An Analysis of the Different Components of the AntHocNet Routing Algorithm

Mobile ad hoc networks are a class of highly dynamic networks. In previous work, we developed a new routing algorithm, called AntHocNet, for these challenging network environments. AntHocNet has been designed after the Ant Colony Optimization (ACO) framework, and its general architecture shares strong similarities with the architectures of typical ACO implementations for network routing. On the other hand, AntHocNet also contains several elements which are new to ACO routing implementations, such as the combination of ant-based path sampling with a lightweight information bootstrapping process, the use of both reactive and proactive components, and the use of composite pheromone metrics. In this paper we discuss all these elements, pointing out their general usefulness to face the multiple challenges of mobile ad hoc networks, and perform an evaluation of their working and effect on performance through extensive simulation studies.