The practical application of Genetic Algorithms to the solution of engineering problems, is rapidly becoming an established approach in the fields of control and signal processing. This book provides comprehensive coverage of the techniques involved, describing the intrinsic characteristics, advantages and constraints of genetic algorithms, as well as discussing genetic operations such as crossover, mutation and reinsertion. In addition, the principle of multiobjective optimization and computing parallelism are discussed. These features are fully illustrated by real-world applications. Also described is a newly proposed and unique hierarchical genetic algorithm designed to address the problems in determining system topology. For added value, a 3.5" disk accompanies the book, that provides the reader with an interactive Genetic Algorithms demonstration programme.