A Bionic Social Learning Strategy Pigeon-Inspired Optimization for Multi-Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Cooperative Path Planning

This paper proposes a bionic social learning strategy pigeon-inspired optimization (BSLSPIO) algorithm to tackle cooperative path planning for multiple unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) with cooperative detection. Firstly, a modified pigeon-inspired optimization (PIO) is proposed, which incorporates a bionic social learning strategy. In this modification, the global best is replaced by the average of the top-ranked solutions in the map and compass operator, while the global center is replaced by the local center in the landmark operator. The paper also proves the algorithm's convergence and provides complexity analysis. Comparison experiments demonstrate that the proposed method searches for the optimal solution while guaranteeing fast convergence. Subsequently, a path-planning model, detection units' network model, and cost estimation are constructed. The developed BSLSPIO is utilized to generate feasible paths for UAVs, adhering to time consistency constraints. The simulation results show that the BSLSPIO generates feasible paths at minimum cost and effectively solves the UAVs' cooperative path-planning problem.