Autonomous System Control via Social Insect Models (ASC-SIM)

Boston Fusion Corp. and Arizona State University propose to research and develop Autonomous System Control via Social Insect Models (ASC-SIM). We will develop a unified approach that combines: swarm-based scenarios of national interest; predictive social insect models including an underlying ontology that incorporates insect, model, and scenario features; graph-based search to select the most appropriate models and species for a given scenario; metaheuristic algorithms to execute the selected models and identify a set of best potential outcomes; and an interface that allows users to specify scenarios and explore the solution space. In the ASC-SIM effort, we will investigate, design, implement, demonstrate, validate, mature, and transition to operational use an innovative capability to leverage insights from social insect behavior and apply them to more complex scenarios involving swarms of autonomous entities in order to develop new strategies for understanding and managing emergent behavior. In Phase I, we will demonstrate the feasibility of our approach, by implementing and testing selected components; in addition, we will capture requirements and develop the ASC-SIM system concept to be realized in Phase II.