Dynamic Frontier-Led Swarming:Multi-Robot Repeated Coverage in Dynamic Environments

A common assumption of coverage path planning research is a static environment.Such environments require only a single visit to each area to achieve coverage.However,some real-world environments are characterised by the presence of unexpected,dynamic obstacles.They require areas to be revisited periodically to maintain an accurate coverage map,as well as reactive obstacle avoidance.This paper proposes a novel swarmbased control algorithm for multi-robot exploration and repeated coverage in environments with unknown,dynamic obstacles.The algorithm combines two elements:frontier-led swarming for driving exploration by a group of robots,and pheromone-based stigmergy for controlling repeated coverage while avoiding obstacles.We tested the performance of our approach on heterogeneous and homogeneous groups of mobile robots in different environments.We measure both repeated coverage performance and obstacle avoidance ability.Through a series of comparison experiments,we demonstrate that our proposed strategy has superior performance to recently presented multi-robot repeated coverage methodologies.

基于流函数的多移动机器人Swarming控制模型

利用流函数解决单个移动机器人的避障问题,并提出了基于流函数和单一连接规则的、采用虚拟lead-er和二叉树结构的多移动机器人swarm ing控制模型.基于单一连接规则的二叉树结构使得整个机器人群的控制更简单,更灵活;而虚拟leader的引入,使机器人群在避障过程中不会发生分离,并能够很好地解决类似于机器人掉队的问题,提高了系统的稳定性,增强了系统的应变能力.仿真结果验证了该模型的有效性.

Phenolic compounds affect production of pyocyanin, swarming motility and biofilm formation of Pseudomonas aeruginosa

Objective: To investigate the effects of plant-derived phenolic compounds(i.e. caffeic acid, cinnamic acid, ferulic acid and vanillic acid) on the production of quorum sensing regulated virulence factors such as pyocyanin, biofilm formation and swarming motility of Pseudomonas aeruginosa(P. aeruginosa) isolates.Methods: Fourteen clinical P. aeruginosa isolates obtained from urine samples and P. aeruginosa PA01 strain were included in the study. The antibacterial effects of phenolic compounds were screened by well diffusion assay. Pyocyanin and biofilm activity were measured from culture supernatants and the absorbance values were measured using a spectrophotometer. Swarming plates supplemented with phenolic acids were point inoculated with P. aeruginosa strains and the ability to swarm was determined by measuring the distance of swarming from the central inoculation site.Results: Tested phenolic compounds reduced the production of pyocyanin and biofilm formation without affecting growth compared to untreated cultures. Moreover, these compounds blocked about 50% of biofilm production and swarming motility in P. aeruginosa isolates.Conclusions: We may suggest that if swarming and consecutive biofilm formation could be inhibited by the natural products as shown in our study, the bacteria could not attach to the surfaces and produce chronic infections. Antimicrobials and natural products could be combined and the dosage of antimicrobials could be reduced to overcome antimicrobial resistance and drug side effects.

Optimization Scheme Based on Differential Equation Model for Animal Swarming

This paper is devoted to introducing an optimization algorithm which is devised on a basis of ordinary differential equation model describing the process of animal swarming. By several numerical simulations, the nature of the optimization algorithm is clarified. Especially, if parameters included in the algorithm are suitably set, our scheme can show very good performance even in higher dimensional problems.

Loader and Tester Swarming Drones for Cellular PhoneNetwork Loading and Field Test: Non-stochasticParticle Swarm Optimization

Cellular network operators have problems to test their network without affecting their user experience. Testingnetwork performance in a loaded situation is a challenge for the network operator because network performance differswhen it has more load on the radio access part. Therefore, in this paper, deploying swarming drones is proposed to loadthe cellular network and scan/test the network performance more realistically. Besides, manual swarming dronenavigation is not efficient enough to detect problematic regions. Hence, particle swarm optimization is proposed to bedeployed on swarming drone to find the regions where there are performance issues. Swarming drone communicationshelps to deploy the particle swarm optimization (PSO) method on them. Loading and testing swarm separation help tohave almost non-stochastic received signal level as an objective function. Moreover, there are some situations that morethan one network parameter should be used to find a problematic region in the cellular network. It is also proposed toapply multi-objective PSO to find more multi-parameter network optimization at the same time.

