Towards agent systems engineering

The term “ ” has became a buzzword these days, not only in academic circles, but also in some computer magazines and application fields of computer science like manufacturing and logistics. Hence, there is a pressing need for a design methodology for multi-agent systems. Or even stronger, there is a demand for an agent engineering technology, which includes computer assistance during the design phases, for the validation of the designed system, and for the implementation of the multi-agent system as a physically distributed system. This status report will introduce the field of multi-agent systems and its design. Three prominent applications will serve as a first motivation of the theme. Based on the ideas of the agent examples a discussion on the term agent will serve as a first motivation of the theme. Based of the theme. Based on the ideas of the agent architecture of an agent, its communication capabilities, and planning in a multi-agent context. After this broad technical introduction the main topic of this work will be tackled. An introduction to five methodologies for the design of multi-agent systems will be given and a new one, the method, will be presented. Eventually a brief discussion about the multi-agent design approaches will be given, the missing correlations to the task definitions will be critizised, and further research directions will be proposed.     

LMI Consensus Condition for Discrete-time Multi-agent Systems

This paper examines a consensus problem in multi-agent discrete-time systems, where each agent can exchange information only from its neighbor agents. A decentralized protocol is designed for each agent to steer all agents to the same vector. The design condition is expressed in the form of a linear matrix inequality. Finally, a simulation example is presented and a comparison is made to demonstrate the effectiveness of the developed methodology.      

MOBMAS: A methodology for ontology-based multi-agent systems development

Ontologies offer significant benefits to multi-agent systems: interoperability, reusability, support for multi-agent system (MAS) development activities (such as system analysis and agent knowledge modeling) and support for MAS operation (such as agent communication and reasoning). This paper presents an ontology-based methodology, MOBMAS, for the analysis and design of multi-agent systems. MOBMAS is the first methodology that explicitly identifies and implements the various ways in which ontologies can be used in the MAS development process and integrated into the MAS model definitions. In this paper, we present comprehensive documentation and validation of MOBMAS.     

A domain model of Web recommender systems based on usage mining and collaborative filtering

Considering the increasing demand of multi-agent systems, the practice of software reuse is essential to the development of such systems. Multi-agent domain engineering is a process for the construction of domain-specific agent-based reusable software artifacts, like domain models, representing the requirements of a family of multi-agent systems in a domain, and frameworks, implementing reusable agent-based design solutions to those requirements. This article describes the domain modeling tasks of the MADEM methodology and a case study on the application of GRAMO, a MADEM technique, for the construction of the domain model of ONTOWUM, specifying the common and variable requirements of a family of Web recommender systems based on usage mining and collaborative filtering.     

The Gaia Methodology for Agent-Oriented Analysis and Design

This article presents Gaia: a methodology for agent-oriented analysis and design. The Gaia methodology is both general, in that it is applicable to a wide range of multi-agent systems, and comprehensive, in that it deals with both the macro-level (societal) and the micro-level (agent) aspects of systems. Gaia is founded on the view of a multi-agent system as a computational organisation consisting of various interacting roles. We illustrate Gaia through a case study (an agent-based business process management system).     

A security-aware metamodel for multi-agent systems (MAS)

This paper adopts a model-based security (MBS) approach to identify security requirements during the early stages of multi-agent system development. Our adopted MBS approach is underpinned by a metamodel independent of any specific methodology. It allows for security considerations to be embedded within any situated agent methodology which then prescribes security considerations within its work products. Using a standard model-driven engineering (MDE) approach, these work products are initially constructed as high abstraction models and then transformed into more precise models until code-specific models can be produced. A multi-agent system case study is used to illustrate the applicability of the proposed security-aware metamodel.     

