recognition. In this article, a new hybrid model of whale optimization algorithm (WOA) and flower pollination algorithm (FPA) is presented for the problem of FS based on the concept of opposition‐based learning (OBL) which name is HWOAFPA. The procedure is that the WOA is run first and at the same time during the run, the WOA population is changed by the OBL. And, to increase the accuracy and speed of convergence, it is used as the initial population of FPA. To evaluate the performance of the proposed method, experiments were carried out in two steps. The experiments were performed on 10 datasets from the UCI data repository and Email spam detection datasets. The results obtained from the first step showed that the proposed method was more successful in terms of the average size of selection and classification accuracy than other basic metaheuristic algorithms. In addition, the results from the second step showed that the proposed method which was a run on the Email spam dataset performed much more accurately than other similar algorithms in terms of accuracy of Email spam detection.

This paper deals with a new approach based on Q-learning for solving the problem of mobile robot path planning in complex unknown static environments. As a computational approach to learning through interaction with the environment, reinforcement learning algorithms have been widely used for intelligent robot control, especially in the field of autonomous mobile robots. However, the learning process is slow and cumbersome. For practical applications, rapid rates of convergence are required. Aiming at the problem of slow convergence and long learning time for Q-learning based mobile robot path planning, a state-chain sequential feedback Q-learning algorithm is proposed for quickly searching for the optimal path of mobile robots in complex unknown static environments. The state chain is built during the searching process. After one action is chosen and the reward is received, the Q-values of the state-action pairs on the previously built state chain are sequentially updated with one-step Q-learning. With the increasing number of Q-values updated after one action, the number of actual steps for convergence decreases and thus, the learning time decreases, where a step is a state transition. Extensive simulations validate the efficiency of the newly proposed approach for mobile robot path planning in complex environments. The results show that the new approach has a high convergence speed and that the robot can find the collision-free optimal path in complex unknown static environments with much shorter time, compared with the one-step Q-learning algorithm and the Q(λ)-learning algorithm.

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to put forward a rolling assistant robot with two rolling modes, and the multi-mode rolling motion strategy with path planning algorithm, which is suitable to this multi-mode mobile robot, is proposed based on chessboard-shaped grid division (CGD).Design/methodology/approachBased on the kinematic analysis and motion properties of the mobile parallel robot, the motion strategy based on CGD path planning algorithm of a mobile robot with two rolling modes moving to a target position is divided into two parts, which are local self-motion planning and global path planning. In the first part, the mobile parallel robot can move by switching and combining the two rolling modes; and in the second part, the specific algorithm of the global path planning is proposed according to the CGD of the moving ground.FindingsThe assistant robot, which is a novel 4-RSR mobile parallel robot (where R denotes a revolute joint and S denotes a spherical joint) integrating operation and rolling locomotion (Watt linkage rolling mode and 6R linkage rolling mode), can work as a moving spotlight or worktable. A series of simulation and prototype experiment results are presented to verify the CGD path planning strategy of the robot, and the performance of the path planning experiments in simulations and practices shows the validation of the path planning analysis.Originality/valueThe work presented in this paper is a further exploration to apply parallel mechanisms with two rolling modes to the field of assistant rolling robots by proposing the CGD path planning strategy. It is also a new attempt to use the specific path planning algorithm in the field of mobile robots for operating tasks.

With the increasing demand for hospital services amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, allocation of limited public resources and management of healthcare services are of paramount importance. In the field of patient flow scheduling, previous research primarily focused on classical-based objective functions, while ignoring environmental-based objective functions. This study presents a flexible job shop scheduling problem to optimize patient flow and, thereby, minimize the total carbon footprint, as the sustainability-based objective function. Since flexible job shop scheduling is an NP-hard problem, a metaheuristic optimization algorithm, called Chaotic Salp Swarm Algorithm Enhanced with Opposition-Based Learning and Sine Cosine (CSSAOS), was developed. The proposed algorithm integrates the Salp Swarm Algorithm (SSA) with chaotic maps to update the position of followers, the sine cosine algorithm to update the leader position, and opposition-based learning for a better exploration of the search space. generating more accurate solutions. The proposed method was successfully applied in a real-world case study and demonstrated better performance than other well-known metaheuristic algorithms, including differential evolution, genetic algorithm, grasshopper optimization algorithm, SSA based on opposition-based learning, quantum evolutionary SSA, and whale optimization algorithm. In addition, it was found that the proposed method is scalable to different sizes and complexities.

Background: Path planning technology has a wide range of applications in many fields. Applications in the field of high technology include: autonomous and touchless action of robots; obstacle avoidance and defense flight of drones; cruise missiles to avoid radar search, anti- bouncing attacks, and to complete the task of sudden defense and demolition. Applications in daily life include: GPS navigation; road planning based on GIS system; urban road network planning and navigation. Applications in the field of decision-making management include: vehicle problem (VRP) in logistics management and similar resource allocation problems in resource management. Routing problems in the field of communication technology. Any planning problem that can be topologized as a point and line network can basically be solved by the method of path planning. Different intelligent algorithms have different characteristics, and their application scope and fields are also different, so it is of great significance for the development of path planning technology to study the path planning intelligent algorithms from the characteristics of the algorithms themselves and their applications. Objective: Analyze the advantages and disadvantages of various types of planning algorithms, look forward to the future development trend of mobile robot path planning, and provide certain ideas for the research of mobile robot path planning. Methods: Search journals, patents, conferences, and papers related to mobile robot path planning, and summarize and analyze the advantages and disadvantages of various planning algorithms. Results: Based on the research results of many scholars, this study summarizes different mobile robot path planning methods. It is divided into four categories: traditional planning, intelligent search, artificial intelligence and local obstacle avoidance. This paper introduces and analyzes the latest research results of these types, including their design ideas, advantages and disadvantages, and improvement measures. The research methods adopted are analyzed in order to maximize the advantages of each algorithm and expand the application field of robot path planning to provide ideas and references. Conclusion: This paper provides guidance for the design and optimization of robot path planning. Finally, this paper summarizes the future development trend of robot path planning, and looks forward to the future development trend and key areas of robot path planning.