Swarming behavior of multi-agent systems

We consider an anisotropic swarm model with an attraction/repulsion function and study its aggregation properties. It is shown that the swarm members will aggregate and eventually form a cohesive cluster of finite size around the swarm center in a finite time. Moreover, we extend our results to more general attraction/repulsion functions. Numerical simulations demonstrate that all agents will eventually enter into and remain in a bounded region around the swarm center which may exhibit complex spiral motion due to asymmetry of the coupling structure. The model in this paper is more general than isotropic swarms and our results provide further insight into the effect of the interaction pattern on individual motion in a swarm system.

Swarming Computational Techniques for the Influenza Disease System

The current study relates to designing a swarming computational paradigm to solve the influenza disease system(IDS).The nonlinear system’s mathematical form depends upon four classes:susceptible individuals,infected people,recovered individuals and cross-immune people.The solutions of the IDS are provided by using the artificial neural networks(ANNs)together with the swarming computational paradigm-based particle swarmoptimization(PSO)and interior-point scheme(IPA)that are the global and local search approaches.The ANNs-PSO-IPA has never been applied to solve the IDS.Instead a merit function in the sense of mean square error is constructed using the differential form of each class of the IDS and then optimized by the PSOIPA.The correctness and accuracy of the scheme are observed to perform the comparative analysis of the obtained IDS results with the Adams solutions(reference solutions).An absolute error in suitable measures shows the precision of the proposed ANNs procedures and the optimization efficiency of the PSOIPA.Furthermore,the reliability and competence of the proposed computing method are enhanced through the statistical performances.

Swarming Computational Efficiency to Solve a Novel Third-Order Delay Differential Emden-Fowler System

The purpose of this research is to construct an integrated neuro swarming scheme using the procedures of the artificial neural networks(ANNs)with the use of global search particle swarm optimization(PSO)along with the competent local search interior-point programming(IPP)called as ANN-PSOIPP.The proposed computational scheme is implemented for the numerical simulations of the third order nonlinear delay differential Emden-Fowler model(TON-DD-EFM).The TON-DD-EFM is based on two types along with the particulars of shape factor,delayed terms,and singular points.A merit function is performed using the optimization of PSOIPP to find the solutions to the TON-DD-EFM.The effectiveness of the ANN-PSOIPP is certified through the comparison with the exact results for solving four examples of the TON-DD-EFM.The scheme’s efficiency is observed by performing the absolute error in suitable measures found around 10−04 to 10−07.Furthermore,the statistical-based assessments for 100 trials are provided to compute the accuracy,stability,and constancy of the ANNPSOIPP for solving the TON-DD-EFM.

Swarming Computational Approach for the Heartbeat Van Der Pol Nonlinear System

The present study is related to design a stochastic framework for the numerical treatment of the Van der Pol heartbeat model(VP-HBM)using the feedforward artificial neural networks(ANNs)under the optimization of particle swarm optimization(PSO)hybridized with the active-set algorithm(ASA),i.e.,ANNs-PSO-ASA.The global search PSO scheme and local refinement of ASA are used as an optimization procedure in this study.An error-based merit function is defined using the differential VP-HBM form as well as the initial conditions.The optimization of the merit function is accomplished using the hybrid computing performances of PSO-ASA.The designed performance of ANNs-PSO-ASA is implemented for the numerical treatment of the VP-HBM dynamics by fluctuating the pulse shape adjustment terms,external forcing factor and damping coefficient with fixed ventricular contraction period.To perform the correctness of the present scheme,the obtained numerical results through the designed ANN-PSO-ASA will be compared with the Adams numerical method.The statistical investigations with larger dataset are provided using the“mean absolute deviation”,“Theil’s inequality coefficient”and“variance account for”operators to perform the applicability,reliability,and effectiveness of the designed ANNs-PSO-ASA scheme for solving the VP-HBM.

