Abstract: Through studying a kind of intelligent optimization algorithm namely firefly algorithm,the standard updating formula of firefly algorithm is improved by introducing the new adaptive inertia weight to increase the convergence speed of the algorithm and the virtual firefly is used to enhance the cooperation and the exchange of information between the fireflies.For the firefly algorithm in cross-border issues and early boundary problem,a symmetric boundary mutation is introduced,so as to improve the optimization rate of algorithm.The experiment results of six standard test functions show that the effectiveness and the convergence speed of the improved firefly algorithm are improved.In the end,the algorithm is applied to two classical engineering optimization problems,the superiority of the improved firefly algorithm is confirmed by the experiment results,and the applicability of the improved firefly algorithm is verified.

Key words: Firefly algorithm,Adaptive inertia weight,Mutual cooperation,Exchange of information,Boundary mutation,Engineering optimization