Modelling resilient collaborative multi-agent systems
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Modelling resilient collaborative multi-agent systems Inna Vistbakka1
· Elena Troubitsyna2
Received: 22 February 2020 / Accepted: 19 October 2020 © The Author(s) 2020
Abstract Multi-agent systems constitute a wide class of decentralised systems. Their functions are usually carried out by collaborative activities of agents. To ensure resilience of multi-agent systems, we should endow them with a capability to dynamically reconfigure. Usually, as a result of reconfiguration, the existing relationships between agents are changed and new collaborations are established. This is a complex and error-prone process, which can be facilitated by the use of formal reasoning and automated verification. In this paper, we propose a generic resilience-explicit formalisation of the main concepts of multi-agent systems. Based on it, we introduce corresponding specification and refinement patterns in Event-B. Our patterns facilitate modelling behaviour of resilient multi-agent systems in a rigorous systematic way and verification of their properties. We demonstrate the application of the proposed approach by a case study— a smart warehouse system. Keywords Multi-agent systems · Resilience · Formal modelling · Event-B · Refinement
1 Introduction Multi-agent systems constitute a large class of decentralised systems [9,23]. There are many examples of multi-agent systems from different domains including robotics, health care, manufacturing etc. Despite differences in the application domains and correspondingly, the nature of their agents, all multi-agent systems rely on agent collaboration to deliver their functions [15]. Moreover, the systems are expected to cope with the unforeseen changes in their operating environment as well as internal
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Inna Vistbakka [email protected] Elena Troubitsyna [email protected]
1
Åbo Akademi University, Turku, Finland
2
KTH – Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm, Sweden
123
I. Vistbakka, E. Troubitsyna
failures. Hence, an important requirement imposed on the multi-agent systems is resilience—an ability to deliver services in a dependable way despite the changes [19]. To achieve resilience, the systems should be able to recognise the changes and adapt to them. One of the main mechanisms to achieve resilience is dynamic reconfiguration [13,16]. In this paper, we propose a generic formalisation of the concept of dynamic reconfiguration of multi-agent systems and define the corresponding specification patterns for resilience-explicit modelling of multi-agent systems in Event-B. Our formalisation introduces the notion of agent capability that dynamically changes according to the internal system state and the changes in the operating environment. The functional behaviour of the system is structured using the concept of goals [18]. Based on their capabilities, the agents can establish collaborations and perform their activities in a cooperative way to achieve the required goals. We define the logical relationships between the main generic concepts and then map them into Event-B framework.
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