Multi Agent SystemMulti Agent Systems ssstnkcs.inf.elte.hu/vedes/Pedone_Gianfranco_Ertekezes.pdf ·...

Multi Agent SystemMulti Agent SystemMulti Agent SystemMulti Agent Systemssss

Relating Artif icial Intelligence Concepts and Information

Technology Models in Competitive Agent-Based Applications

Ph.D. Dissertation

Gianfr anco Pe doneGianfr anco Pe doneGianfr anco Pe doneGianfr anco Pe done

Supervisor: László Zsolt Varga, Ph.D

Facu l ty o f Inf or ma ti cs (I K),

Eö tv ös Lo rán d Un ive r sity (EL TE)

Doc t or al Sch o ol of C o mpu te r Science ,

Inf or ma ti on Sys te ms Ph .D. Pr o g ram ,

Cha ir man : P ro f . Ján os De met r ovics , Mem be r of H AS

C om pu ter an d Au to m ati on Resea rch Ins t it u te ( SZT AKI),

Hun ga rian Aca de my o f S ciences (H AS, MT A)

Bu da pes t, H un gary , 2 011

To my mo t her an d my fa the r

We ha ve been pa r te d s o unex pec te dly an d pa infu l ly ,

bu t yo u g ave me al l I n eed

I w on’ t f o rg et

„T ry n ot t o bec o me a man of success b u t ra the r t o bec ome a man of va lue ”

(Alb er t E ins tein)

„I t is a m irac le t ha t c u ri osi ty s u rvives f o rma l ed uca ti on. Th e i m por tan t t hin g

is no t t o s to p q ues ti onin g. C ur ios i ty has its own reas on f or ex ist in g [ . . . ] .

Neve r l ose a h o ly cu ri osi ty ” ( Al ber t Eins tei n )

„An d I answe re d: ‘ As yet h at h my w o rd n o t rem ove d mo un ta ins , a nd w ha t I

have s poken ha th n o t reache d man. I wen t, indee d, un t o men, b ut n o t ye t

have I a t ta ined u nt o t hem ’ ” (F ri ed ric h Ni et zsche)

„The sec ret of gen iu s is t o ca r ry the s pi ri t of ch i ld ho o d in to ma t ur i ty”

(Th om as Hux ley)

Declaration

Here wi t h I c onf ir m th at al l of t he re search desc ri be d in th is

disse r ta ti on is my o wn o ri g ina l wo r k and ex pressed in my own w o r ds.

Any uses m ade w i thin i t of w o r ks o f o the r au th o rs i n any f o rm, e .g. ,

ideas , f i g ures , tex t , ta bl es , are pr o per ly in di cate d t hr o u gh the a pplica t io n o f

cita t i ons an d refe renc es .

I a ls o dec lare t ha t no pa r t o f t he d isser ta t io n has been s u bm i tte d fo r

any ot he r de gree - e i the r f ro m t he Eö tv ös Lor ánd Uni vers ity o r ano t her

inst i tu ti on.

Gianf ranc o P ed one

Bu da pes t, Ma rch 2011

Personal Thoughts

Wha t ma kes a man a man?

Is i t th e a bi l i ty he h as t o s urv ive ? I d on ’t t h ink so , as a l l l iv in g

crea tu res have i t . Is i t his a t ti tu de t o inven t and d isco ver ? Ne it he r, I

th in k, as we fee l t he n eed t o inven t bec ause we’ re n o t evo lve d en o u gh,

and t h ro u gh disc ove r ies we ac kn ow le d ge o nly ab o u t pr inci ples and

ba lances whi ch h ave been g overn in g us fr o m t ime im me m or ia l . So

then , w ha t ma kes a m an a m an? Is i t t he in te ll i gence he has ? Ma ybe,

pro vi ded we a re ab le t o univ oca l ly def ine wha t in te ll i gence is . Al l

l iv in g cre at u res , in the ir o wn way, a re capa b le of ev id enc ing

inte l l i gence . So , wha t mus t a man have in or der to be defi ned as s u ch?

I saw men c ryin g fo r the dea t h o f the ir b el oved and o th ers

rej oic in g f o r t he bi r th of t hei r s ons .

I saw men he l pin g the weak w i th fa it h and h um il i ty , and o the rs

f i gh tin g the w ic ked w i th de te r mina ti on an d os ten ta ti on.

I sa w gre at men pr o ud o f the ir ch il dh o o d s pi ri t and o t hers

des pai rin g fo r t he lo ss of i t . I sa w men s eale d w i th e m pa thy and

co ura ge perc eivi ng o t hers ’ em o ti ons and fe ars . I kno w o f men w ho

wo u ld sac rif ice t hei r l ives fo r o t hers w i t ho u t as kin g any t hin g in

exchan ge b ut l ove an d co m prehens ion .

I saw m en teac hin g the ir s ons jus ti ce and res pec t, l ove an d

kin dness , h o pin g they ’ l l rescue th is wo r ld .

This is w ha t, in the v ery end, ma kes a man a man, I g uess . In

th is sense , one day, I h o pe I ’ l l be a man, to o .

Acknowledgments

Al th o ug h t his d isser t ati on is my own wo r k, I rece ived ins pir i ng

su ppo r t a ls o f r om my co lle a gues a nd fam i ly . Wi th o ut t he m, th is m anusc ri pt

wo u ld n o t be the sa m e. I w o u ld l i ke t o ex pr ess my gra t it u de he re t o a l l t he

pe rsons wh o he l ped a nd enc o ura ge d me d u r ing my s tu dies .

Firs t of a l l , I wan t t o t han k th ose pe o ple tha t ha d a dir ect in f l uenc e on

the s ta r t o f my Ph D and o ffe red me t he o ppor t uni ty of a su i ta ble con tex t f or

my resea rch w o r k.

These inc lu de f irs t and f o re mos t ELTE Un ivers i ty ’s “ P r ofess ore ”

Ist ván Gyu rján an d m y su ppor t ive s u pe rvis o r D r. Lás zl ó Zs ol t V ar ga .

I am g ra tef ul f o r t he fa the r ly enco u ra ge men t I rece ive d f ro m

P ro fess or An d rás Ben czú r a t the ve ry be gi nning o f my P hD pr o gr am an d

exams, a t t he Inf o rma t i on Sys tem De pa r tmen t of Eö tv ös Lo ránd

Un ivers i ty ’s (EL TE) F acu lty of Inf o r ma tics ( I K).

I g rea t ly ac kn ow le d g e als o t he c on tr ib u ti on an d he l p of D r. Pé ter

Inze l t , di rec t or of C o m pu te r and Aut o ma ti on Resea rch Ins t it u te (SZT AKI),

whe re I pe rf or me d th e resea rch w o r k prese nte d in t his d isser ta t i on an d ha d

the ch ance t o c o l la bo r ate wi t h o u tst and in g peo ple .

I a m h u mb ly an d ex t r eme ly gra te fu l t o Pr o f essor Pasqu ale Mav i gl io ,

whe reve r he m i gh t be now , f or h is de te rm in ati on an d h um ani ty in dona t in g

me a ga in t he c on di ti o ns f or an “ inde pen den t ” l i fe .

Fu r the rm o re, I war m l y t han k Pa b lo D or r o nsor o M o ral es an d Ákos

Hajna l f o r t hei r f ru it f ul an d h i lar i ous disc u ssions on h u man exis tence an d

its a ppa rent a dvance m ents in tec hn ol o gi cal f ie l d.

I am very than kfu l f or the su ppor t an d enco ura ge men t o f my “ fa th er-

in- l i fe ” , Mi kl ós , an d all my fam i ly , espe cial ly my wife Esz te r , f or he r

con tin u ous an d a bi din g pa t ience and c om pre hensi on.

Last b u t no t leas t , I d o wish t o than k my th re e ange ls , S ofia , Le ona r do

and Gi u lia , wh o have appea re d in my l i fe t o l ig h ten t he da r knes s alon g my

pa th .

P h D T h e s i s o n M u l t i A g e n t S y s t e m s

G i a n f r a n c o P e d o n e , B u d a p e s t , 2 0 1 1

Abstract

In t oday ’s b usiness s c enari os inf o rm at i on b ecame t he m ost va lu a bl e

and s tr ate g ic asse t in an o r gani za ti on. Acces sing t he r i gh t inf or ma ti on in the

ri gh t m o men t can g iv e a com pany t he ma r ket- lead in g posi t i on. B ut in or de r

t o acq ui re s uc h a ca pa bi li ty , an o r gani za ti on is as ke d t o mas te r i nf or ma t ion ,

i ts m ana gemen t an d t he kn ow le d ge der ivin g fr o m i t .

The w hi r lin g ci rc ul at ion of inf or ma t ion w e are fac in g no wa day s is

bein g gene ra ted by th e expl oi ta ti on of c o m pute r sys te ms in a l l c on tex ts o f

ou r s oc iety : f ro m h o me t o m i li ta ry a pplica ti ons, t o c i te only s o me ex tre me

exam ples . Su ch a h u ge a mo un t of avai la ble inf o r ma ti on ha s cause d,

unex pec ted ly b u t i nevit ab ly , t he c ur i ous s i de-effe ct o f decis i ona l

inca pa bi li ty in dec isi o n make rs . In di rec t ly , t he possi bi l ity t o access so muc h

inf or ma ti on a t any ti m e has led in div id ua ls w it h b usiness res pons ib il ity (an d

no t excl usive ly the m ) to be in such s i t u ati ons w hic h w o ul d be ra th er

add ressa b le t o t he lac k o f in f or ma ti on, on t he c on tr ary .

Wha t dec isi on ma kers wo u ld rea l ly need is t he poss ib i l i ty to de le g ate

t o tec hn ol o gy pa rt of the decis ion ma kin g pro cess ’ lo ad. In co m pl iance wi t h

the prev i ous c onsi der ati ons , the resea rc h w or k I presen t in th is man uscr i pt

aims a t de m ons tr at in g ho w t he ad o pti on of a gen t-b ased tech no l o g y can hel p

co m pu te r science ex pe rts des i gn in te l l i ge nt sys te ms f o r t he pro visi on o f

cri tic al , l on g- ter m, know le d ge-in tens ive , dyna mica l ly ad a pt ive services .

Neve r the less , i t w il l be d em ons t ra ted h ow agen t- tech no l o gy ca n hel p an

or g aniza t i on reach , un der the pr o pe r con di ti ons, a co m pe ti tiv e adv anta ge in



i ts a pplica t ion do ma i n. My agen t-f oc use d r esearch ac t ivi ties c on t ri bu te d t o

pro vi de b o th the o re ti cal an d prac tic al resu l ts in the a pplica t ion o f the a gen t

pa ra di g m in c om plex do ma ins m ode l lin g.

