Global Path Planning for A Vessel Based on Improved Ant Colony Algorithm

This study presents a global path planning algorithm utilizing an enhanced ant colony algorithm to overcome challenges like vulnerability to local optima, inadequate pheromone update, and suboptimal paths in traditional ant colony algorithms for global path planning of vessels. First, an improved heuristic function is introduced to overcome the problem of local optima. Subsequently, an adaptive pheromone evaporation coefficient is employed to balance the convergence of the algorithm in different stages. Finally, an adjacent node detection algorithm for obstacles is designed to ensure that the optimized path aligns with maritime practice. The simulation results confirm the proposed algorithm's effectiveness. This research provides valuable insights and practical recommendations for global path planning in maritime navigation.