A Continuous Space Location Model and a Particle Swarm Optimization-Based Heuristic Algorithm for Maximizing the Allocation of Ocean-Moored Buoys

Ocean-moored buoys play an important role in global ocean environment monitoring. Motivated by building a sustainable ocean buoy observational network, a spatial optimization approach is proposed to site buoy stations to maximize spatial monitoring efficiency (SME). To achieve this goal, a non-linear, continuous maximum coverage location model named CMCP-Ocean was established, associated with a measurement method of the SME. Meanwhile, a heuristic framework based on the particle swarm optimization (PSO) algorithm was built to solve the CMCP-Ocean model, and optimization strategies including the multi-core parallel computing strategy, the particle velocity updating strategy based on spatial matching, and two potential station selection strategies related to the centroid-based random radiation method (CRRM) and random grid division method (RGDM) were established to improve computing performance. The effectiveness and efficiency of the PSO-based algorithm and the CMCP-Ocean model were verified by a series of experiments; the proposed computing schema named PSO-for-CMCP-Ocean has also proven to be practical and efficient. Finally, the PSO-for-CMCP-Ocean was applied to the buoy station selection of water mass monitoring in the Laizhou Bay of China, and a multi-scale sustainable site planning solution is reported.