In pa r tic u la r , in the f ir st t hesis I f or m ula te d (T1.1 in pa ra gra ph 1. 6 .1)

I re o r gani ze an d pres ent c once pt ua liza t i on aspec ts o f the a gent- pa ra di g m,

the o ppo r t uni ty g ive n by the la tt er to e nab le a nat ur al d esc ri pti on o f

syste m’s a ppli ca ti on kn ow le d ge, as we ll a s i ts pec u lia ri ty t o perm i t t he

emb o di men t of c o m plex kn ow le d ge repr esenta ti ons. T he sec ond t hesis

(T1.2 in pa ra g ra ph 1.6 .1) i l l us tr a tes ho w a gen t-b ased s o ft wa re can

g racef u lly ada pt t o l o ng- ter m ne g o tia t ions and c on tin u ous en vi r on ment al

chan ges , a l l cr uci al e le ments f or a pr oj ect in t he ach ieve m ent of i ts

co mm i tte d g oa ls .

In rea l de vel o pmen t c ases the a d o pti on of a n enginee rin g a ppr oac h in

the r eal iza t io n of a g ent- based in d ust ry- or iente d a ppl ica ti ons i s stric t ly

advis ab le in o rd er t o g uar ant ee ex tensi b il i ty and a da pta bi l ity to th e syste m.

Acc o rd in g to t his pre mise, my t hi r d c on tr i bu t ion (T2. 1 in para g ra ph

1.6 .2) evi dences h ow the au t o ma ti on of ag e nt- or ien ted c o de gene ra ti on can

pro vi de ag ent- base d systems ’ fas t pro t o ty pin g pr ocess b o t h wi t h a

s ign if ican t b oos t and m uch h ig he r se man t ics . My f o u rt h t hesis (T2.2 in

pa ra gr a ph 1.6 .2) , in c onc lus i on, ai ms a t pre sentin g a f un da ment al aspec t of

the a gen t tec hn o lo gy : agen t- par ad ig m can enable f o rm al ex te nsions of

act o rs ’ behav i ou ra l m ode ls , pe rm i t tin g t o r eco gni ze , man a ge and emb o dy

new e me rg in g a ppli ca t ion kn ow le dge .

Al l the princ i ples f or mu la te d in t his man us cri pt have been prac ti cal ly

applie d to , and ve ri f ie d on , a rea l mu l ti a ge nt- based pla tf o rm , de vel o ped in

co m pl iance w i th the s peci f ica t i ons o f K4 Ca re Eu r opean pr ojec t ( presen ted

in the fo l l ow in gs) , w hose o bj ect ive was t o pro vi ded al l t he par tic ipan t

co unt ries w it h an a g ent-cen tr ed pla tf o rm assu rin g lo ng- te r m ho me ca re

services .

Contents

D E C L A R A T I O N . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

P E R S O N A L T H O U G H T S . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

A C K N O W L E D G M E N T S . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

A B S T R A C T . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

C O N T E N T S . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

1 . I N T R O D U C T I O N . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

1 . 1 M O T I V A T I O N S A N D M A N U S C R I P T P R E S E N T A T I O N . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

1 . 2 C O M P U T A T I O N A L O R I E N T A T I O N S . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

1 . 2 . 1 T r a d i t i o n a l V e r s u s ( R e l a t i v e l y ) N e w . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 4

1 . 3 T H E A G E N T P A R A D I G M . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

1 . 3 . 1 W h a t a n A g e n t I s a n d W h a t I s N o t . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

1 . 3 . 2 M y V i s i o n o f A g e n t s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

1 . 4 A G E N T O R I E N T E D E N G I N E E R I N G M E T H O D O L O G I E S . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

1 . 4 . 1 A g e n t S o f t w a r e D e v e l o p m e n t O r i e n t a t i o n s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

1 . 5 R E S E A R C H C O N T E X T U N F O L D E D . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

1 . 6 T H E S E S : M A I N C O N T R I B U T I O N S . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

1 . 6 . 1 M A S C o n c e p t u a l i z a t i o n a n d M o d e l l i n g . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

1 . 6 . 2 M A S D e v e l o p m e n t a n d M a i n t e n a n c e . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 3

2 . M A S C O N C E P T U A L I Z A T I O N A N D M O D E L L I N G . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

2 . 1 F R O M D A T A T O K N O W L E D G E ( A N D B E Y O N D ) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

2 . 2 A P P L I C A T I O N K N O W L E D G E D E F I N I T I O N . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

2 . 2 . 1 M o d e l C o m p l e x i t y . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43

2 . 3 T H E C O N C E P T O F “ N A T U R A L M O D E L L I N G ” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

2 . 3 . 1 M o r e N a t u r a l T e r m i n o l o g y . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

2 . 3 . 2 A t o m i z a t i o n v s . C o m p l e x i t y . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46

2 . 3 . 3 R e a l i z a t i o n i n K 4 C a r e P r o j e c t . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48

2 . 3 . 4 C o m m u n i c a t i o n S e m a n t i c s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

2 . 4 E N V I R O N M E N T A L D Y N A M I C S T H R O U G H A G E N T S U B S T I T U T A B I L I T Y . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57

2 . 4 . 1 B e h a v i o u r a l E q u i v a l e n c e . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58

2 . 4 . 2 O n t o l o g i c a l E q u i v a l e n c e . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60

2 . 4 . 3 A g e n t R e p l a c e m e n t M e t h o d o l o g y ( A R M ) P r e l i m i n a r y G u i d e l i n e s . . . . . . . . . . . . 62

2 . 5 L O N G - T E R M I N T E R A C T I O N S A S C O M P L E X C O M P U T A T I O N A L R E S U L T . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62

Contents

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2 . 5 . 2 I n t e r v e n t i o n P l a n s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68

2 . 5 . 3 S c h e d u l e d a n d T i m e - C o n s t r a i n e d A c t i v i t i e s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71

3 . M A S D E V E L O P M E N T A N D M A I N T E N A N C E . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75

3 . 1 A G E N T S O F T W A R E F A S T P R O T O T Y P I N G . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76

3 . 1 . 1 G o v e r n i n g C o m p l e x i t y t h r o u g h M A S C y c l i c R e f i n e m e n t s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78

3 . 2 S E M A N T I C R E P R E S E N T A T I O N O F A M A S . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80

3 . 2 . 1 O n t o l o g y B a s e d A p p r o a c h . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80

3 . 3 A G E N T C O D E G E N E R A T I O N . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82

3 . 3 . 1 M A S C o d e G e n e r a t i o n i n K 4 C a r e P l a t f o r m . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83

3 . 4 B E H A V I O U R A L D Y N A M I S M . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85

3 . 4 . 1 I n t e l l i g e n t S y s t e m s C o h e r e n c e . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86

3 . 5 I N T E R A C T I O N S E V O L U T I O N I N A G E N T - B A S E D S Y S T E M S . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88

3 . 5 . 1 I n t r o d u c t i o n t o M A S B e h a v i o u r a l E x t e n s i o n s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90

3 . 5 . 2 I n t u i t i v e R e p r e s e n t a t i o n o f B e h a v i o u r a l C o r e E l e m e n t s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93

3 . 5 . 3 C o n c e p t s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94


3 . 6 M O D E L L I N G I N D I V I D U A L I N T E R V E N T I O N P L A N S . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96

3 . 6 . 1 P r e l i m i n a r y G u i d e l i n e s t o w a r d s I I P S e m i - s u p e r v i s e d D e f i n i t i o n . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97

3 . 6 . 2 M A S B e h a v i o u r a l O r c h e s t r a t i o n i n I I P M o d e l l i n g . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98

3 . 6 . 3 T o w a r d s a D e t e r m i n i s t i c E v a l u a t i o n o f I I P B r a n c h e s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102

4 . E V A L U A T I O N R E S U L T S . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106

4 . 1 G U I D E D E X E C U T I O N T E S T . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107

4 . 1 . 1 M a n a g i n g R e a l P a t i e n t s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108

4 . 2 C L O S I N G E V A L U A T I O N A N D R E S U L T S . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109

5 . C O N C L U S I O N S . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114

A P P E N D I X . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 7

A B B R E V I A T I O N S . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119

M Y R E S E A R C H R E L A T E D P U B L I C A T I O N S . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120

B I B L I O G R A P H Y . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122



Chapter 1

1. Introduction

We l ive in a t ime of con t inu o us reasse ssmen ts in In fo r ma t ion

Techn o lo gy ( IT) . Ne w tec hn o lo g ica l to o ls are a l l o win g us to d eal wi th s o

many dif fere nt as pec ts of o ur l ives , as t hey w ere bi ts of inf or ma ti o n. In many

ways , we , o u rselv es , c an be seen as “ m ode l l ed” inf or ma t ion : t he way we ac t ,

the way we t hin k, t he way we ex is t , can a l l re presen t re levan t as pects of an

IT-cen t red sys te m. The ch arac te ris t ics and ex pec ta ti ons of sof tw are-

engine ere d syste ms, o n thei r s i de, have dr a ma tica l ly chan ge d in t he pas t fe w

deca des , w it h the resu l t t ha t a r ang e o f new sof t ware en g ineer in g cha llen ges

has ar isen. Fi rst of a l l , m os t o f t he s of tw ar e syste ms are n o w su bs tan tia l ly

conc ur ren t an d dis t ri bu te d, a nd are ex pec t ed t o in te rac t wi th co m po nents

and ex pl oi t ser vices t hat are dyna mic al ly f oun d in t he ne t wo r k. In ad di t io n

t o th is , so f twa re syste ms a re bec o min g en ti ties w hic h a re “ al way s-on ” an d

tha t cann o t be s t o ppe d, res t ore d, and main t ained in a t rad i ti ona l manne r.

Last ly , s of twa re sys te ms tend t o be o pen , i n t he sense t ha t they exist

in a dyna mic o per at ing env ir on men t, w h ere new c om ponen ts join an d

exist in g c o m ponents l eave on a c on tin uo us bas is , and w her e the o per at in g

con di ti ons the mse lve s are l i kely t o ch ang e in un pre di ct ab le w ays . In this

con tex t of c ons tan t te chno l o gic al e vo l u ti on, newer deve l o pmen t para di g ms

are ex pec te d t o s u ppor t an d l i g hten the c o m plexi ty of kn ow le d ge

circ u la ti on, as we ll as i ts en g ineer in g.

I n t r o d u c t i o n



1 2

1 . 11 . 11 . 11 . 1 M o t i v a t i o n sM o t i v a t i o n sM o t i v a t i o n sM o t i v a t i o n s a n d M a n u s c r i p t P r e s e n t a t i o na n d M a n u s c r i p t P r e s e n t a t i o na n d M a n u s c r i p t P r e s e n t a t i o na n d M a n u s c r i p t P r e s e n t a t i o n

The ma in reas on enc o ura g in g my resea rch wo r k on a gen t techn o l ogy

was th e c onvic t i on th at tec hn ol o gy can rea l ly ena b le a c onst ant proc ess of

kn ow le d ge acqu isi ti o n, or ien ted t o t he sa ti s fact i on o f h uman ne eds: t his is

wha t in su bs tance d if fe ren tia tes me re m achine sys te ms f r om man kin d

socie t ies .

Agen t pa rad i gm emb o dies c ha rac ter ist ics of u nd is pu ted

po ten tia li t ies , l i ke be havi o ura l an d ada pta t ion s ki l ls , w hic h, i f expl oi ted in

the c or rec t manne r, can man ifes t “in te l l igence ”, an ele men t pro pe r o f

hu mans, we c o u ld ar g ue. Any way, a pu re ph il os o ph ica l a ppro ach i s ra rely a

suff icien t s o l ut i on in a b usiness co ntex t , w hen we l l- define d s t ra t egies and

po licies ru le t he pa r tic ipat i on of ac t ors to th e ma r ke t.

