Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are a quintessential example of automation in the field of avionics. UAVs provide a platform for performing a wide variety of tasks, but in each case the concept of path planning plays an integral role. It helps to generate a pathway free of obstacles, having minimum length leading to lesser fuel consumption, lesser traversal time and helps in steering the aircraft and its corresponding antenna power signature safely around the hostile antenna to avoid detection. To optimize path planning to incorporate all the above-mentioned constraints, this paper presents two new hybrid algorithms particle swarm optimization (PSO) with harmony search algorithm and PSO with genetic algorithm. The hybrid algorithms perform both an exploratory and exploitative search, unlike the existing algorithms which are biased, towards either an exploitative search or an exploratory search. Furthermore, the hybrid algorithms are compared to the existing optimization algorithms and in all cases the hybrid algorithms give a minimum of 7% better result against PSO with up to a 40% better result against Invasive Weed optimization algorithm for a fixed computational time, suggesting better real-time applications.

Wireless sensor networks (WSNs) are expected to find extensive applicability and accelerating deployment in the future. However, the main challenge faced in WSN is its perishing lifetime. The process of clustering a network is a popular mechanism employed for the purpose of extending the lifespan of WSNs and thereby making efficient data transmission. The main aim of a clustering algorithm is to elect an optimal cluster head (CH). The recent research trend suggests meta‐heuristic algorithms for the selection of optimal CHs. Meta‐heuristic algorithms possess the advantages of being simple, flexible, derivation‐free, and avoids local optima. This research proposes a novel hybrid grey wolf optimiser‐based sunflower optimisation (HGWSFO) algorithm for optimal CH selection (CHS) under certain factor constraints such as energy spent and separation distance, such that the network lifetime is enhanced. Sunflower optimisation (SFO) is employed for a broader search (exploration) where the variation of the step‐size parameter brings the plant closer to the sun in search of global refinement, thus increasing the exploration efficiency. Grey wolf optimisation (GWO) is employed for a narrow search (exploitation), where the parameter coefficient vectors are deliberately required to emphasise exploitation. This balances the exploration‐exploitation trade‐off, prolongs the network lifetime, increases the energy efficiency, and enhances the performance of the network with respect to overall throughput, residual energy of nodes, dead nodes, alive nodes, network survivability index, and convergence rate. The superior characteristic of the suggested HGWSFO is validated by comparing its performance with various other existing CHS algorithms. The overall performance of the proposed HGWSFO is 28.58%, 31.53%, 48.8%, 49.67%, 54.95%, 70.76%, and 87.10%, better than that of GWO, SFO, particle swarm optimisation (PSO), improved PSO, low‐energy adaptive clustering hierarchy (LEACH), LEACH‐centralised, and direct transmission, respectively.

A major problem with Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) is the maximization of effective network lifetime through minimization of energy usage in the network nodes. A modified k-means (Mk-means) algorithm for clustering was proposed which includes three cluster heads (simultaneously chosen) for each cluster. These cluster heads (CHs) use a load sharing mechanism to rotate as the active cluster head, which conserves residual energy of the nodes, thereby extending network lifetime. Moreover, it reduces the number of times reclustering has to be done and significantly increases the number of data packets sent during network operation. The results show that Mk-means (modified k-means) algorithm was found to outperform the existing clustering algorithms owing to its unique multiple cluster head methodology.