Contract Net Protocol

About: Contract Net Protocol is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 606 publications have been published within this topic receiving 13729 citations.

Adaptive composition of services in context-aware ambient intelligent systems

Abstract: An environment of ambient intelligence or an ambient environment is an environment with intelligent applications able to adapt their behavior with the change of context. The ambient environments use many communicating objects; each one offers different and specific services. The majority of these services can perform only one specific task. The composition of services is then proposed to resolve the complex tasks. Multi agent systems underline the social capacities such as the communication, the cooperation, the resolution of conflict, the negotiation, the argumentation, and the emotion. They thus quickly became the principal paradigm in the ambient intelligence.In this context, we propose an adaptive multi agent system for automatic composition of services in an ambient environment. For each device is associated an agent. The set of the agents coordinate their competences taking into account the context in order to perform an activity. The system suggested is based on the Contract Net Protocol in which the agents exchange their proposals in the form of call for proposal. JADE platform (Java Agent DEvelopment framework) is used to implement our system.

Negotiation model for knowledge management system using computational collective intelligence and ontology-based reasoning: case study of SONATRACH AVAL

Abstract: This paper presents an agent-based approach that facilitates knowledge management and decision making in maintenance field by enabling the collaboration and negotiation between experts in SONATRACH AVAL. The main objective of the suggested model is to treat the business rules with semantic errors, expert agents are asked to negotiate in order to accept or refuse a modification of rules. To do so, the expert manager can be represented by an intelligent agent that negotiates with experts (participants). We propose an interactive negotiation model utilising an extended version of the contract net protocol (CNP) and an ontology named OntoloG. The experimental results show that the developed computation collective intelligence approach is very interesting and efficient for expert collaboration in the well-known petroleum enterprise in Algeria (SONATRACH).

A Self-adaptive Knowledge Based Dynamic Scheduling Decision Mechanism

Abstract: Through the interrelated concept of the shop floor production, this paper constructs a scheduling decision system based on the Contract Net Protocol, and gives five attributes of resource agent and corresponding task: time, cost, quality, load and priority. Using the fuzzy set and rough set, the classified knowledge of the attribute is generated, and is used as the states criteria in the Q-learning. To initialize Q value of the decision attribute, we collect the knowledge from experts. The Q-learning algorithm and initial parameter values are presented in our dynamic scheduling decision system. Based on the algorithmic analysis, we demonstrate its convergence and credibility. Applying this algorithm, the system will explore the more useful scheduling decisions in the changeful environment continuously, and update knowledge of the system, thus it will avoid the subjectivity and invariance of the expert knowledge. As a result, the knowledge-based dynamic scheduling decision system will be more flexible, and adjust itself according to the dynamic environment continuously.

Dialogue in team formation

Abstract: The process of cooperative problem solving can be divided into four stages. First, finding potential team members, then forming a team followed by constructing a plan for that team. Finally, the plan is executed by the team. Traditionally, very simple protocols like the Contract Net protocol are used for performing the first two stages of the process. And often the team is already taken for granted. In an open environment (like in e.g. electronic commerce) however, there can be discussion among the agents in order to form a team that can achieve the collective goal of solving the problem. For these cases fixed protocols like contract net do not suffice. In this paper we present an alternative solution, using structured dialogues that can be shown to lead to the required team formation. The dialogues are described formally (using some modal logics), thus making it possible to actually prove that a certain dialogue has a specific outcome.

Application of Event B to Modelling Multiagent Interactions

Abstract: With increasingly complexity in MAS, rigorous design practices are needed in case of critical applications. Event B, which provides an accessible and rigorous formal approach to development of such complex system, is ideal for the formal modelling of reactive systems. In this paper we present a part of ongoing work in this area. A practical approach for developing flexible and reliable formal specifications of MAS using Event B is described, exemplified on contract net protocol (CNP) in the interaction of MAS, associating an intelligent shape and style design systems in automobile.