Design of an optimal nearest neighbor classifier using an intelligent genetic algorithm

The goal of designing an optimal nearest neighbor classifier is to maximize the classification accuracy while minimizing the sizes of both the reference and feature sets. A novel intelligent genetic algorithm (IGA) superior to conventional GAs in solving large parameter optimization problems is used to effectively achieve this goal. It is shown empirically that the IGA-designed classifier outperforms existing GA-based and non-GA-based classifiers in terms of classification accuracy and total number of parameters of the reduced sets. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.