I downloaded Culebra 2.1 because there is a module dedicated to Stigmergy. My goal is to simulate Ant Colony Optimization (ACO) in Grasshopper. I read the manual and opened the Stigmergy Demo Example, but I noticed that there isn’t any reference to food.
In ACO, agents (ants) move randomly, searching for food, and reinforce paths using pheromones when food is found. However, in Culebra, the movement seems to be based purely on attraction and separation forces without an explicit target such as food.
Is there a way to implement a “food source” within Culebra’s framework? Could the Attraction Force component be used to direct agents towards specific targets, similar to food in ACO?
Any guidance or suggestions would be greatly appreciated!
However, I believe that Physarealm is not ideal for simulating Ant Colony Optimization (ACO) because it does not have an explicit food model or a pheromone-based trail reinforcement mechanism.
Physarealm is based on the behavior of slime mold, where particle movement is guided by a chemical field (ChemoAttractor Field) without a direct reinforcement system for paths based on interactions with a specific goal. This behavior differs from ant colony optimization, where individual agents reinforce paths they find to be efficient solutions.
In the case of Culebra, although it also does not have a built-in pheromone system, it allows for more flexible control over attraction forces and emergent particle behavior, making it easier to implement ACO directly.
Thus, I believe neither plugin has a native implementation for ACO, but Culebra provides greater flexibility to structure this simulation. If you have any suggestions on how to implement trail reinforcement in Physarealm, I’d be happy to hear them!