Designing convivial digital cities: a social intelligence design approach

Conviviality has been identified as a key concept necessary to web communities, such as digital cities, and while it has been simultaneously defined in literature as individual freedom realized in personal interdependence, rational and cooperative behavior and normative instrument, no model for conviviality has yet been proposed for computer science. In this article, we raised the question whether social intelligence design could be used to designing convivial digital cities. We first looked at digital cities and identified, from a social intelligence design point of view, two main categories of digital cities: public websites and commercial websites; we also noted the experimental qualities of digital cities. Second, we analyzed the concept of conviviality for social science, multi-agent systems and intelligent interface; we showed the distinction among various kinds of use of conviviality, the positive outcomes such as social cohesion, trust and participation but also the negative aspects that emerged when conviviality became an instrument of power relations. Fourth, we looked at the normative aspect of conviviality as described in the literature and found that social norms for conviviality paralleled legal and institutional norms for digital cities. Finally, as a first step toward obtaining measures for conviviality, we presented a case study describing agents and user’s interactions using dependence graphs. We also presented an analysis of conviviality requirements and described our plan and methodology for designing convivial digital cities.     

“深圳现代物流信息公用平台”多主体系统分析与设计研究

“深圳现代物流信息公用平台”智能主体是该系统软件开发的新模式,系统面向主体分析与设计建模方法的基本思想是将多主体“平台”系统看成一个组织,依据组织学原理分析多主体系统组织特性,建立组织模型,从而形成多主体系统宏观结构和功能需求的严格规范;根据现有技术和可利用资源确定承担各类组织职能的多个主体,由此确定各主体的职责和粒度;设计各类主体的概念模型,为“平台”系统在计算机上的实现建立清晰、可操作的开发模式。     

一种新型船舶避碰决策支持系统的设计与实现

该文介绍了一种新型的船舶避碰决策支持系统——基于Multi-Agent的协商避碰决策支持系统的设计与实现。该系统是一个开放的、智能化的系统,它基于系统论的思想,把协商决策引入船舶避碰,是一个包括避碰决策Agent、协商决策Agent、网络通信Agent和法律仲裁Agent等的Multi-Agent系统,该系统可以最大限度地减少避碰决策中的不确定性,具有良好的用户界面,能提供网络环境下智能化的决策支持,可以更好地解决船舶避碰问题。     

Infrastructure for Design, Deployment and Experimentation of Distributed Agent-based Systems: The Requirements, The Technologies, and An Example

This paper discusses infrastructure for design, development, and experimentation of multi-agent systems. Multi-agent system design requires determining (1) how domain requirements drive the use of agents and AI techniques, (2) what competencies agents need in a MAS, and (3) which techniques implement those competencies. Deployment requirements include code reuse, parallel development through formal standardized object specifications, multi-language and multi-platform support, simulation and experimentation facilities, and user interfaces to view internal module, agent, and system operations. We discuss how standard infrastructure technologies such as OMG IDL, OMG CORBA, Java, and VRML support these services. Empirical evaluation of complex software systems requires iteration through combinations of experimental parameters and recording desired data. Infrastructure software can ease the setup, running, and analysis of large-scale computational experiments. The development of the Sensible Agent Testbed and architecture over the past six years provides a concrete example. The design rationale for the Sensible Agent architecture emphasizes domain-independent requirements and rapid deployment to new application domains. The Sensible Agent Testbed is a suite of tools providing or assisting in setting up, running, visually monitoring, and chronicling empirical testing and operation of complex, distributed multi-agent systems. A thorough look at the various Sensible Agents infrastructure pieces illustrates the engineering principles essential for multi-agent infrastructure, while documenting the software for users.     

Shaping multi-agent systems with gradient reinforcement learning

An original reinforcement learning (RL) methodology is proposed for the design of multi-agent systems. In the realistic setting of situated agents with local perception, the task of automatically building a coordinated system is of crucial importance. To that end, we design simple reactive agents in a decentralized way as independent learners. But to cope with the difficulties inherent to RL used in that framework, we have developed an incremental learning algorithm where agents face a sequence of progressively more complex tasks. We illustrate this general framework by computer experiments where agents have to coordinate to reach a global goal. This work has been conducted in part in NICTA’s Canberra laboratory.     

