Improved FOX Optimization Algorithm

Optimization algorithms are essential for solving many real-world problems. However, challenges such as premature convergence to local optima and the difficulty of effectively balancing exploration and exploitation often hinder their performance. To address these issues, this paper proposes an improved FOX optimization algorithm, Improved FOX (IFOX). The IFOX algorithm introduces a new adaptive mechanism for balancing exploration and exploitation based on fitness values. It also reduces the number of hyperparameters and simplifies the core equations of the original FOX. To evaluate its effectiveness, IFOX has been tested on classical uni-modal and multi-modal benchmark functions, as well as on benchmark sets from the Congress on Evolutionary Computation (CEC), in addition to two engineering design problems: Pressure Vessel Design and Economic Load Dispatch. The results show that IFOX outperforms existing optimization algorithms, achieving superior results on 51 benchmark functions. These findings underscore the strong potential of IFOX as a competitive and robust optimization algorithm for a wide range of applications.