Ant-routing-algorithm for mobile multi-hop ad-hoc networks

A mobile ad-hoc network (MANET) is a collection of mobile nodes which communicate over radio. These networks have an important advantage, they do not require any existing infrastructure or central administration. Therefore, mobile ad-hoc networks are suitable for temporary communication links. This flexibility, however, comes at a price: communication is difficult to organize due to frequent topology changes. The Ant-Colony-Based Routing Algorithm (ARA) is highly adaptive, efficient and scalable. It is based on ant algorithms which are a class of swarm intelligence. Ant algorithms try to map the solution capability of ant colonies to mathematical and engineering problems. In this paper we present some extensions to the basic idea and show through simulation results the performance gain and compare it with AODV and DSR.