中性风对夜侧电离层纬向四峰结构的影响

欧空局Swarm星座包含三颗飞行在不同地方时的卫星,其为研究夜侧电离层纬向四峰结构随时间的演化提供了很好的机会.在2017年1月31日夜间,Swarm A和C两颗并排飞行的卫星在黄昏前后(17:55/18:01地方时)的美洲扇区并没有观测到赤道电离异常的两个峰,而Swarm B卫星在约4.5小时后飞行于大致相同的经度扇区,并观测到夜侧电离层呈现出明显的纬向四峰结构.该观测证明了纬向四峰结构中靠近低纬的两个内峰不是黄昏前后赤道电离异常峰的残余.在该事件中,位于秘鲁的Jicamarca非相干散射雷达从黄昏至午夜观测到向下的等离子体垂直漂移速度,表明向上的等离子体漂移速度并不是引起夜间纬向四峰结构的必要条件;而位于Arecibo的法布里-珀罗干涉仪观测到中性风显示出东向和南向分量的增强,表明中性风对夜侧纬向四峰结构的形成有着重要作用.SAMI2模型的模拟结果与卫星、非相干散射雷达及法布里-珀罗干涉仪的观测一致.模拟结果显示夜侧东向与赤道向风为纬向四峰结构的形成提供了有利条件;但当赤道向风过大时,会导致背景电子密度出现显著半球不对称性,从而阻碍夜侧纬向四峰结构的发展.

A Planning Method for Operational Test of UAV Swarm Based on Mission Reliability

The unmanned aerial vehicle(UAV)swarm plays an increasingly important role in the modern battlefield,and the UAV swarm operational test is a vital means to validate the combat effectiveness of the UAV swarm.Due to the high cost and long duration of operational tests,it is essential to plan the test in advance.To solve the problem of planning UAV swarm operational test,this study considers the multi-stage feature of a UAV swarm mission,composed of launch,flight and combat stages,and proposes a method to find test plans that can maximize mission reliability.Therefore,a multi-stage mission reliability model for a UAV swarm is proposed to ensure successful implementation of the mission.A multi-objective integer optimization method that considers both mission reliability and cost is then formulated to obtain the optimal test plans.This study first constructs a mission reliability model for the UAV swarm in the combat stage.Then,the launch stage and flight stage are integrated to develop a complete PMS(Phased Mission Systems)reliability model.Finally,the Binary Decision Diagrams(BDD)and Multi Objective Quantum Particle Swarm Optimization(MOQPSO)methods are proposed to solve the model.The optimal plans considering both reliability and cost are obtained.The proposed model supports the planning of UAV swarm operational tests and represents a meaningful exploration of UAV swarm test planning.

Quantum control based on three forms of Lyapunov functions

This paper introduces the quantum control of Lyapunov functions based on the state distance, the mean of imaginary quantities and state errors.In this paper, the specific control laws under the three forms are given.Stability is analyzed by the La Salle invariance principle and the numerical simulation is carried out in a 2D test system.The calculation process for the Lyapunov function is based on a combination of the average of virtual mechanical quantities, the particle swarm algorithm and a simulated annealing algorithm.Finally, a unified form of the control laws under the three forms is given.

Revolutionary entrapment model of uniformly distributed swarm robots in morphogenetic formation

This study proposes a method for uniformly revolving swarm robots to entrap multiple targets,which is based on a gene regulatory network,an adaptive decision mechanism,and an improved Vicsek-model.Using the gene regulatory network method,the robots can generate entrapping patterns according to the environmental input,including the positions of the targets and obstacles.Next,an adaptive decision mechanism is proposed,allowing each robot to choose the most well-adapted capture point on the pattern,based on its environment.The robots employ an improved Vicsek-model to maneuver to the planned capture point smoothly,without colliding with other robots or obstacles.The proposed decision mechanism,combined with the improved Vicsek-model,can form a uniform entrapment shape and create a revolving effect around targets while entrapping them.This study also enables swarm robots,with an adaptive pattern formation,to entrap multiple targets in complex environments.Swarm robots can be deployed in the military field of unmanned aerial vehicles’(UAVs)entrapping multiple targets.Simulation experiments demonstrate the feasibility and superiority of the proposed gene regulatory network method.

