ACO approach in static routing for network-on-chips with 3D mesh topology

With increasing integration capability of integrated systems, today we see numerous systems based on a set of processing elements. One example is multi-core processors. An efficient connection of these elements can be obtained with use of interconnection networks. This approach is similar to traditional computer networks. However, this paradigm is not restricted to multi-processors. In fact, it is possible to interconnect several dedicated devices. Such systems are said NoC based, because of the use of network-on-chip platform. Like other networks, NoCs can be arranged in different topologies, such as ring, mesh and torus. Because several data packets can be transmitted simultaneously through the network, an efficient routing strategy must be used in order to avoid congestion delays. Ant colony algorithms have proves effective in static routing in systems designed to perform a fixed set of tasks, or where the communication pattern is known. In this paper, we study the performance of ACO-based routing in NoC with 3D mesh topology. The results are compared with other types of routing, such as deterministic or with use of randomness.