ECF: A C＋＋ framework for evolutionary computation

Metaheuristics have been shown to be efficient techniques for addressing a wide range of complex optimization problems. Developing flexible, reliable, and efficient frameworks for evolutionary computation metaheuristics is of great importance. With this in mind, ECF — Evolutionary Computation Framework, a versatile open-source framework for evolutionary computation written in C＋＋, was developed. In addition to a wide range of efficiently implemented algorithms, it offers a variety of genotypes, parallelism with MPI, plug-and-play components, predefined problems, a configurable environment, as well as seamless integration between its components. By combining user-friendliness and customizability, ECF caters to both novice users and experienced practitioners. Its versatility has been demonstrated through extensive applications to various continuous and combinatorial optimization problems. This paper delves into the framework’s key features, provides practical usage examples, highlights the impact of ECF, and outlines the plans for its future development.