考虑混合工艺的自动化码头多设备资源协同调度优化模型和算法设计

Considering the uncertainty of the speed of horizontal transportation equipment,a cooperative scheduling model of multiple equipment resources in the automated container terminal was constructed to minimize the completion time,thus improving the loading and unloading efficiencies of automated container terminals.The proposed model integrated the two loading and unloading processes of“double-trolley quay crane+AGV+ARMG”and“single-trolley quay crane+container truck+ARMG”and then designed the simulated annealing particle swarm algorithm to solve the model.By comparing the results of the particle swarm algorithm and genetic algorithm,the algorithm designed in this paper could effectively improve the global and local space search capability of finding the optimal solution.Furthermore,the results showed that the proposed method of collaborative scheduling of multiple equipment resources in automated terminals considering hybrid processes effectively improved the loading and unloading efficiencies of automated container terminals.The findings of this study provide a reference for the improvement of loading and unloading processes as well as coordinated scheduling in automated terminals.

Synergistic Swarm Optimization Algorithm

This research paper presents a novel optimization method called the Synergistic Swarm Optimization Algorithm(SSOA).The SSOA combines the principles of swarmintelligence and synergistic cooperation to search for optimal solutions efficiently.A synergistic cooperation mechanism is employed,where particles exchange information and learn from each other to improve their search behaviors.This cooperation enhances the exploitation of promising regions in the search space while maintaining exploration capabilities.Furthermore,adaptive mechanisms,such as dynamic parameter adjustment and diversification strategies,are incorporated to balance exploration and exploitation.By leveraging the collaborative nature of swarm intelligence and integrating synergistic cooperation,the SSOAmethod aims to achieve superior convergence speed and solution quality performance compared to other optimization algorithms.The effectiveness of the proposed SSOA is investigated in solving the 23 benchmark functions and various engineering design problems.The experimental results highlight the effectiveness and potential of the SSOA method in addressing challenging optimization problems,making it a promising tool for a wide range of applications in engineering and beyond.Matlab codes of SSOA are available at:https://www.mathworks.com/matlabcentral/fileexchange/153466-synergistic-swarm-optimization-algorithm.

Comparison of debris flow susceptibility assessment methods:support vector machine,particle swarm optimization,and feature selection techniques

The selection of important factors in machine learning-based susceptibility assessments is crucial to obtain reliable susceptibility results.In this study,metaheuristic optimization and feature selection techniques were applied to identify the most important input parameters for mapping debris flow susceptibility in the southern mountain area of Chengde City in Hebei Province,China,by using machine learning algorithms.In total,133 historical debris flow records and 16 related factors were selected.The support vector machine(SVM)was first used as the base classifier,and then a hybrid model was introduced by a two-step process.First,the particle swarm optimization(PSO)algorithm was employed to select the SVM model hyperparameters.Second,two feature selection algorithms,namely principal component analysis(PCA)and PSO,were integrated into the PSO-based SVM model,which generated the PCA-PSO-SVM and FS-PSO-SVM models,respectively.Three statistical metrics(accuracy,recall,and specificity)and the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve(AUC)were employed to evaluate and validate the performance of the models.The results indicated that the feature selection-based models exhibited the best performance,followed by the PSO-based SVM and SVM models.Moreover,the performance of the FS-PSO-SVM model was better than that of the PCA-PSO-SVM model,showing the highest AUC,accuracy,recall,and specificity values in both the training and testing processes.It was found that the selection of optimal features is crucial to improving the reliability of debris flow susceptibility assessment results.Moreover,the PSO algorithm was found to be not only an effective tool for hyperparameter optimization,but also a useful feature selection algorithm to improve prediction accuracies of debris flow susceptibility by using machine learning algorithms.The high and very high debris flow susceptibility zone appropriately covers 38.01%of the study area,where debris flow may occur under intensive human activities and heavy rainfall events.

Improved PSO-Extreme Learning Machine Algorithm for Indoor Localization

Wi Fi and fingerprinting localization method have been a hot topic in indoor positioning because of their universality and location-related features.The basic assumption of fingerprinting localization is that the received signal strength indication(RSSI)distance is accord with the location distance.Therefore,how to efficiently match the current RSSI of the user with the RSSI in the fingerprint database is the key to achieve high-accuracy localization.In this paper,a particle swarm optimization-extreme learning machine(PSO-ELM)algorithm is proposed on the basis of the original fingerprinting localization.Firstly,we collect the RSSI of the experimental area to construct the fingerprint database,and the ELM algorithm is applied to the online stages to determine the corresponding relation between the location of the terminal and the RSSI it receives.Secondly,PSO algorithm is used to improve the bias and weight of ELM neural network,and the global optimal results are obtained.Finally,extensive simulation results are presented.It is shown that the proposed algorithm can effectively reduce mean error of localization and improve positioning accuracy when compared with K-Nearest Neighbor(KNN),Kmeans and Back-propagation(BP)algorithms.

