Hybrid evolutionary algorithm with product-unit neural networks for classification

Abstract

In this paper we propose a classification method based on a special class of feed-forward neural network, namely product-unit neural networks, and on a dynamic version of a hybrid evolutionary neural network algorithm. The method combines an evolutionary algorithm, a clustering process, and a local search procedure, where the clustering process and the local search are only applied at specific stages of the evolutionary process. Our results with the product-unit models and the evolutionary approach show a very interesting performance in terms of classification accuracy, yielding a state-of-the-art performance.