On the Resilience of Ant Algorithms. Experiment with Adapted MMAS on TSP

Abstract

This paper focuses on the resilience of a nature-inspired class of algorithms. The issues related to resilience fall under a very wide umbrella. The uncertainties that we face in the world require the need of resilient systems in all domains. Software resilience is certainly of critical importance, due to the presence of software applications which are embedded in numerous operational and strategic systems. For Ant Colony Optimization (ACO), one of the most successful heuristic methods inspired by the communication processes in entomology, performance and convergence issues have been intensively studied by the scientific community. Our approach addresses the resilience of MAX–MIN Ant System (MMAS), one of the most efficient ACO algorithms, when studied in relation with Traveling Salesman Problem (TSP). We introduce a set of parameters that allow the management of real-life situations, such as imprecise or missing data and disturbances in the regular computing process. Several metrics are involved, and a statistical analysis is performed. The resilience of the adapted MMAS is analyzed and discussed. A broad outline on future research directions is given in connection with new trends concerning the design of resilient systems.