Th ro u gh my resea rc h w or k I inten de d t o invest i ga te the so f tw are

engine er ing pr ocess b ased on t he a gen t- pa r adi g m, in o rde r t o, o n the one

hand , h i gh li g h t an d s t ress the pecu l iar as pec ts of t his techn o l ogy a nd, on t he

o the r, de rive s ome pr eli min ary g ui de lines t o be ta ken in t o a cco unt w hen

appr oach in g th e dev el o pmen t of a gent- ba sed syste ms. In the speci f ic , I

or ien ted my inves ti ga ti ons to wa rd the appl ica ti on of a ge nts in t he

ind us tr ial iza t io n o f cri tica l , kn o wle d ge -intens ive , l on g-te r m ada ptive

services (suc h as me d ical t rea t men ts in h o me ca re) , as w il l be r epor te d in

det ai ls in th e f o l l ow in gs .

The presen t manusc ri pt has been st ruc tu re d acc or din g to the

fo l l ow ing or ien ta ti ons . T he f i rst ch a pte r co v ers an ex plana t ory in t ro d uc ti on

on t he a gen t pa ra di g m, as we l l as my pe rson al vis i on an d the o re tica l

con tr i bu ti on t o the me ta ph o r. T he c on tr i bu t ions I presen t in c ha pte r t wo

re gar d t he conce pt u ali za ti on and mo de l l ing of M ul t i Agen t Syste ms.

Cha pte r th ree c ove rs tw o prac ti cal phases of agen t s o ft wa re e nginee ri ng

proc ess: t he deve l opmen t and pos t- de pl o ymen t re la ted m ain te nance and

evo lu t ion of a gen t-b ased inf ras tr uc tu res . C ha pter f o ur su m mar ises t he




1 3

resu l ts of my resea rch w or k o b taine d in a r eal s im u la ted a ppl ica t ion in the

bus iness con tex t of inte res t ( in tr o duc ed in secti on 1.5) . C onc lus i ons,

no ta ti ons, a ppen dix a nd b ib l io g ra phy sect i ons c om ple te the pres enta ti on of

th is man uscr i pt.

1 . 21 . 21 . 21 . 2 C o m p u t a t i o n a l O r i e n t a t i o n sC o m p u t a t i o n a l O r i e n t a t i o n sC o m p u t a t i o n a l O r i e n t a t i o n sC o m p u t a t i o n a l O r i e n t a t i o n s

C om pu ter pa rad i gms have l on g l i fe cyc les , due to the rel uc tance of

pe o ple t o lea rn new o nes and to e xis tin g s o ft wa re t ha t h as been i n use f or

many years . An exa m ple is t he never- dyin g lang ua ge F ORTR AN 1 whi ch has

been in use in sc ien ce f or de cades n ow . Ho weve r, FOR TR AN is on ly a

sub o pti ma l s o lu t i on, s pea king in e vo l u ti ona ry ter ms, and c om pu t er scien ce

has deve l o pe d ma ny m ore pa ra di g ms s inc e then , w it hin wh ich we co u ld

al ways is o la te s ome h ow t he c once pt o f “ m od u le” . M od u les h a ve chan ge d

fr om s ub r ou t ines , t o o bjec ts , t o c om ponen ts and n ow f in al ly t o “ ag ents ” .

As we w il l see in the fo l l ow ing s ect i ons, va ri ous de fini t ions o f a gen t

have be en use d ov er the pas t yea rs . In gene ra l , a so f twa re a gen t is a

co m ponen t tha t can e xhi bi t b o t h pr oac tive and reac t ive be hav io u rs . I t w o r ks

in an au t on om o us m o de and possi b ly has a capa b il i ty t o learn an d im pr ove

its per fo r mance. In t he pas t ye ars sever al ag ent- base d sys te ms have be en

bu i lt ; seve ral me t h o do l o gies and t o o ls h ave been con ceive d t o ai d th e

deve lo pmen t of suc h systems ; severa l c o nferences rel at in g t o sof tw are

engine er ing o f age nt- base d syste ms h ave b een hel d. Des pi te al l , sof tw are

engine er ing as pects se em t o have ta ken a re st , a l th o u gh s o me rec ent ef fo r ts

have t rie d t o ad dress t his issue .

Genera l ly s pea kin g, i t is my pe rson al c onv i cti on th at , in de pende nt ly

of the c hosen deve l o pin g pa ra di g m, t her e exist seve ra l c onsi der ati ons tha t

sho u ld be a lways ta ken in t o acc o unt w hen deve l o pin g an i nfo r ma ti on

syste m. T he f i rs t , f un dam ent al , is the se pa r ati on of kn o wle d ge d escri pti on

fr om s of twa re im ple m enta ti on: t his can gr a nt a hi g h leve l of int er o per ab i li ty 1 h t t p : / / e n . w i k i p e d i a . o r g / w i k i / F o r t r a n




1 4

and in de pendence a m ong th e co m ponen t s of a syste m. An o th er re levan t

aspec t is tha t dif feren t com pu ta ti ona l par ad i g ms can st i l l c oexis t t o ge the r in

the rea l iza ti on of t he same sys te m, even t ho u gh s o me of t he m are m ore

sui ta b le t han o the rs w hen c om pa re d to t he pro jec t’s g oa ls , t he re qui reme nts

elic i ta ti on o r, f ina l ly , t he na t ure of t he a ppli c ati on d o main .

1 .2 .1 Tra di ti on al Vers us (R ela tive ly) New

In rece nt his t o ry of m ode rn c o mpu te r sci ence has s ho wn us h ow

co m pu ta ti ons may be cate g or ize d acc o rd in g t o the a ppr oac h f o l l o wed in the

expl oi ta ti on of “ pr ocess ors ” ( here by i nten ded gene ra l ly as syste m

co m ponen ts ca pa b le o f receiv in g in pu ts and t rans fo r min g t hem in t o

ou t pu ts) .

In a f i rst per i od, co m pu ta t ion al pr o ble ms wer e s olv ed usin g s i ng le

and is ola te d pr oces sors . In a sec ond one, so l u ti on pr oce sses we re

dis tr i bu te d t o a nu m b er o f previ o us ly in ter r ela ted pr ocesses , exec ute d by a

g rea ter n um be r of proc esso rs w i th o ut any dea dl oc ks . In b o th cases ,

tr ad it i ona l co m put in g systems were b ui l t fr o m co m ponen ts def in ed t hr o u gh

the ir f unc ti ona l ( in put /o u t pu t) s pec if ica ti ons wi th res pe ct to t he over al l

func ti ona l s pec if ica ti ons of t he d esi red sy ste m. T he m od u lar i ty resu l tin g

fr om s uch an a ppr oac h l ies in the c ore of t he syste ms t rad i ti ona l funct i ona l

m od u lar i ty . Acc o rd in g t o t his t ra di ti ona l unde rs tan din g on c o m pu ta t ion

and c om pu ters , we c an rec o gnize any c o m pu t ing dev ice as an exte rna lly

pass ive ent i ty , w hose inte rna l ac tiv ity is ba sed on th ose ones pr ovi de d by

so me f in i te nu m ber of ex te rna l ly passive co m ponen ts , w it h prede fine d

messa ge pass in g pos sib il i t ies . T han ks t o the in te rna l ac ti vi tie s o f these

co m ponen ts and t hei r a dd resse d c om m un icat i on possi bi l i t ies t he w h ole

syste m t rans fo r ms s o me in pu ts ( pr ov ide d by the env i ron men t) int o s o me

requ ire d o u t pu ts . I f so me we ll-s pec if ied r equi rem ents a re sat is f ied , such

tr ansf or ma t ion is a c o mpu ta ti on in the tra di ti ona l sense deve l o pe d du rin g

the m o dern his t o ry o f co m put in g, wh ich s ta rte d in the 30 t ies o f t he pas t




1 5

cent ury w it h the de fi nit i on an d f irs t s t ud ie s of (a bst rac t dev ices equiva len t

t o) t he Tu rin g Mac hi ne [16]. As i l l us t ra ted in [17], the i m por tan t as pect in

the tra di t ion al po in t of vie w is tha t, c onsi d erin g a T u rin g Mac hi ne w or kin g

in an envir on men t, i t ge ts i ts in pu t in a dvan ce at a be ginn in g o f i t s wo r k and

pro vi des the env ir on men t wi th the ou t puts at the en d of i ts act iv ity . D u rin g

the c o m pu ta ti on , t he envir on men t is – f r o m t he pe rs pec ti ve o f the Tu rin g

Mach ine – co m ple tel y pass ive . C om pu ta ti o ns are unde rs t oo d, ac co rd ing t o

th is tr ad it i ona l pa rad ig ma tic vie w, as s pec if ic pr ocesses c o rres pond in g t o

ma the ma tic al ly de fine d f unc ti ons.

Where as func t io ns de cla re a spec if ic re la ti on be t ween va ria b les and

val ues in a se t t he or etic sense ( by de fini t ion , a func t ion c o inc ides w i th

defin in g a sui ta b le su bse t o f t he Ca r tesian pro d uc t be twe en i ts do ma in o f

vari ab les an d co- d om a in of i ts v al ues) , the t r adi ti ona l v iew of a c o m pu ta t ion

(inten de d as a func t io n) is pr oce du ra l one: a co m pu ta t i on de fine a func t ion

by means of s pec ify i ng a s te p-by-s te p pr o cess of e lemen t ary c o mpu ta b le

tr ansf or ma t ion s te ps , whic h t ransf o r m t he g iven in pu t va ri ab le t o a

co rres pon din g o u t pu t val ue ( of the c or res po ndin g fun ct i on).

The cent ra l pr o ble ms in (the ore t ica l) co m pute r science or ig ina ted

fr om t he tra di t io nal para di g m o f c om pu tin g I jus t desc ri bed a nd a re re la te d

wi th the feas i bi l i ty , d escri pti on, exec u ti on and effec t iveness o f a l go ri t h mic

tr ansf or ma t ion of in put da ta in t o desi re d ou t pu ts . On t he b asi s of t hese

prem ises , t he c o m pu ta bi li ty is eq ua te d t o t he c o m pu tin g po wer o f t he

Tu rin g Mac hine ( the co re i dea of t he Ch u rc h-T ur ing c onjec t ure) .

An o the r possi bi l i ty of view ing s yste ms as c o m pu t ing dev ices c onsi sts

in cons ide ri ng t hem a s an exte rna l ly ac tive enti ty , c a pa ble o f per ceivin g i ts

ou te r env ir on men t, an d ac tin g in it . T his is t he c ore i dea of t he th i rd pe ri o d

in t he his t ory o f m ode rn c o m pu tin g , when t he mo re o r less f ree ly

co o per at in g an d c o mm uni ca tin g pr oces sors ’ be havi o urs re sul t in a

“su pe ri o r ” beha vi ou r, i n t e r p r e t a b l ei n t e r p r e t a b l ei n t e r p r e t a b l ei n t e r p r e t a b l e as a s ol ut i on t o a given pr o b l em.




