A new filled function method for unconstrained global optimization

Many real world problems can be modelled as optimization problems. However, the traditional algorithms for these problems often encounter the problem of being trapped in local minima. The filled function method is an effective approach to tackle this kind of problems. However the existing filled functions have the disadvantages of discontinuity, non-differentiability or sensitivity to parameters which limit their efficiency. In this paper, we proposed a new filled function which is continuous and differentiable without any parameter to tune. Compared to discontinuous or non-differentiable filled functions, the continuous and differentiable filled function mainly has three advantages: firstly, it is not easier to produce extra local minima, secondly, more efficient local search algorithms using gradient information can be applied and thirdly, a continuous and differentiable filled function can be optimized more easily. Based on the new proposed filled function, a new algorithm was designed for unconstrained global optimization problems. Numerical experiments were conducted and the results show the proposed algorithm was more efficient.