Surrogate-assisted evolutionary algorithm with decomposition-based local learning for high-dimensional multi-objective optimization

Abstract

When the evolutionary algorithm is applied to handle high-dimensional expensive multi-objective optimization problems (MOPs), population evolution is crucial since it controls exploration and exploitation and decides if promising candidate solutions could be generated. However, little attention has been paid to this issue, evolution operators based on Genetic Algorithm (GA) and Differential Evolution (DE) are still the two most common approaches, whose convergence on high-dimensional MOPs with a limited number of fitness evaluations remains challenging. In this paper, we propose a decomposition-based local learning strategy to accelerate convergence in the high-dimensional search space of MOPs. Specifically, an individual is updated by learning from one of the best solutions of its corresponding local area based on the multi-objective decomposition approach. Accordingly, a surrogate-assisted evolutionary algorithm is proposed for better solving expensive high-dimensional MOPs. Experimental studies on MOPs with up to 100 decision variables and with 300 fitness evaluations demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed method. Furthermore, we use the proposed method to solve a 2-objective shape design problem of the blended wing-body underwater glider (BWBUG) with 39 decision variables, and an impressive solution set is obtained.