A hybrid genetic algorithm for the steiner tree problem in graphs towards optimizations for wireless sensor networks

Abstract

The Steiner tree problem in graphs (SPG) is one of the most studied problems in combinatorial optimization because of its theories and applications. It is one of the foundations to develop a Wireless Sensor Network (WSNs), such as multicast and topology design. SPG is an NP-Hard problem, and many heuristic and approximation algorithms have been proposed. Thus, this study proposes a Hybrid Genetic algorithm (HGA) to solve SPG. This study is the binary string representation for a set of chosen edges. To increase the diversity of the population and avoid falling into local optimization, we use a 2-longest Distance strategy, dynamic crossover rate, and chosen solutions must differ by at least 5%. The experiment results show that the HGA algorithm's running time equals 153.83% of the GA algorithm's, the deviation found by HGA, and the optimal distance only equals 65% that of GA.

Keywords

• steiner tree problem
• genetic algorithm
• hybrid genetic algorithm
• node placement optimization in wireless sensor networks