Breadth First Search (BFS) Algorithms

Breadth First Search (BFS) Pseudocode

The below pseudocode outlines the Breadth-First Search algorithm, here the problem represents the pathfinding problem.

BREATH-FIRST-SEARCH(problem) returns a solution node or failure
node ← NODE(problem.INITIAL)
if problem.IS-GOAL(node.STATE) then return node

frontier ← a FIFO queue, initialized with node
reached ← {problem.INITIAL}

while not IS-EMPTY(frontier) do
node ← POP(frontier)

for each child in EXPAND(problem, node) do
s ← child.STATE

if problem.IS-GOAL(s) then return child

if s is not in reached then
add s to reached
add child to frontier
return failure

BFS Algorithms Implementation using Python

The breadth_first_search function is responsible for implementing the BFS algorithm for pathfinding. As we have seen earlier, the BFS algorithm starts with the initial state and then it visits the neighboring states in a breadth-first manner until the goal state is found or all reachable states are explored. It maintains the FIFO queue called frontier which stores the nodes that are visited. It also uses the set called reached to keep track of the visited states and avoid revisiting them.

Python
def breadth_first_search(problem):
    node = Node(problem.initial)
    if problem.is_goal(node.state):
        return node

    frontier = deque([node])
    reached = {problem.initial}

    while frontier:
        node = frontier.popleft()

        for child in problem.expand(node):
            s = child.state

            if problem.is_goal(s):
                return child
            if s not in reached:
                reached.add(s)
                frontier.append(child)
    return None

Breadth First Search (BFS) for Artificial Intelligence

In artificial intelligence, the Breadth-First Search (BFS) algorithm is an essential tool for exploring and navigating various problem spaces. By systematically traversing graph or tree structures, BFS solves tasks such as pathfinding, network routing, and puzzle solving. This article probes into the core concepts of BFS, its algorithms, and practical applications in AI.

Table of Content

  • What is Breadth-First Search?
  • Key characteristics of BFS
  • Breadth First Search (BFS) Algorithms
  • How Breadth-First Search can help in Robot Pathfinding
  • Practical Implementations of BFS in Pathfinding of Robots
  • Conclusion
  • FAQs on Breadth First Search (BFS) for Artificial Intelligence

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What is Breadth-First Search?

The Breadth-First Search is a traversing algorithm used to satisfy a given property by searching the tree or graph data structure. It belongs to uninformed or blind search AI algorithms as It operates solely based on the connectivity of nodes and doesn’t prioritize any particular path over another based on heuristic knowledge or domain-specific information. it doesn’t incorporate any additional information beyond the structure of the search space. It is optimal for unweighted graphs and is particularly suitable when all actions have the same cost. Due to its systematic search strategy, BFS can efficiently explore even infinite state spaces. The graph structure of BFS allows to work as follows:...

Key characteristics of BFS

First-in-First-Out (FIFO): The FIFO queue is typically preferred in BFS because the FIFO queue will be faster than a priority queue and often results in the correct order of nodes. When FIFO is applied to BFS, new nodes deeper in the search tree are added to the back of the queue. The old nodes which are swallower than the new nodes get expanded first. Early goal test: In traditional BFS implementations, the algorithm maintains a set of states reached during the search process. However, instead of storing all reached states, it selectively stores only the set of reached states that allow for an early goal test. This test involves checking whether the newly generated node meets the goal criteria as soon as it is generated. Cost-optimal: BFS always aims to find a solution with a minimum cost prioritizing the shortest path, when BFS generates nodes at a certain depth d, it has already explored and generated all the nodes at the previous depth d-1. Consequently, if a solution exists within a search space, BFS can discover it as soon as it reaches that depth level. Therefore, BFS is said to be a cost-optimal solution....

Breadth First Search (BFS) Algorithms

Breadth First Search (BFS) Pseudocode...

How Breadth-First Search can help in Robot Pathfinding

The Breadth-first-search is a method of uninformed search, so our example’s robot does not use any information about how far our robot has traveled from its initial state nor how far the robot is from the goal. Using BFS we begin by positioning the robot at the root node, now it starts looking for the goal by expanding all of neighbor nodes (successors) of the root node.. Here, successors of a node are said to hold all the allowable directions that the robot could travel next. Nodes that are already visited by the robots are not considered as successors. Take a look at the below picture, the robot can travel 8 possible directions....

Practical Implementations of BFS in Pathfinding of Robots

Consider the below example, depicting the scenario where a robot seeks to navigate to its goal. Initially, the robot expands its successors that evaluate the possible moves to progress towards its destination. It is essential to note the presence of obstacles that may impede the robot’s path as it traverses through the nodes. Let’s now understand the concept of pathfinding stepwise....

Conclusion

In conclusion, the Breadth-first-search algorithm stands as a fundamental tool in the artificial intelligence which offers systematic exploration and navigation of diverse problem spaces. Through its methodical traversal of graphs and tree structures, BFS facilitates tasks such as pathfinding, network routing and puzzle solving that contributes to the AI applications significantly....

FAQs on Breadth First Search (BFS) for Artificial Intelligence

Q. What is the difference between Breadth-First Search (BFS) and Depth-First Search (DFS)?...

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