A dynamic multi-objective evolutionary algorithm based on Mahalanobis distance and intra-cluster individual correlation rectification

Abstract

Responding quickly and accurately to environmental changes is a challenge in addressing dynamic multi-objective optimization problems (DMOPs). Although many dynamic multi-objective evolutionary algorithms (DMOEAs) have demonstrated impressive performance, there is still room for improvement in accurately predicting population behavior. To address this limitation, this paper proposes a prediction strategy based on Mahalanobis distance and intra-cluster individual correlation rectification (MCIR) to deal with DMOPs. First, a manifold clustering method is used to partition the Pareto set of the population into subpopulations, in which individuals with similar movement trends are grouped into clusters. Second, the Mahalanobis distance is introduced to systematically measure the relationships between clusters in adjacent environments. Time series models are established for each cluster center to predict their positions in the neighboring environment. On this basis, the movement characteristics of individuals within clusters are further rectified by calculating the correlation between intra-cluster individuals and the cluster center, facilitating more accurate tracking of the changing Pareto set/Pareto front. Finally, Gaussian noise is introduced to ensure the diversity of new individuals. The effectiveness of the MCIR algorithm is demonstrated by comparing it with four DMOEAs using 18 test instances. Experimental results confirm that MCIR holds great promise in addressing DMOPs.