2.4. The scout bee phase
After the exploitation job of employed and onlooker bees, they
might be tired of some food sources they met so far, i.e. the food
source is no longer of interest to be exploited. After some limited
amount of trials, which is called limit for abandonment (limit), the
food source will be deserted to cherish the chances of exploring
better solutions. This exploration process is done by scout bees
through Eq. (1), who are the employed bees retired from their duty.
In every cycle during the optimization process, the best solution
so far is memorized, and this process goes on until the maximum
cycle number (MCN) is reached.