Test case generation using improved differential evolution algorithms with novel hypercube-based learning strategies

Abstract

Search-based algorithms are a recent research hotspot for solving path coverage (PC), which is the most critical and challenging problem in the field of automated test case generation (ATCG). There remains a large research space for achieving ATCG-PC’s goal of finding a set of test cases covering all possible paths with as little computational overhead as possible. In contrast to two existing research approaches of testing different search-based algorithms and developing different fitness functions, this paper proposes two learning strategies based on a hypercube (termed HBL and THBL), which are inspired by a problem-specific knowledge expressed by the mathematical formulas of different fitness functions for ATCG-PC. The hypercubes of HBL and THBL are developed via an opposition-based learning strategy around the current best solution. The two learning strategies can guide search-based algorithms to search for test cases that cover uncovered paths. Two improved differential evolutionary algorithms based on HBL and THBL are then proposed to solve ATCG-PC. Experimental studies on thirty instances generated by eight classical benchmark programs and six fog computing benchmark programs show that the proposed algorithms achieve highest path coverage with fewer test cases and less running time than some compared state-of-the-art algorithms.