Conflicts in a Simple Autonomy-Based Multi-Agent System

This paper shows that, in some situations, conflict can deliberately be left in an autonomy-based multi-agent system. This study, supported by experimental results, has two major outcomes. First, it proves that conflict does not necessarily alter the global outcome of the system in a qualitative way. Second, it shows that it is possible to effect the way the global task is achieved by appropriately modifying the environment of the agents. Introduction Our work fits in the framework of Bottom-Up Artificial Intelligence (Brooks 1986), (Brooks 1991) and more particularly, in that of Autonomous Agents (Pfeifer 1995). We are concerned with collective phenomena and their issues and more precisely, the way to carry out solutions that allow an autonomy-based multi-agent system to achieve a global task by virtue of emergence and self-organization. Emergence offers indeed a bridge between the necessity of complex and adaptive behavior at a macro level (the one of the system) and situationbased ..

Autonomy-Based Multi-Agent Systems: Statistical Issues

This paper describes an autonomy-based multi-agent system and its application to simulations in the framework of collective robotics. Experimental results measured for a particular task, namely object regrouping, have two outcomes. First, they show that a form of implicit cooperation takes place in the system despite the absence of explicit cooperation protocol, but just in virtue of the design of the system. Second, they indicate that it is possible to effect the way the task is achieved by appropriately introducing obstacles that modify the environment of the agents. A preliminary partial characterization of the concept of emergence is proposed and its illustration to our experimental system is given. 1 Introduction Our work fits in the framework of Bottom-Up Artificial Intelligence [5], [6] and more particularly, in that of Autonomous Agents [22]. We are concerned with collective phenomena and their issues and more precisely, the way to carry out solutions that allow an autonomy-ba..

Autonomous Agents and Collective Robotics

this paper is twofold. First to take stock of the state of the AMoC project after three years of research (funded by the Swiss National Foundation for Researc

Autonomous Agents: from Concepts to Implementation

A model for autonomy-based multi-agent systems aimed at exhibiting emerging properties is proposed. Then, the prerequisites for a distributed implementation are discussed. A preliminary distributed implementation, illustrated by an application to a robotics simulation, is consequently sketched with a strong emphasis on STL, our coordination model, whose aim is to provide powerful coordination mechanisms that do not alter the model's conceptual prescriptions. 1 Introduction Artificial Intelligence (AI) aims at synthesizing intelligence in artefacts. However two families of approaches exist disagreeing in their notion of what intelligence actually means [ Ziemke, 1997 ] , [ Franklin, 1995 ] . On the one hand, Top-Down AI considers intelligence as the capacity to form and manipulate internal representational models of the world. On the other hand, Bottom-Up AI (or Autonomous Agents) considers intelligence as a biological feature [ Maturana and Varela, 1980 ] ; this notion is often refer..