‫الجمهورية الجزائرية الديمقراطية الشعبية‬

‫وزارة التعليم العالي والبحث العلمي‬

Université Badji Mokhtar
- Annaba – ‫جامعة باجي مختار‬
Badji Mokhtar – Annaba ‫عنابـــــــــــــــة‬
University
Faculté : Technologie
Département : Informatique
Domaine : Mathématique-Informatique
Filière : Informatique
Spécialité : ingénierie des logiciels complexes

Rapport
Module: Bio inspired Algorithms

Artificial Bee Colony Algorithm Report

Présenté par :
Lamairia Billel
Bounour Amani
Année Universitaire : 2024/2025
Contents
Artificial Bee Colony Algorithm: Natural Foraging Behavior and Computational Modeling .... 3
Abstract ............................................................................................................................................................................ 3
1. Introduction .............................................................................................................................................................. 3
2. Natural Foraging Behavior of Honey Bees ................................................................................................ 3
3. Artificial Bee Colony (ABC) Algorithm ........................................................................................................ 3
4. Application to the Traveling Salesman Problem (TSP) ...................................................................... 4
5. Computational Implementation ..................................................................................................................... 4
6. Conclusion .................................................................................................................................................................. 4
References ............................................................................................................................................................................ 5
Artificial Bee Colony Algorithm: Natural Foraging Behavior and
Computational Modeling

Abstract
The Artificial Bee Colony (ABC) algorithm is a swarm-based metaheuristic optimization
technique inspired by the foraging behavior of honey bees. This report explores the natural
foraging mechanisms of bees and elucidates how these behaviors are modeled
computationally to address complex optimization problems, notably the Traveling
Salesman Problem (TSP).

1. Introduction
Optimization problems, such as the TSP, pose significant challenges due to their
combinatorial nature and computational complexity. Nature-inspired algorithms,
particularly those based on swarm intelligence, have demonstrated efficacy in providing
approximate solutions to these problems. The ABC algorithm, (KARABOGA, 2005) is one
such method that emulates the foraging strategies of honeybee colonies to perform
optimization tasks.

2. Natural Foraging Behavior of Honey Bees

Honey bee colonies exhibit complex social behaviors that enable efficient foraging and
resource allocation. The colony comprises different types of bees, each fulfilling specific
roles:

1. Forager Bees (Employed Bees): These bees search for food sources and collect
nectar, assessing the quality and quantity of the resources.
2. Onlooker Bees: Remaining in the hive, onlookers evaluate information shared by
foragers and decide which food sources to exploit based on the communicated
quality.
3. Scout Bees: Scouts explore the environment randomly to discover new food
sources, ensuring the colony adapts to changing resource landscapes.

The foraging process involves exploration, exploitation, communication through the waggle
dance, decision-making, recruitment, and abandonment of depleted sources. These
behaviors collectively enable the colony to balance the exploration of new resources and the
exploitation of known ones, optimizing foraging efficiency.

3. Artificial Bee Colony (ABC) Algorithm

The ABC algorithm abstracts the natural foraging behaviors of bees into a computational
framework for optimization. The algorithm consists of the following components:

1. Artificial Bees: Represent potential solutions to the optimization problem.

2. Employed Bees: Explore the neighborhood of their current solutions, analogous to
foragers exploiting known food sources.
 3. Onlooker Bees: Select solutions based on the quality information shared by
employed bees, similar to onlookers choosing food sources based on the waggle
dance.
4. -Scout Bees: Generate new random solutions, akin to scouts searching for new food
sources.

The algorithm proceeds through initialization, employed bee phase, onlooker bee phase,
scout bee phase, and termination based on a stopping criterion. This process enables the
algorithm to balance exploration and exploitation, adapting to various optimization
problems.

4. Application to the Traveling Salesman Problem (TSP)

The TSP requires finding the shortest possible route that visits each city exactly once and
returns to the origin city. The ABC algorithm addresses this problem by modeling each bee
as a potential solution (a specific route). Bees modify their routes through mutation (e.g.,
swapping cities) and evaluate the total distance to determine fitness. Employed bees refine
their routes, onlookers probabilistically select and improve promising routes, and scouts
introduce new random routes to maintain diversity. This iterative process converges
towards an optimal or near-optimal solution.

5. Computational Implementation
The ABC algorithm can be implemented computationally with the following steps:

- Initialization: Generate an initial population of random routes.

- Employed Bee Phase: Each employed bee modifies its route and evaluates the new
distance. If the new route is shorter, it replaces the old one.
- Onlooker Bee Phase: Onlookers select routes based on their fitness and apply
modifications to find improvements.
- Scout Bee Phase: Routes that have not improved over several iterations are
abandoned, and scouts generate new random routes.
- Termination: The process repeats until a stopping criterion, such as a maximum
number of iterations, is met.

Visualization tools can enhance understanding by highlighting changes in routes and

tracking metrics like global best distance and average distance over iterations.

6. Conclusion
The ABC algorithm effectively models the foraging behavior of honey bees to solve complex
optimization problems like the TSP. By balancing exploration and exploitation through the
roles of employed, onlooker, and scout bees, the algorithm adapts to various problem
landscapes, providing efficient and robust solutions.
References
Dervis Karaboga , Bahriye Basturk. (2007). A powerful and efficient algorithm for numerical.
Kayseri, Turkey: Department of Computer Engineering, Erciyes University,.
doi:https://doi.org/10.1007/s10898-007-9149-x

KARABOGA, D. (2005, October). AN IDEA BASED ON HONEY BEE SWARM FOR NUMERICAL
OPTIMIZATION. Erciyes University, Engineering Faculty , Computer Engineering
Department . Retrieved from https://abc.erciyes.edu.tr/pub/tr06_2005.pdf

Marco Dorigo and Thomas Stützle. ( June 4, 2004). Ant Colony Optimization. The MIT Press.
Retrieved from https://web2.qatar.cmu.edu/~gdicaro/15382/additional/aco-
book.pdf