Identifying influential spreaders in social networks: A two-stage quantum-behaved particle swarm optimization with Lévy flight

The influence maximization problem aims to select a small set of influential nodes, termed a seed set, to maximize their influence coverage in social networks. Although the methods that are based on a greedy strategy can obtain good accuracy, they come at the cost of enormous computational time, and are therefore not applicable to practical scenarios in large-scale networks. In addition, the centrality heuristic algorithms that are based on network topology can be completed in relatively less time. However, they tend to fail to achieve satisfactory results because of drawbacks such as overlapped influence spread. In this work, we propose a discrete two-stage metaheuristic optimization combining quantum-behaved particle swarm optimization with Lévy flight to identify a set of the most influential spreaders. According to the framework,first, the particles in the population are tasked to conduct an exploration in the global solution space to eventually converge to an acceptable solution through the crossover and replacement operations. Second, the Lévy flight mechanism is used to perform a wandering walk on the optimal candidate solution in the population to exploit the potentially unidentified influential nodes in the network. Experiments on six real-world social networks show that the proposed algorithm achieves more satisfactory results when compared to other well-known algorithms.

Using Improved Particle Swarm Optimization Algorithm for Location Problem of Drone Logistics Hub

Drone logistics is a novel method of distribution that will become prevalent.The advantageous location of the logistics hub enables quicker customer deliveries and lower fuel consumption,resulting in cost savings for the company’s transportation operations.Logistics firms must discern the ideal location for establishing a logistics hub,which is challenging due to the simplicity of existing models and the intricate delivery factors.To simulate the drone logistics environment,this study presents a new mathematical model.The model not only retains the aspects of the current models,but also considers the degree of transportation difficulty from the logistics hub to the village,the capacity of drones for transportation,and the distribution of logistics hub locations.Moreover,this paper proposes an improved particle swarm optimization(PSO)algorithm which is a diversity-based hybrid PSO(DHPSO)algorithm to solve this model.In DHPSO,the Gaussian random walk can enhance global search in the model space,while the bubble-net attacking strategy can speed convergence.Besides,Archimedes spiral strategy is employed to overcome the local optima trap in the model and improve the exploitation of the algorithm.DHPSO maintains a balance between exploration and exploitation while better defining the distribution of logistics hub locations Numerical experiments show that the newly proposed model always achieves better locations than the current model.Comparing DHPSO with other state-of-the-art intelligent algorithms,the efficiency of the scheme can be improved by 42.58%.This means that logistics companies can reduce distribution costs and consumers can enjoy a more enjoyable shopping experience by using DHPSO’s location selection.All the results show the location of the drone logistics hub is solved by DHPSO effectively.

A modified back analysis method for deep excavation with multi-objective optimization procedure

Real-time prediction of excavation-induced displacement of retaining pile during the deep excavation process is crucial for construction safety.This paper proposes a modified back analysis method with multi-objective optimization procedure,which enables a real-time prediction of horizontal displacement of retaining pile during construction.As opposed to the traditional stage-by-stage back analysis,time series monitoring data till the current excavation stage are utilized to form a multi-objective function.Then,the multi-objective particle swarm optimization (MOPSO) algorithm is applied for parameter identification.The optimized model parameters are immediately adopted to predict the excavation-induced pile deformation in the continuous construction stages.To achieve efficient parameter optimization and real-time prediction of system behavior,the back propagation neural network (BPNN) is established to substitute the finite element model,which is further implemented together with MOPSO for automatic operation.The proposed approach is applied in the Taihu tunnel excavation project,where the effectiveness of the method is demonstrated via the comparisons with the site monitoring data.The method is reliable with a prediction accuracy of more than 90%.Moreover,different optimization algorithms,including non-dominated sorting genetic algorithm (NSGA-II),Pareto Envelope-based Selection Algorithm II (PESA-II) and MOPSO,are compared,and their influences on the prediction accuracy at different excavation stages are studied.The results show that MOPSO has the best performance for high dimensional optimization task.