An application of quantum-inspired particle swarm optimization to function optimization problems

Quantum-Inspired Particle Swarm Optimization (QPSO) is an extension of Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) methods, in which the concept of quantum mechanics is adopted. The state of a particle in QPSO is described by a wave function derived from the Schrödinfer equation, whereas a particle in standard PSOs has its location and velocity as its state. The performances of QPSOs are demonstrated through the optimization problem for higher-dimensional functions, with comparison of the standard PSO. The experimental results show that QPSOs can find (near) optimal values much faster than the conventional PSO.