1 6

The ac tiv ity of the a b ove men t ione d ty pe o f system s is base d on the

co upl in g of sense d da ta wi th a ppr o pria te a cts perf o r me d in t he

envir on men t, or on t he ac tiv it ies of ind ivi dua l ly a u to no m ous c o mponen ts

fo rm in g t hese sys tem s. C om ponen ts o f t hi s ty pe are us ua l ly ca ll ed age nts ,

and t he st r uc tu res f or med by t hese a gen ts are ca lle d M u l ti Agen t Sys te ms

(M ASs) - c f . e .g . [13 ]. The beha vi ou r eme r g ing f r om m assive in te rac ti on o f

indi vi dua l ly a u t ono m ous a gen ts f o rm in g a Mu l ti Age nt Sys te m mi g ht be

inte r prete d as a c o m p u t a t i o nc o m p u t a t i o nc o m p u t a t i o nc o m p u t a t i o n . Acc o rd in g t o [14], an e mer gen t c o m pu ta t ion

is su ppose d t o c ons is t of:

1) A c o lle ct i on of a ge nts , each f o ll o win g ex plic it ins t ruc t i ons;

2) In ter ac ti ons a m on g age nts (w it h ou t any, or acc o rd ing to the g i ven

inst r uct i ons), w hic h f or m im plic i t gl o ba l ( emer gen t) beh avi o ura l

pa t terns a t t he mac r os co pic leve l i .e . e pi phe no mena;

3) A na t ura l in te r pre t ati on of t he e pi phen o mena as c o m pu ta ti on .

In w or k presen te d in [15 ] an accepta bl e explana t io n of the

emer gence ’s meanin g has been pr ovi de d. A phe no men on is ca l le d emer gen t

i f i t is “ . . . a pro d uct o f co u ple d, con tex t- de penden t in te rac ti ons. T echnica l ly

these inte rac t ions , an d t he res ul t in g syste m, are n on- linea r. T h e behav i ou r

of the o vera l l syste m canno t be ob ta ined b y sum min g t he be havi ou rs o f i ts

cons ti t uen t par ts . H o wever , we c an re d uce t he be hav io u r of the w ho le t o the

la wf ul behav i ou r o f i ts pa r ts , i f we ta ke non- l inear in te ra cti ons in t o

acco un t” , as em phasi z ed in [15 ], indee d.

Fr o m a co m pu te r pr o g ram me r‘s posi t ion , ins tea d o f a t rad i ti ona l vi ew

of c o m pu ta t ion (as a r esul t of a presc ri be d sequence of e le ment ar y acti ons) ,

we have a ne w a ppr oa ch: a c om pu ta ti on se ems t o be t he res ul t of m o re o r

less c o or din at ed in ter acti ons o f a ( la r ge) n u mbe r o f in div id ua l an d ( mo re o r

less) au t on om o us ag ents . In te rac ti ons o f an agen t wi t h o the r agen ts and

wi th i ts (dyna mi cal ly chan gin g) ex te rna l en vir on men t are a rea l pro m ise on




1 7

ho w co m pu ta ti ona l powe r of a gen ts and M ASs can be inc rease d, com pa re d

t o the one of the T ur i ng Mac hine - cf . e . g . [ 18].

In gene ra l , t he i nte rac ti ons w it hin a M AS in vo lve t he ex te rna l w o rl d

and t he ac tiv it ies o f ind ivi du al a gen ts ’ behav i ou r (in ter pr ete d as a

co m pu ta ti on): in th is manne r, d ur in g a co m put at i on (ra the r than bef o re and

afte r i t as i t occ u rs in the case of t ra di ti on a l al g o ri th ms), the wh o le syste m

may le ad t o suc h co m pu ta t ions wh ich ca nno t be ca r rie d o u t by a T ur ing

Mach ine, as sta te d in [19 ]. In t his l i g ht , age nts and M ASs can be consi de red

as very powe rf u l c o m pu ta t ion al de vices and may c ont ri b u te wi th m any

innov at ive c once pts t o o u r t rad i ti ona l pic t ure of the the o re tica l com pu ter

science an d en g inee ri ng.

We can ima g ine a gent s as enti ties wh ich exi st in the f o rm of a la r ge

varie ty of di f fe rent ty pes of s of t ware pr od u cts – as int ende d in a wi de ran ge

of a ppli ca ti on a reas; cf . [20 ]: no t on ly an inn ova tive pr od u ct of th e

deve lo pmen t of c o m pute r pro g ra mm in g te chniq ues b u t a ls o a pro d uc t o f

deve lo pmen t of e lec tr o- , mechan ica l- , an d c o mpu te r-en ginee rin g, as e lec tr o-

mecha nica l dev ices f o r au t om at i on of dif fer ent physic al processe s . This is an

im por ta nt di f fe rence be tween rea l c om pute rs an d the a bs tr a ct T ur in g

Mach ine. In [2 1] and [22 ] i t is b een s ta te d h o w c om pu ters , as bu i lt and

used , ar e the res ul t of a con ver gence be t we en t he de vel o pmen t o f mac hine-

and e lec tr o-en gi neer i ng an d the pr o gress i n unde rs tan din g c o m put at i ons as

the pr ocess o f pe rf o r min g ac ti ons on sym b ols , as Tu rin g Mach ine d oes .

These t w o di mensi on s o f a gen ts ( in ter act i on wi t h dyna mica l ly chan gin g

envir on men t an d em b od i ment) c onve r ge in t o a ne w c once pti on o f mac hines

as em bo die d, a u t on o m ous ly sensin g, act in g an d de li be ra tin g a g ents , i n t he

fo rm of r o b ots .

The a b ove men ti one d d if fe rence, t o ge the r w it h the pr o per t ie s of

au ton o my and con t inui ty in s o ft wa re beha vi ou r, t he re le vance of

emb o di men t, the im por tan ce o f co m mu nica ti on be t ween in div id ua l ly




1 8

inde pen den t, au t on o m ous c om pu ta ti ona l units ( in ten t ion al ly or as an

emer gen t e ffec t of t he ir c o-ex iste nce in a sh ared envi r onme nt) , an d s o f o rt h,

are t o be c onsi dere d a s cr ucia l f or d is tr ib u te d sys te ms, l i ke M ASs i ndeed .

Inste ad o f hav ing speci f ic pr o g ra ms t rans la tin g ma t hema t ical

func ti ons in t o s ome m ore pr oced u ra l lan g ua ges , we sh ou l d t hin k i n ter ms of

a u t o n o m y a n d c o n t i n u i t y o f a u t o n o m y a n d c o n t i n u i t y o f a u t o n o m y a n d c o n t i n u i t y o f a u t o n o m y a n d c o n t i n u i t y o f s e r v i c es e r v i c es e r v i c es e r v i c e f o r th ose syste ms w hic h have the

abi l i ty t o sense the en vir on men t an d ac t in i t . Whe reas t he pr inci pal s u bjec t

in t he s tu dy of co m put at i ons, f r o m t he poin t of vie w of the t rad i ti ona l

pa ra di g m, is t o c onsi der the m as de fine d i n the f o rm of f ini te s equence o f

basic tr ansf or ma ti ons execu te d (seq uen ti a l ly or in pa ra lle l t ha t be) on

appr opr ia te da ta s tr u ct ures , t he ag ent pa r adi g m can be c ha rac ter ize d by

view in g a co mpu ta ti on as “ the c o mm uni cati on resu l t o f co l l ecti ons of

indi vi dua l ly au t on om ous a gen ts ” , and vice v ersa , “v ie win g co m mu nica ti on of

co lle ct i ons of in div id u al ly a u t ono m o us a gen ts as a co m pu ta ti on ” .

1 . 31 . 31 . 31 . 3 T h e A g e n t PT h e A g e n t PT h e A g e n t PT h e A g e n t P a r a d i g ma r a d i g ma r a d i g ma r a d i g m

Su bs tan tia l ly , t he age nt pa ra di g m a dvances the m o de ll in g of so f t ware

syste ms by e m bo dy in g a s tr on ge r n ot i on of a u t ono my an d c o ntr o l tha n

o bjec ts , in cl u din g the no ti on of reac tive , pr o acti ve and s oc ia l be ha vio u rs , as

wel l as ass u min g in he ren t m ul t i- t h reade d c on tr o l . T his a l l ows ha ndl in g t he

co m plex i ty by po wer f ul a bs trac t i ons in en gi neerin g so f twa re sys te ms.

1 .3 .1 Wha t an Agen t Is an d Wha t Is N o t

Despi te deve l o pe rs ’ g enera l perce pti on of d ealin g wi t h an inn ova t ive

and we l l-pr o misin g techn o l o gica l par ad i g m, t here a re st i l l com m on

mis unde rs tan din gs in the c once ptu al iza t io n of an a gen t, in t he ro le wh ich

th is t echn o l ogy plays (or s h ou l d play) an d ab o u t t he s ui ta bl e con di ti ons

unde r wh ich i t m ay be ut i l ize d. Agen t- bas ed s ol u ti ons have a l r eady been

deve lo pe d f o r many dif feren t a pplic at i on do ma ins , an d f ie l d-te sted a gen t

syste ms are s tea di ly in creasin g in nu m ber . In add i ti on, a ran ge of t heo re tic al




1 9

and ex pe ri men tal res u l ts a ttes t t o the fac t t hat t he scien t if ic f oun da ti ons of

agen t- base d sys tems a re bec om in g i ncreas in g ly wel l un ders t o o d. B ut des pi te

these s i gni f ican t a dva nces in the sc ience o f a gent syste ms, co m pa ra tive ly

l i t t le eff o r t has been d evo ted t o unde rs tand i ng h o w t o f u l ly eng ine er t he m. I

am c onvince d tha t a prel im ina ry c lar i f i ca ti on on so me key c onc epts a b ou t

agen t techn o l o gy w o u ld be s ure ly f r ui tf u l t o the rea der, in or de r t o be t te r

co m pre hend the u pc o min g un ders tan di ngs of t his manusc ri pt.

I h ave been se vera l t i mes as ke d a b o ut “w ha t int el l i gen t a gen ts a r e o r

are ex pec te d t o be ” . I n o rde r t o ans we r th i s ques ti on, I w ou l d f i rst try t o

demys t ify so me o f t he m ost reso un din g mis unde rs tan din gs su rr o und in g

agen t- or ien ted deve l o pmen ts . T his c o ul d h el p the reade r f ind t h e answer ,

au ton o m ous ly . In gen era l te rms, a gen ts s h o ul d n o t be in ten ded as :

∴ A re li g io us o r d o g ma ti c acceptance . S o me de signe rs ten d t o u t i l ize

agen ts i rra t ion al ly and im pu lsive ly . T here ar e plen ty of

applic at i ons f or wh ich mo re “c onven ti ona l ” sof t ware deve l o pme nt

pa ra di g ms (suc h as pure o bjec t- o rien ted pr o gr am min g) w ou l d be

m ore a ppro pri ate an d easy-t o-a pply . T he re is a ten dency t o

be lieve tha t a gents a r e the ri g h t so lu t ion t o every pr o b lem . As a

conseq uence, a gen t so lu ti ons c ou l d be deve lo pe d f or q ui te

ina ppr o pria te pr o b le ms. T he ot he r f or m of do g ma ass oc ia ted wi t h

agen ts re la tes t o th ei r defin i ti on. M os t a gen t deve l o pers ha ve the ir

own o pin ion on ex ac t ly wha t c onst i tu tes an a gen t an d no tw o

deve lo pe rs a ppear t o ag ree on exac t ly the s ame o pini on (see [2 3 ]

fo r a c o llec t ion of a ge nt def ini ti ons).

