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Evolutionary Intelligence
https://doi.org/10.1007/s12065-020-00451-3
RESEARCH PAPER
Giza Pyramids Construction: anancient‑inspired metaheuristic
algorithm foroptimization
SasanHari
1
· JavadMohammadzadeh
1
· MadjidKhalilian
1
· SadoullahEbrahimnejad
2
Received: 4 March 2020 / Revised: 25 April 2020 / Accepted: 2 July 2020
© Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature 2020
Abstract
Nowadays, many optimization issues around us cannot be solved by precise methods or that cannot be solved in a reasonable
time. One way to solve such problems is to use metaheuristic algorithms. Metaheuristic algorithms try to find the best solution
out of all possible solutions in the shortest time possible. Speed in convergence, accuracy, and problem-solving ability at high
dimensions are characteristics of a good metaheuristic algorithm. This paper presents a new population-based metaheuristic
algorithm inspired by a new source of inspiration. This algorithm is called Giza Pyramids Construction(GPC) inspired by
the ancient past has the characteristics of a good metaheuristic algorithm to deal with many issues. The ancient-inspired is
to observe and reflect on the legacy of the ancient past to understand the optimal methods, technologies, and strategies of
that era. The proposed algorithm is controlled by the movements of the workers and pushing the stone blocks on the ramp.
This algorithm is compared with five standard and popular metaheuristic algorithms. For this purpose, thirty different and
diverse benchmark test functions are utilized. The proposed algorithm is also tested on high-dimensional benchmark test
functions and is used as an application in image segmentation. The results show that the proposed algorithm is better than
other metaheuristic algorithms and it is successful in solving high-dimensional problems, especially image segmentation.
Keywords Metaheuristic· Optimization· Giza Pyramids Construction algorithm· GPC algorithm· Ancient-inspired·
High-dimensional tests· Image segmentation· Benchmark test functions
1 Introduction
Optimization applications are numerous. Each process has
the potential to be optimized. There are no companies and
institutions that not involved in optimization. Many challeng-
ing applications in science and technology can be formulated
as an optimization problem. Optimization can reduce time,
cost and risk or increase profit, quality, and efficiency. In
the industry, for example, there are cost and service quality
optimization. There are also many ways to optimize time
for product planning. There are many optimization issues in
science, engineering, economics and business that are dif-
ficult to solve [1]. They are not solved accurately and within
a reasonable time. Using the approximation algorithm is the
main option to solve these problems.
Approximate algorithms are classified into two catego-
ries: heuristic and metaheuristic. Heuristics depend on the
type of problem. They are usually designed and used for
specific issues. Metaheuristics are more popular and are used
for many issues [2]. They can be used for almost any kind of
problem. The metaheuristic solves problems that seem to be
difficult, by searching for a large space of solutions. These
algorithms achieve this goal by effectively exploring space
and reducing the size of the solution space. Metaheuris-
tics solve problems faster, solve bigger problems, and are
stronger algorithms. They are also very flexible and easy to
design and implement.
The metaheuristic is a branch of optimization in computer
science and applied mathematics that deals with complex
* Sasan Harifi
s.harifi@kiau.ac.ir
Javad Mohammadzadeh
j.mohammadzadeh@kiau.ac.ir
Madjid Khalilian
khalilian@kiau.ac.ir
Sadoullah Ebrahimnejad
ibrahimnejad@kiau.ac.ir
1
Department ofComputer Engineering, Karaj Branch,
Islamic Azad University, Karaj, Iran
2
Department ofIndustrial Engineering, Karaj Branch, Islamic
Azad University, Karaj, Iran