Sensitive Ants in Solving the Generalized Vehicle Routing Problem

Abstract: The idea of sensitivity in ant colony systems has been exploited in hybrid ant-based models with promising results for many combinatorial optimization problems. Heterogeneity is induced in the ant population by endowing individual ants with a certain level of sensitivity to the pheromone trail. The variable pheromone sensitivity within the same population of ants can potentially intensify the search while in the same time inducing diversity for the exploration of the environment. The performance of sensitive ant models is investigated for solving the generalized vehicle routing problem. Numerical results and comparisons are discussed and analysed with a focus on emphasizing any particular aspects and potential benefits related to hybrid ant-based models.