∴ A pr o duc t t o be o vers tresse d. Pr o b lem s tha t have tr o u ble d

sof t ware en ginee rs f or decade s are st i l l dif f icu l t wi t h agen t

syste ms, t o o. Th ere is some ti mes an evid en t pe rce pti on t ha t any

syste m deve l o ped us i ng a gen t tec hno l o gy co ul d have been b ui l t

jus t as e asi ly usi ng n on-a gen t tec h niques . Agents m a y




2 0

und o ub te d ly ma ke i t easier t o so lve ce r tai n classes of pr o b lems

bu t t hey d o n o t ma ke the i m possi b le possi b l e . T he reas on fo r t his

is tha t the a to m ic pro bl em s olv in g c o m pone nts wi t hin a gen t-bas ed

syste ms s ti l l ha ve to be a b le t o pe rf or m the necessa ry d o mai n

tas ks , an d the i r im pleme nt at i on can o nly use t he l im i ted

techn iq ues th a t are cu rren t ly avai la b le . Na tu ra lly , fu r the r leve ra ge

can be o b taine d by a pplyin g an d i m plem e ntin g m ul t i ple pr ob le m

so lvin g me t ho ds an d by ca ref u l ly mana gin g t he in tera ct i on s

be tween the co m pone nts .

∴ A tren dy mana ge me nt s ol u ti on . Mana ge rs gene ra l ly tend t o

ove res ti ma te f orec ast s abo u t any new pr o misin g (in te rms o f

reven ue) tec hn o lo gy . This is the case o f a g ents , as we ll . In many

cases , man ag ers th at pro pose an agen t- bas ed pr ojec t c o ul d n o t

act ua lly have a c l ear i dea ab o u t w ha t “h avin g a gen ts” wi l l mean t o

the m. In o th er w o r ds, they have n o clea r vis i on o f h ow a gen ts can

be used t o en hance t h eir ex is tin g pr od uc ts , or h o w they c an ena bl e

the m t o gener at e new pr od uc t l ines . As a consequen ce, ag ent -

base d pr ojec ts a re o f ten in it ia ted wi t h no clear g oa ls in min d

(o the r t han t o “h ave ” ag ents) . W it h n o go als , t he re a re a ls o no

cri te ria f o r assessin g t he success and n o way of te l l in g w he the r t he

pro jec t is g oin g we l l o r n o t.

∴ A c onven t ion al b uz zw or d . One of t he reas ons why agen t

techn o l o gy has bec om e recen t ly s o po pu la r i s t ha t the “ ide a” o f an

agen t is qu it e in t ui tive . I f on t he one han d th is is a g o od t hin g ( t he

conce pt o f an age nt is w ide ly a ppl ie d in many d if feren t

disci pl ines) , on t he o t her, i t a ls o en co u ra ges deve l o pers to be l ieve

tha t t hey can easi ly u nders tan d c once pts w hich , in fac t , t hey d o

no t. A cle ar exa mple of th is iss ue is the be lief- desi rein ten t ion

(BDI) m ode l of a genc y, the res ul t of Ge o r ge ff and c o l lea gues w or k




2 1

[24 ]. The BDI m ode l i s real ly in teres t in g fr o m t he poin t of vie w of

the a gen t deve l o pe r b ecause i t is sus taine d by a res pec ta ble the o r y

of h u man a gency, i t has an ele gan t lo g ica l seman t ics [25 ], an d

pe rha ps mos t i m po r tan t ly , i t has been pro ved in ex t reme ly

dem and ing a ppli ca ti ons. Unf o r tuna te ly , the “ bran d ” BD I ha s

now adays been a ppl ie d to so many d if fe ren t ty pes of a gent (man y

of wh ich a re n o t B DI syste ms), tha t the e xpressi on h as l os t muc h

of i ts o ri gi nal meanin g .

∴ A gene ric so l u ti on . Nu me r ous a gent- bas ed a rch ite ct u res h av e

been dev el o pe d t o da t e , wh ich dea l b o th wi t h t he m icr o an d mac r o

leve ls o f a gent sys t ems. In gene ra l , t h ese arch ite ct u res ar e

deve lo pe d by b ui l din g a s ol u ti on f or a “ pa rt ic ula r ” pr ob le m, an d

then “ gene ra lis in g ” . I ndeed , t here is a tem pta ti on t o i ma gine th at

the a rch i tec tu re an d techn iques deve l o ped f or one pr o b lem

do ma in can be d irec t l y appl ied t o a no t her , due t o t he s uccessf u l

agen t s o lu ti on deve l o pe d. T his can re prese nt a se ri ous fa l l acy as i t

inevi ta b ly lea ds desi g ners t o t ry t o a pply the a rc hi tec tu re t o a

pro b le m f o r w hic h i t is pa ten tly ina ppr o pr ia te . I t w o u ld be

cer tain ly a dvis ab le t o at te m pt t o a pply t he s ame a rch i tec tu re on ly

t o pro b le ms wi th q ui t e s i mi la r c har acte r ist i cs .

∴ A synon ym of Ar t i f ic ia l In tel l ige nce . An o the r reas on of

mis unde rs tan din g is t o eq ua te a gen ts wi t h in te l l i gen t pro b le m

so lvin g. T h ose unf am il iar wi th the ac hieve men ts and fa i l u res o f

Art i f ic ia l Inte l l i gence (AI) o ft en be l ieve tha t a gen ts a re ca pa ble o f

hu man- li ke reas on in g and ac tin g. O bvi o usl y , t his is n o t t he case :

such a leve l o f co m pe t ence is we ll bey ond th e sta te o f t he ar t in AI.

Agen ts may s ome t ime s exhib i t sma rt pro b l em so lvin g behav i ou r,

bu t i t is s ti l l ve ry m u ch l im i ted by t he cu r r ent s ta te of th e ar t in

mach ine inte l l i genc e. When one b ui lds an a gen t- base d




2 2

applic at i on, t he re is an unde rs tand ab le tem pta t ion t o f ocu s

excl usive ly on the a g ent-s peci f ic as pec ts o f t he a ppl ica ti on. Th e

resu l t is of ten an age nt f ra mew o r k t ha t is t o o o ver b ur dene d wi t h

expe ri men ta l AI tech niques t o be ac tu al ly usa b le . In gene ra l , a

m ore s uccess fu l s t ra te gy wo u ld be t o bu i ld a gents w i th a

“m ini m um ” of AI tec hniq ues: on ce t ha t su ccess is o b taine d w i t h

such sys te ms, th ey can be pr og ress ive ly evo lve d in t o rich er

syste ms. Th is is esse ntia l ly wh at E tz ion i c al led the “ usef u l f i rst ”

str ate gy [2 6] .

∴ An ana rc hic techn o l o gy . An o the r c om m on misc once pti on is t ha t

agen t- base d syste ms c an be deve l oped s im ply by pu t tin g t o ge the r

a nu m ber o f a gen ts i n a s or t of a rena; t ha t the sys tem d oes n o t

requ ire rea l s t ruc t u rin g an d tha t al l a gen ts are pee rs . Many a gen t

syste ms req ui re c ons i dera b ly m ore en g inee rin g e f f or ts t han th is .

Fo r lar ge-sca le sys te ms, or f o r sys tems i n whic h the s ocie ty is

su ppose d t o act f o r a c om m on pu rpose , t his is par tic u la rly

eviden t. In s uch case s , by s t ruc t u rin g the socie ty we wi l l re d uc e

the sys te m ’s co m ple xity , inc rease the sy ste m’s e ff ic iency, an d

m ode l t he pr ob le m be ing a dd resse d m ore ac cura te ly . T he de ta i le d

nat ure o f th is s tr uc t ur in g is c lea r ly de pe nden t on the s pec if i c

pro b le m.

Havin g ac kn o w led ge d t ha t the re a re s t i l l main misc once pt i ons

ar oun d a gent techn o l o gy, le t us try t o foc us on w ha t i t re prese nts , o n the

con tr ary .

P ri mar i ly , an a gen t ( o r an a gency o f a gen ts) sho u ld b e in ten de d as :

A we l l conce pt ua lize d appr oach to do ma in m ode l lin g . Agen ts are f irs t

of a l l an a bst rac ti on t o ol and in t his l i g ht t hey a ppea r to pr ov ide a po we rf ul

way of c once ptua l is in g, desi gnin g , and im plem ent in g par t icu la r ly com plex

classes o f so ft wa re syste ms. Agen t- base d sol u ti ons req ui re a dif fe ren t




2 3

deve lo pmen t a ppr oa c h fr o m so ft wa re des i g ners , w h o are as ke d an add it i ona l

eff or t in c om ple te ly unde rs tan din g dif fer e nces wh ich t he a gen t pa ra di g m

invo lves . O pt ing f o r an a gen t- based sys t em wi l l und o ub te d ly affec t a l l

ph ases in s of t ware ’s r eali za ti on: f ro m t he pro jec t’s go als d efin i ti on t o t he

Mu l ti Agen t Syste m ’ s main tenanc e and e nhance ment . Desi gne rs w il l be

aske d t o th in k in ter ms of “ l iv in g ” en ti ties (act o rs wi th r o les) r ath er t han

“ passive ” c om ponen ts of t he sys te m ( o bjec ts and h iera rc hy).

� So f twa re d evel o pmen t . Deal in g wi t h a gen t t echno l o gy req u ires an

engine er ing a ppr oac h and a de vel o pmen t me th od o l o gy as i t do es

wi th o t her co nven ti on al s of t wa re, as we l l . F or ins tance , we sh o ul d

ded ica te par ti cu la r at t enti on t o t he def ini ti o n and fo r ma li za ti on o f

pro jec t g oa ls . On the one han d, i t he l ps u s have an assessmen t

refe rence a t the end of t he pr oj ect rea l iza t ion and, on t he o the r ,

no t t o l ose the r ig ht o ri ent at i on du rin g t he en ti re s of t wa r e

engine er ing pr ocess : fr o m sys te m ana ly sis t o desi gn, f ro m

deve lo pmen t and tes tin g to de pl oy men t a nd ma inte nance. T he

resu l t of th is possi b le neg lec t is t he pr ojec t b l oc k, n o t bec ause o f

agen t-s peci f ic pro b le ms, b u t bec ause of t he o miss ion of basi c

sof t ware en ginee rin g prac tices . T he a ban d o nmen t of t he s o ft wa re

proc ess is of ten jus t i f ied wi t h the fac t tha t sof t wa re en ginee rin g

fo r a gent sys te ms is sti l l a researc h are a. Neve r the less , any

princi ple d so f twa re d evel o pm ent tec hniq u e is be tte r than n one .