Algebras for Agent Norm-Regulation

An abstract architecture for idealized multi-agent systems whose behaviour is regulated by normative systems is developed and discussed. Agent choices are determined partially by the preference ordering of possible states and partially by normative considerations: The agent chooses that act which leads to the best outcome of all permissible actions. If an action is non-permissible depends on if the result of performing that action leads to a state satisfying a condition which is forbidden, according to the norms regulating the multi-agent system. This idea is formalized by defining set-theoretic predicates characterizing multi-agent systems. The definition of the predicate uses decision theory, the Kanger–Lindahl theory of normative positions, and an algebraic representation of normative systems.     

Leader-following consensus control of second-order nonlinear multi-agent systems with applications to slew rate control

This paper addresses the distributed leader-following consensus control of second-order strict-feedback nonlinear multi-agent systems. By employing mean value theorem, variable separation technique, and backstepping methodology, a fully distributed adaptive control law is designed using only local relative state information. The proposed control law solves the leader-following consensus problem for any directed communication graph that contains a spanning tree with the root node being the leader agent. The application to hovercraft slew rate control system is given to verify the effectiveness of the theoretical results.     

基于意图的多智能体协调机制及其在Mirosot机器人

为建立一套满足Mirosot机器人足球比赛要求的新型机器人系统，提出了一种基于意图的多智能体协调机制．这种机制利用各智能体的意图，在时间和空间上加以配合，从而完成复杂行为的协调控制．将该机制用于Mirosot足球机器人系统，对该机制进行了说明．     

DPMAS:一种多主体系统设计方法

提出一种多主体系统设计方法DPMAS。首先,该方法以对象作为主体实现的基础,以UML作为基本的建模语言,保证了与面向对象方法的延续性。同时,该方法提供了新的图来表示多主体系统中的知识模型和主体间交互模型,并对UML符号进行了一些改进以表示主体特有的概念。     

Robust Formation Maneuvers Through Sliding Mode for Multi-agent Systems With Uncertainties

This paper develops a robust control method for formation maneuvers of a multi-agent system. The multi-agent system is leader-follower-based, where the graph theory is utilized to describe the information exchange among the agents. The control method is exercised via sliding mode methodology where each agent is subjected to uncertainties. The technique of nonlinear disturbance observer is adopted in order to overcome the adverse effects of the uncertainties. Assuming that the uncertainties have an unknown bound, the formation stability conditions are investigated according to a given communication topology. In the sense of Lyapunov, not only the formation maneuvers of the multi-agent system have guaranteed stability, but the desired formations of the agents are also realized. Compared with other two control approaches, i.e., the basic sliding mode approach and the fuzzy sliding mode approach, some numerical results are presented to illustrate the effectiveness, performance and validity of the robust control method for formation maneuvers in the presence of uncertainties.      

ADE: STEPS TOWARD A DISTRIBUTED DEVELOPMENT AND RUNTIME ENVIRONMENT FOR COMPLEX ROBOTIC AGENT ARCHITECTURES

In this paper we present the agent architecture development environment (ADE), intended for the design, implementation, and testing of distributed robotic agent architectures. ADE is unique among robotic architecture development environments in that it is based on a universal agent architecture framework called APOC, which allows it to implement architectures in any design methodology, and in that it uses an underlying multi-agent system to allow for the the distribution of architectural components over multiple host computers. After a short exposition of the theory behind ADE, we present the multi-agent system setup and give an example of using ADE in a multi-robot setting. A general discussion then highlights some of the novel features of ADE and illustrates how ADE can be used for designing, implementing, testing, and running agent architectures.     

多Agent系统可视化开发环境的设计与实现

多Agent系统是构造复杂的分布式软件的一种新方法,有广阔的应用前景。但设计多Agent系统难度很大,除了要考虑传统的分布式系统的所有问题外,还要考虑Agent的灵活性需求。为了支持多Agent系统的开发,提出并实现了一个可视化开发环境,用户可以从描述任务出发,经过一系列步骤,半自动化地生成多Agent系统,极大地减轻了编程负担。