A time synchronization scheme for sensor networks based on ant colony algorithm

Time synchronization has received a great attention as its crucial parts in wireless sensor networks. To minimize the number of transmission packets and achieve energy efficiency, a time synchronization scheme based on ant colony algorithm (TSAC) is presented in this paper. By exploiting the principle of ant colony algorithm adjusting the pheromone dynamically and automatically, an optimum pair selection theme is designed to select the nodes synchronized by performing the pairwise synchronization, and all the other nodes could be synchronized by listening. The simulation results show that TSAC needs less message exchanges and provides more accuracy than other time synchronization algorithms.