Communication and localization networks in swarm-intelligent systems

This paper discusses the role of communication and localization as enabling technologies of swarm-intelligent systems. In this work swarm-intelligence is understood as an evolving capability of decentralized, self-organized systems whose elements are collectively able to coordinate and synchronize their actions towards fulfilling a common goal. In order to share their observations of the environment, processing results or internal states, a swarm’s elements form a dynamic communication network. Additionally, the swarm elements form a second network, consisting of measurements for determining their relative positions. The paper discusses the fundamental differences between these two networks and illustrates the applicability of the swarm-intelligence perspective in several application fields.