Th us, in a bsence o f a g reemen t on w ide ly a ccepte d a gen t- or ien te d

deve lo pmen t techn iq ues , ot he r incis ive , seman tica l ly ef fec tive

techn iq ues m ay b e u sed (as I presen t in the f ol l o win g of t his

man uscr i pt , in Sec ti o n 2.1) to s u ppo r t a ge nt syste ms des i gn an d

deve lo pmen t.

� A d ist ri b u ted sys tem . Mul t i Agen t Sys te m s tend, by the i r very

nat ure , t o be dis t ri bu t ed an d t he i dea of ce ntr al ised M AS is i tse l f




2 4

an oxy mo r on. In bu i ld ing M ASs i t is v it al n o t t o i gn o re t he less ons

lea rned f r om the dis t r ib u ted sys te ms co mm uni ty , as , f o r ins tance,

pro b le ms suc h as d is tr i bu ti on d o no t g o away, j us t becaus e a

syste m is agen t- bas ed. Dis t ri bu te d syst ems have lon g bee n

rec ogn ise d as one o f the m os t co m plex cl asses of c om pu te r

syste ms t o d esi gn and im plemen t . A g rea t d eal of res earc h eff o r t

has been dev ot ed t o un de rst and ing t hi s com plex ity , and t o

deve lo pin g f o r ma lis ms an d t o ol s tha t enab le a de vel o pe r t o

mana ge it [27 ] . Des pi t e t his resea rch eff o r t , pro b le ms in her ent t he

deve lo pmen t o f dis t ri bu te d syste ms can no t be cons id ere d as

so lved , yet . Mu l ti Agen t Sys te ms wi l l , i f anyt hin g, be m ore

co m plex t han a ty pic al dis tr i bu te d syst em. The M AS deve l o per,

the ref o re, s ti l l h as t o rec og nize and plan fo r pr o b lems s uc h as

synchr on iza ti on, mu t ua l excl usi on f o r sha r ed res ou rces , dea dl oc k,

and l i vel oc k.

� St anda r d-req ui rin g te chno l o gy . S ta nda r ds enab le in ter o pe ra bi li ty

and co m m unica ti on i n dis tr ib u te d syste ms . Beca use ag ent- base d

syste ms are d ist ri b u ted , indee d, they n eed stan da rd t o fac e

co m plex i ty and g r anu lar i ty issues . D espi te the lac k o f

inte rna ti ona l ly a cce pt ed s tan dar ds, t he re a r e a nu m be r of de-f act o

s tan dar ds in t he area , whic h m ay use fu l ly be em pl oye d in m os t

cases . A re levan t e xam ple is pro vi ded by the KQ ML [18 ] , an Agent

C om m unica t ion La n g ua ge ( ACL) tha t h as been e m pl oye d i n

prac tice in many a gen t deve l o pment pr o jec ts .

1 .3 .2 My Vis io n of Ag ents

Objec t ive ly , t he en o r m ous ci rcu la t ion of i nfo r ma ti on o b li ges u s t o

do m ina te a dec is i ona l co mplex i ty m o re an d mo re one ro us. Fr o m here, we

g rad ua l ly pe rceiv ed t h e necessity t o ex plo i t newer techn o l o gy wh i ch w ou ld

emb ed pr oac t ive ca pa bi li t ies , suc h as co m mun ica ti on an d de le g ati on . My




2 5

princi pal in ten ti on has a lways been t h at t o b rin g a gen t- t echno l o gy

expl oi ta ti on cl ose to r eal h uman prac tices a nd necess i ties , m ov in g i t f r o m a

never-en din g t heo re ti cal resea rch s ta di um. I in tende d t o de te r mine t he

con di ti ons on t he bas i s of w hic h age nts wo u ld be use fu l ly a ppl ied t o classes

of pr act ica l pr o ble ms. Agents have so me t hi ng m o re t han o t her te chno l o gy:

they ar e ex pec ted to b e h a v eb e h a v eb e h a v eb e h a v e no t t o s im ply r u nr u nr u nr u n ; he re c o mes the possi b le

defin i ti on o f “ in te l l i ge nt a gen ts ” .

Firs t o f a l l , as a gents are n o t bi o l o gica l c rea tu res , we s h ou l d t al k

ab ou t a s or t o f “a r t i f ic ia l in tel l igen ce” , ra the r t han me re in te ll i gence.

Art i f ic ia l In te l l i gence (AI) dea ls w it h in t el l i gen t be hav io u rs i n art i f ic ia l

syste ms [28 ] and i t ha s foun d a ppl ica ti on in a natur al w ay in th e con tex t of

agen ts- base d sof t wa r e. Beha vi ou rs inv o lv e abi l i t ies suc h as reas onin g,

lea rnin g, c om m unic ati on an d soc ia l pe rce pti on [29 ] in com plex

envir on men ts . Agen ts seem t o be a “na t ura l ” a ppl ica ti on fo r al l t hese

expec ta ti ons [30 ] , as they re f lec t the in ten t ion o f resea rche rs in co m pu te r

science t o re pr od uce ar ti f ic ia l sys tems dr iv en by beh avi o ura l mo dels . Af ter

consi de rin g dif feren t defin i ti ons of a gen t, I came t o c lea rl y id enti fy my

pe rson al vis i on a b o ut the pa rad i gm , wh ich I g lo ba l ly syn t hesi ze he reaf te r .

Al l de fin i ti ons of a g ent enc o un tere d in l i te ra t ure pres u ppose an

(im plic i t) f oun da ti on of ev idence d i nte l l i g ence, wh ich in tu rn mi gh t have

been ex presse d by e m phas izi ng s ome spe cif ic cha rac te ris tics i n place o f

o the rs (m o bi l ity i n place of s ocia l capa bi l ity , f or ex am ple, or

co mm unic at i on in pla ce o f reac ti on, an d s o f or t h).

It is unq ues ti ona b le t hat we cann o t un iv oca l ly defin e in te l l i gence , b u t

wha t I fee l t o asser t is t ha t i t has t o be un d o ub te d ly s o met hin g asc ri ba ble t o

the in te l lec t t he ca ta l yser o f a beh avi o ura l pa t tern ( inten de d as a sequence

of ac ti ons). In o t her wo r ds, t he ac t ions u n der ta ken by an a gen t can be seen

as t he resu l t o f in t erna l process es of i nte ll i gence syn t hesis . In w or k

pub lis he d in pa per [1 ] I pr o pose t o re pres ent the de fin it i on of agen t (an d




2 6

the ref o re i ts i nte l l i g ence) t h ro u gh a so- cal led “ Agent o me tr ic Ne t ”, as

i l l ust ra te d in Fi g ure 1 : jus t as a net is co m posed of r ays , my vis i o n pl aces al l

main ca pa b il i t ies o f a n agen t al on g w i th ra d ial di rec ti ons. As al l t he rays in a

net a re cr i tica l e le men ts f o r i ts d u ra bi li ty an d res is tance, i n t he sa me m anner

the th o r ou g hness an d in teg r ity of the Agen t ome t ric Ne t g ua ran tee t he

cruc ia l a da pta bi li ty of an a gen t t o t he env ir o nmen t.

F i g u r e F i g u r e F i g u r e F i g u r e 1111 : A g e n t o m e t r i c N e t: A g e n t o m e t r i c N e t: A g e n t o m e t r i c N e t: A g e n t o m e t r i c N e t

Let us f oc us a l i t t le m ore in de pt h on t he mean in g of the pre vi ous

i l l ust ra ti on . In a gen t- ded ica ted l i te ra t ure many de fin it i ons o f a gen t can be

fo und , as desc ri be d, f or exa mple, in w or ks [20 ] , [ 23] an d [30 ]. An

appa ren t ly in i tia l nec essity to d if fe ren ti ate am on g appl ied a gen ts can be

no ted , o bjec t ivel y jus ti f ie d by the f act t ha t desi gners a re taci t ly inf luence d

b ot h by t he appl ica ti on c on tex ts and the pro jec ts ’ f o und in g c har acte ris tics

(dis tr i bu ti on , ada pta t ion , m o bi li ty an d s o f or t h). T he M u Bo t def ini ti on of

agen t, f or ex am ple, s t resses c once pts suc h as au t on omy and reas onin g; t he

Maes agen t is a ut on o m ous an d g oa l- or ient ed; t he Kid Si m a gen t manifes ts

speci al iza t ion and pe rsis tence; t he W o ol d ri d ge-Jennin gs a gen t is , nex t t o

au ton o m ous , ca pa b le o f s ocia l ly re levan t acti ons , reac tive and pro- act ive ,




2 7

whe reas , f ina lly , t he Geo r gef f-Gu lyas a gen t em b od ies s ki l ls of m o bi li ty an d

reas onin g. Al l t hese d efini ti ons are c or rec t i n t hei r s in g u lar i ty , b u t l i mi te d ly

cons tr aine d in , an d by , th ei r deve l o pment c i rcu ms tances . Th is is t he reas on

why I ha ve f or ma t t ed a ll s in g le de fini t ions a nd fo r mu la te d a m ore

gene ra lize d cha rac te r iza ti on o f agen t , wh ose in te ll i gence is mani fes ted

th r ou g h the ex pl o it at i on of t he mos t a ppr o pria te s ki l l fo r a g ive n spec if i c

g oa l , as i l l us tr ate d in Fi gu re 1 , in deed . The agen t par ad ig m re pres ents a t o o l

fo r m ode l lin g in div i dua ls ’ be havi o ur se para te ly , and t hen st udy in g the

emer g in g beh avi o ur o f t he s oc iety of t hese in div id ua ls .

1 . 41 . 41 . 41 . 4 A g e n t O r i e n t e d A g e n t O r i e n t e d A g e n t O r i e n t e d A g e n t O r i e n t e d E n g i n e e r i n gE n g i n e e r i n gE n g i n e e r i n gE n g i n e e r i n g M e t h o d o l o g i e sM e t h o d o l o g i e sM e t h o d o l o g i e sM e t h o d o l o g i e s

Acc o rd in g to t he ac t u al s ta te of the a r t in a gen t- or ien ted tec hn ol o gy,

vari o us AOSE ( Ag ent -Orien te d S of tw are E nginee ri ng) m et h od o l o gies have

been pr o posed an d d e-fact o of ten a ppl ied , a lt h ou g h none of th em may be

consi de red as a we l l- esta b lish ed an d acce pted s tan da rd iza ti on. I n addi t i on

t o t his , b ot h m icr o ( agen t) an d mac r o (ag ent so cie ty , i .e . M AS) levels of

agen t sys te ms us ua lly lea ds deve lo pe rs t o fa ce even a lar ge r v ar ie t y o f iss ues

and pr o b lems (f r o m t he be havi o ur al c ha rac ter is tics of a s in g le a g ent to th e

g lo ba l in te rac ti on s t ra te gies o f t he wh o le a g ent c o m mun i ty) .

