Abstract
In this paper, a routing algorithm to optimize the selection of the best path for the transmitted data within the Internet of Things (IoT) system is proposed. The algorithm controls the use of ant colony ideas in the IoT system to obtain the best routing benefit. It divides the IoT environment into categorized areas depending on network types. Then, it applies the most suitable ant colony algorithm to the concerned network within each area. Furthermore, the algorithm considers routing problem in intersected areas that may arise in case of IoT system. Finally, Network Simulator 2 is used to evaluate the proposed algorithm performance. Simulation results demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed routing algorithm in terms of end-to-end delay, packet loss ratio, bandwidth consumption, throughput, overhead of control bits, and energy consumption ratio. Copyright (C) 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.