Fig Tree-Wasp Symbiotic Coevolutionary Optimization Algorithm

The nature inspired algorithms are becoming popular due to their simplicity and wider applicability. In the recent past several such algorithms have been developed. They are mainly bio-inspired, swarm based, physics based and socio-inspired; however, the domain based on symbiotic relation between creatures is still to be explored. A novel metaheuristic optimization algorithm referred to as Fig Tree-Wasp Symbiotic Coevolutionary (FWSC) algorithm is proposed. It models the symbiotic coevolutionary relationship between fig trees and wasps. More specifically, the mating of wasps, pollinating the figs, searching for new trees for pollination and wind effect drifting of wasps are modeled in the algorithm. These phenomena help in balancing the two important aspects of exploring the search space efficiently as well as exploit the promising regions. The algorithm is successfully tested on a variety of test problems. The results are compared with existing methods and algorithms. The Wilcoxon Signed Rank Test and Friedman Test are applied for the statistical validation of the algorithm performance. The algorithm is also further applied to solve the real-world engineering problems. The performance of the FWSC underscored that the algorithm can be applied to wider variety of real-world problems.