So me of t he exis t in g met h od o l o gies pr ovi de s peci f ic at i on-b ased

fo rm al ve ri f ica t ion , a l l ow ing s of t wa re desi g ners t o de tec t er r o rs at the ve ry

be ginn ing o f t he deve l o pm ent pr ocess , as i l l ust ra te d in [ 31] . O the r me t ho ds

inhe ri t Ob jec t-Or ien t ed (O O) tes tin g tec h niques t o be ex plo i te d la ter in

the deve l o pmen t pr o cess , u pon a m appin g an d fo rcin g o f a ge nt- or ien ted

abs tr act i ons in to O O cons tr uc ts [32 ]. Resea rche rs in t he area of M ASs ha ve

pro pose d a nu m be r of dif fer ent a ppr oac h es fo r m o de ll in g a ge nt sys tems ,

base d on dif fe rent “ me ta ph o rs” , b u t non e of the m can reas ona b ly be

consi de red of gene ra l pur pose.

Fo r ins tan ce, “t he ant a l g or i th ms me ta ph o r” [33 ] [34 ] has

dem ons t ra ted to be usefu l in eff icien t l y solv in g co m ple x dis tr i bu te d




2 8

pro b le ms s uch as r o ut in g an d d ist ri b u ted so r tin g; “ physic al m eta ph o rs ”

[35 ], [36 ], f oc usin g o n the s pont ane ous re sha pin g of a syste m ’s str uc tu re,

may have usef u l a ppli cati ons in pe rvas ive a nd mo b ile c om pu tin g ; “s oc iet al

me ta ph o rs” ha ve been effec t ively a pplie d in ro b o tics a pplica ti ons [37 ], [38 ]

and in the unde rs tand ing an d c ont r o l o f hi g hly- decen tr al ize d syst ems [39 ],

[40 ].

My researc h w or k pr i mar i ly f oc use d on the deve l o pmen t o f me di um-

la rge s ize d a gent sys t ems, em be dd ed in t o dyna mic envi r on men t s , and t ha t

had t o g ua ran tee pre dic ta b le and rel ia bl e beha vi ou rs . Fo r these kin ds o f

syste ms, I be lie ve (and am g o in g t o i l l us tra t e why) t he m ost a ppro pria te , the

m ost ad he rent me ta pho r is tha t o f a “h u m an o r gani za ti on ” , as e xhaus t ive ly

expose d in [4 1] [42 ] [43 ]. Anyw ay, des pi te these pr om isin g pre mises , t here

is st i l l a c on tex t of m eth o d ol o gi cal unce r ta inty , in wh ich t he c o h abi t ing o f

techn o l o gy b or n fo r dif fe ren t pu r poses co ul d pr ovi de a gen t sof twa re

desi gne rs wi t h a po wer fu l an d effec ti ve abs tr act i on t o o l . On t o lo gy , fo r

exam ple, as a mean s of hi g her se man ti c represen ta ti on, ca n pl ay an

im por ta nt r ole in m ode l lin g a gen t sys te ms, as we l l as in of ferin g th e

o ppor t uni ty t o au t o m ate the deve l o pmen t of th e M AS, as I wi l l i l lus t ra te in

det ai ls in Ch a pte r 3 .

1 .4 .1 Agen t S of tw are Deve l o pm ent O rien ta t ions

Engine er ing bus iness- or ien ted a gen t- based sof t ware requ ires , as fo r

any so f twa re deve l o pmen t, the a do pt ion of we l l-d efine d me th o d ol o gy,

techn o l o gy an d st and ards . S o it w as f o r t h e pr ojec t in w hic h m y resea rc h

wo r k has been i nvo lv ed. T hree wer e t he el emen ts , in pa r tic ul ar , on w hic h I

foc use d and w hic h de served pa r tic u lar a t te nti on: the a gen t co m mun ica tive

fo rm al is m , t he ana lys is and des i gn me t ho d o lo gy , and the M AS-s u ppo r tin g

techn o l o gica l inf ras t ruc t ure . The ones I se lec te d t o s u ppor t my

invest i ga ti ons are br ie f ly in tr o d uced he rein a fte r .




2 9

I have def ined in ter o pera bi li ty of a gen ts th r ou g h F I P AF I P AF I P AF I P A 2 (F oun da ti on

fo r Inte l l i gen t P hysic al Agen ts) s pec if i ca ti ons. They re presen t a co l lec ti on

of s tan da rds , w hic h ar e in ten ded t o pro m o te techn o l ogy and

inte r o per ab il i ty s peci f ica ti ons, faci l i t at in g the end- t o-end in ter wo r kin g o f

inte l l i gen t a gent sys te ms in m ode rn c o m me rcia l and in dus t ri al c o ntex ts . In

an o pen and d is tr ib u t ed agen t- base d envi ro nmen t, f or exa m ple, t he need o f

stan dar d mec hanis m s and s pecif ica ti on s is c ru cia l fo r ensur in g

inte r o per ab il i ty of d is tinc t au t on o mo us syst ems.

As re g ar ds t he AO S E met h od o l o gy I ha ve chosen G A I AG A I AG A I AG A I A 3, as the

proc ess of bu i ld ing M ASs is rad ica l ly di f feren t f ro m the one of bu il din g

m ore tr ad it i ona l so ft w are sys tems. S peci f ica l ly , I w ou l d ag ree wi th the v is i on

rec ogn ize d in G AI A a cco rd in g t o w hic h M ASs can be c onceive d in te rms of

an o r gani zed s oc iety of ind ivi d uals : each agen t plays s peci f ic ro les and

inte rac ts wi t h o the r a gen ts , acc or din g ly t o pr o to co ls de te rm ine d by t hei r

ro les . In s uch a s oc i al s tr uc t ure a s o ft wa re sys tem is c onceiv ed as the

co m pu ta ti ona l ins tan tia t io n of a g ro u p o f in te rac tin g and au t on om o us

indi vi dua l a gen ts . Ne ver the less , each a gen t can be seen as play i ng one o r

m ore s peci f ic r oles : i t has a we l l-def ine d set of r espons ib i l i t ies o r sub- g oa ls

(al tr uis t ic or o ppo r tu nist ic tha t is) in the c on tex t of t he over al l s yste m an d

is r espons ib le f o r purs uin g t hese a u t on om o u sly .

In c om pl iance wi th t his scen ar io , in te rac ti ons a re ra the r seen a s a

means f o r an a gent t o acc om plis h i ts r o le ’s g oa ls in the sys te m. T he

evo lu t ion of ac tiv it ies in t he o r gani za ti on, der ivin g f ro m t he au t on om o us

execu ti on of a gen ts an d f r om t hei r in terac t i o ns, de te rm ines the ach ievemen t

of t he appl ica ti on ove ra ll go al . In o the r w or ds, t he or g aniza t i ona l me ta ph o r,

o the r t han bein g a n at ura l a ppr oac h f or d evel o pers w h o a re co ntin u ous ly

im merse d in a var ie ty of o rg aniz at i ona l set t i ngs , o pens u p t he pos sib il i ty o f

2 h t t p : / / w w w . f i p a . o r g / a b o u t / i n d e x . h t m l 3 W o o l d r i d g e , M . , J e n n i n g s , N . R . , K i n n y , D . : T h e G a i a M e t h o d o l o g y f o r A g e n t - O r i e n t e d A n a l y s i s a n d D e s i g n .

A u t o n o m o u s A g e n t s A n d M u l t i A g e n t S y s t e m s , V o l . 3 , N o 3 . S N : 1 3 8 7 - 2 5 3 2 , p p . 2 8 5 - 3 1 2 ( 2 0 0 0 )




3 0

reus in g a var ie ty o f st ud ies and ex pe riences re la ted t o rea l-w o rl d

or g aniza t i ons.

Rega r din g the de pl oy men t tec hn o lo gy , I h a ve f ina l ly i den tif ied J A D EJ A D EJ A D EJ A D E 4

(Java Agent DEve l o pmen t F ra mew o r k) as t o be the m os t a ppr o pr iate . J ADE

is an en ab l ing techn o l o gy, a mi dd le ware f o r t he deve l opmen t and r un-t i me

execu ti on of peer- t o -pee r a pplica t ions w hich a re based on t he a gen t’s

pa ra di g m and wh ich c an seam less w o r k and inte r o pera te b o th in wi red an d

wi reless env ir on men t.

The t w o ma j or as pec t s of i ts conce pt ua l m o del can be su mm ar ize d as

fo l l ows: 1) i t is a d is tr ib u ted syste m t o po l og y wi t h pee r-t o- pee r ne tw o r kin g,

and 2) i t is so f twa re co m ponen t arc hi tec t ure wi t h a gen t par ad ig m. The

netw o r k t o po l o gy a ffe cts h o w the var i ous c o mponen ts are l in ke d t o ge the r,

whe reas the c om pon ent ar chi tec t ure s pec if ies wha t the c o mponen ts are

su ppose d t o ex pec t f ro m o ne ano th er. J ADE is an Open S o ur ce pr ojec t

ar oun d wh ich a c o mm uni ty of use rs and c o ntr i bu t o rs h as pr o g res sively an d

rele van tly gr o wn u p.

1 . 51 . 51 . 51 . 5 R e s e a r c h C o n t e x t U n f o l d e dR e s e a r c h C o n t e x t U n f o l d e dR e s e a r c h C o n t e x t U n f o l d e dR e s e a r c h C o n t e x t U n f o l d e d

Mos t of my resea rch wo r k has been ins pire d wi t hin the K4 Ca re (IS T-

2004-026968) Eu r o pe an P ro jec t. T he m ain pur pose of K4 Ca re pr ojec t was

t o gu ide any ac ti vi ty t hat f os tere d the rea l iz ati on o f an inte g ra te d syste m of

Ho me Ca re (H C) se r vices f o r t he tre at me nt of e l der ly , disa b le d pers ons,

and pa tien ts wi t h ch r onic dis eases in E u r o pe. Th is ob jec tive ha s a di rec t

socia l i m pl ica ti on o f he l pin g pe o ple par tia l ly , te m pora ry or t o ta l ly

de penden t t o l i ve in t hei r envi ron men t as l on g as poss ib le , an d t o con t ras t

the i m pr o pe r use o f in sti t u ti ona liz a ti on.

In ad di ti on t o th is , t he ai m o f t he pr o jec t was als o t o m o del and

desi gn t he Ho me Ca r e d o main ta kin g int o acco un t t he requ ire men ts of a

4 h t t p : / / j a d e . t i l a b . c o m /




3 1

ty pica l E ur o pea n H C pa tien t, pr ovi din g d etai le d in fo r ma ti on a b ou t the

str uc t ures . The pro je ct i tse lf pr o pose d t he defin it i on and rea liz ati on of an

IC T base d mo de l of Ho me Ca re, wh ere H C s tan ds f o r the care servi ces

pro vi ded t o a pa tien t w h o req ui res ass ist ance at h ome. The t ypic al H C

Pa tien t (H C P) is a n elde r ly pa t ien t, w it h co- m or b id c ond i ti ons an d

diseases , co gn i tive a nd /o r phys ica l i m pa ir men t, f unc ti ona l l oss f r om

mu l ti ple d isa bi l i t ies , and i m pai re d self- de pendency. We sh al l ref er t o th is

“ave ra ge pat ien t ” as t he H CP . The hea lt hc are o f t he H C P is pa rt ic ula r ly

co m plex bec ause o f th e gr o win g n um b er of pa t ients ly in g in suc h

circ ums ta nces , and a ls o beca use o f th e g rea t am o un t of res o u rces necessary

t o g uar ante e a l on g- te rm assis tanc e of qua l it y .

