Analysis of Microscopic Behavior in Ant Traffic to Understand Jam-free Transportation

Abstract

In this paper, we present an analysis of microscopic behaviors of ants to understand ant interactions that lead to jam-free ant traffic. For the analysis here, we use an agent-based model of ant traffic and mathematical analysis of key scenarios on the ant trail to understand relations between ants' environment and the interactions of ants with it. Our analysis indicates that ants increase their velocity for decreasing headway, which leads to a peculiar jam absorption mechanism. We also show that ants on trail collect information about flow in the recent past, which allows them to make informed decisions about their travel. Based on our observation, we propose that mimicking an ant communication system could help individuals in man-made transportation systems to make better decisions for higher efficiency, which could improve the efficiency of overall system.