The K4 Ca re assis ta nce m ode l 5, def ined essenti al ly by med ical

pa r tners , was es tab l i shed by def inin g th e act ors of the H C do main

(phys ici ans , s ocia l as sistan ts , nu rses , reha bi li ta t ion pr ofess ion a ls , H C Ps,

rel at ives , in f or ma l car e give rs , c i t izens , s oci al o r gan iza ti ons, an d so f or t h),

the ir r o les ( in te g ra tin g o ld an d ne w E U c o unt ry w or kin g m o des ) and the ir

inte rac ti ons . In te rac ti ons a m on g h eal t h pr ofess ion als , c om pu te r scien tis ts

and tec hn ol o gy cen t res have bas ica l ly oc cur re d i n or de r t o defin e the

heal t h-ca re m o de l, w h ose c ri tica l as pec ts ha ve been i den ti f ie d an d so lved in

a cycli c pr ocess of ev o lvin g c ons tr uc ti on. The wo r k was dev el o pe d t h ro u gh

the iden t if ic at i on o f t he ini ti al ac t o rs and r o les , to ge t her wi th a d ict i onary of

conce pts an d the req ui red in terna t i ona l c od if ica ti on sys te ms ( IC D9 CM,

IC D10 CM, AT C, e tc .) , w hic h were a ls o f o r m al ly def ined an d s tan d ard ize d.

1 . 61 . 61 . 61 . 6 T h e s e s : T h e s e s : T h e s e s : T h e s e s : M a i n C o nM a i n C o nM a i n C o nM a i n C o n t r i b u t i o n st r i b u t i o n st r i b u t i o n st r i b u t i o n s

My pe rs onal c on tr i bu ti on and s uppo r t t o t he rea liz at i on of the HC

pla tf o rm c once rned ab ou t the resear ch wo r k in the c once pt ua liz at i on,

m ode l lin g, deve l o pme nt an d mai nten ance o f a gen t-o rien te d tec hn iques and

5 h t t p : / / w w w . k 4 c a r e . n e t / f i l e a d m i n / k 4 c a r e / p u b l i c _ w e b s i t e / d o w n l o a d s / T h e _ K 4 C A R E _ M o d e l _ V a l i d a t i o n . p d f




3 2

techn o l o gies , wh ose a pplica t ion was o rien t ed t o ma na ge, on the one han d,

the pr o ject ’s c om plex ity , an d hi g hl i gh t, on t he o t her, the a gen t para di g m

co m pet i tiveness in r eal a ppl ica ti on c on te xts . Ac tua l ly , the lac k o f we ll-

esta b lish ed an d w ide l y accepte d a gen t-o ri e nte d deve l o pment me t ho d ol o g ies

has ind uce d me t o consi de r any re lev an t as pe ct of t he c o m put at i ona l

pa ra di g m an d t o f oc u s on t he en ti re l i fecyc le of M AS. My inten t i on was t o

pro vi de the scien t if ic co mm uni ty w it h res ul ts of pra ct ica l u ti l i ty . The ma in

con tr i bu ti ons an d t he scien tif ic res u l ts of my disse r ta ti o n can be

sum ma ri zed in f ou r po ints , f u rt he r or g anize d in t w o thes is g r ou ps.

The f i rst gr o u p ai ms at c la r i fyin g t he c o ncept ual a ppr oa ch w hich

sho u ld be pre-e m ptiv ely a d o pted w hen mo del l in g a d om ain t hr o u gh a gen ts ,

and i ts c onseque nt l on g- ter m a dvan ta ges in act o rs ’ c o m mun ica ti ons an d

neg o tia ti ons . The s econ d g ro u p f oc us es on the ex tens i bi l i ty an d

main tenan ce as pec ts of M ASs, giv in g pa rt ic ula r a t ten ti on t o th e ever-

presen t, pos t-de pl oy men t ch anges in t h e envir on men ta l dyn amics and

service m ana gem ent po lici es .

1 .6 .1 M AS C once pt ua li za ti on a nd M o del l ing

Discuss i on f oc uses b o th on t heo re tic al a nd pra ct ica l rele vanc e of

agen ts ’ ex pl o it at i on in m ode l lin g c o m pl ex, hi gh ly po pu la te d do ma ins

usua l ly cha rac te ri zed by the ex is tence o f lon g- te rm in te rac ti o ns amon g

act o rs of t he sys te m.

T 1 . 1T 1 . 1T 1 . 1T 1 . 1 The age nt- pa ra di g m enab les a m ore na tu ra l desc ri pti on o f t he

applic at i on kn ow le d g e: i t pe rm i ts t o g ove rn an d e m bo dy c o m plex

kn ow le d ge re presen ta ti ons by at o mi zin g the be hav io ura l

char acte r ist ics of do m ain ac t o rs .

The wo r k syn thes ize d in t hesis T1.1 a ims a t h i gh li g h tin g h o w a g ent-

pa ra di g m can re prese nt a na t u ral and s t ra te gic c o m pe tence in the

defin i ti on of in te l l i gen t sys tems, in w hich kn o wl ed ge pla ys a




3 3

fun dam ent al r o le in t he cha rac te riz at i on o f pa r tic i pan ts ’ ab i l i t ie s . I

wi l l pro vi de, am on g t he o the rs , a c h a r a c t e r i z a t i o n o f t h e m i n i m a l c h a r a c t e r i z a t i o n o f t h e m i n i m a l c h a r a c t e r i z a t i o n o f t h e m i n i m a l c h a r a c t e r i z a t i o n o f t h e m i n i m a l

l e v e l o f l e v e l o f l e v e l o f l e v e l o f a p p l i c a t i o n a p p l i c a t i o n a p p l i c a t i o n a p p l i c a t i o n k n o w l e d g ek n o w l e d g ek n o w l e d g ek n o w l e d g e re present a ti on t ha t an ag ent sh o ul d

emb o dy in o rde r to be c onsi dere d a ut on o mo us en ou g h. Sect i ons

fr om 2.1 to 2 .3 .4 s um- u p the r esearc h w or k i nvo lve d in T1 .1.

T 1 . 2T 1 . 2T 1 . 2T 1 . 2 Agen t-b ased s of t wa r e gr acef u lly a da pts t o l on g- ter m ac t ive

neg o tia ti ons , in w hi ch c on tin u ous envi r on ment al an d s t ra te gic

chan ges a re cr ucia l f or t he a chie vemen t of t h e ini t ia l g oa ls .

To day ’s bus iness s ervices c om plex ity and o rches t ra ti on l ead

indi vi dua ls t o l on g- ter m ne go t ia ti ons a nd a da pta ti ons t o the

envir on men ta l chan g es , wh ich wi l l ca use , in t u rn, a c on tin u ous

gene ra ti on o f new kn o wle d ge and s t ra te gies . One of the m ost re lev ant

aspec ts in t his scenar io is t he c once pt o f s e r v i c e c o n t i n u o u s n e s ss e r v i c e c o n t i n u o u s n e s ss e r v i c e c o n t i n u o u s n e s ss e r v i c e c o n t i n u o u s n e s s ,

whi ch I s t ric t ly re la te t o a gen ts ’ ava i lab i l i ty th r ou g h the de fin it i on o f

a r e p l a c e m e n t m e t h o d o l o g yr e p l a c e m e n t m e t h o d o l o g yr e p l a c e m e n t m e t h o d o l o g yr e p l a c e m e n t m e t h o d o l o g y . These are the key- poi nts o f Th esis

T1.2. Sec t ions f r om 2.4 to 2 .5 .3 i l lus t r ate t he resea rc h wo r k I

con duc te d in re la ti on t o the prev io us iss ue s , ada pte d to a gen t-ba sed

syste ms.

1 .6 .2 M AS Deve l o pme nt an d Main tenance

The a do pt i on o f an e nginee ri ng a ppr oac h i n the rea li za ti on of a g ent-

base d appl ica ti ons, w het he r no t c om pu lso r y, is at leas t rec o mm enda ble in

or de r t o g uara ntee sys te ms wi t h ext ensi bi l i t y , ada pta bi li ty an d t es ta bi l i ty , as

wel l as t o decre ase t h e o bjec tive deve l o pm ent c o mplex i ty w hic h an agen t-

base d sys te m i nevi ta b l y inv o lves .

TTTT 2222 .... 1111 Agen t- or ien ted co de gene ra ti on pr ovi des s eman tic re levance to fast

pro t o ty pin g pr ocess o f M AS- base d a pplica t i ons.

Genera l ly , c os ts and eff or ts inv o lved in t h e rea li za ti on of s of tw are

arch i tec tu res can be s i gnif ican t ly l i g h ten ed by th e a do pt io n o f




3 4

seman tics- base d pr o t o ty pin g techn iques . T his is pa r tic u lar ly tr u e in

the case of M ul t i Age nt Sys tems , w hic h na t ura l ly c o me wi th a h i ghe r

seman tic s i m ul at i on and tes tin g c on tex t. Se cti ons f r om 3.1 to 3 . 3 .1

cove r th e a pplica t i on of pr inci ples men ti on ed in T hesis 2 .1 .

T 2 . 2T 2 . 2T 2 . 2T 2 . 2 The ag ent- pa ra di g m e nab les fo r ma l ex tensi o ns o f the over al l syste m’s

beha vi ou ra l m o del , avo id ing re perc ussi o ns on the a pplica ti on’s

de pl oy men t cyc le . T h is is a f unda men ta l a spec t in the rec o gni ti on,

mana ge men t an d e mb o di men t o f ne w eme r gin g a ppl ica t ion

kn ow le d ge.

Kn ow le d ge Man a gem ent ( KM) pr ocess , in a spec if ic d om ain, d oes

no t end wi t h t he re le ase of t he so ft wa re d esigne d f or i t , beca us e its

ut i l iz at i on w il l inevi t ab ly i m plici t ly ca use the gene ra ti on o f new

user ’s kn o w led ge, pr evio us ly un rec og nize d and un revea le d. The

beha vi ou ra l m o del of an agent can be or chest ra te d and ex ten ded

th r ou g h i ts e le men ta r y com ponen ts (ac ti on s) in or der t o pe r mi t the

syste m t o em b ody the newly m anifes te d kn ow le d ge by the end- u sers

and t o g racef u l ly ev o l ve t o wa rds newe r a pplica t io n scena ri os . T h is is

the esse nce o f T hesi s T2.2, wh ose inves t iga t i ons are re po rte d in

secti ons f ro m 3.4 t o 3 . 6 .3 in this manus cr i pt



Chapter 2

2. MAS Conceptualization and

Modelling

Techn o lo gy by i tse lf is no t t he s o lu ti on t o h u man pr ob le ms. I t is

usua l ly pe rcei ved as i f i t were , becaus e of i ts na tu re of be in g th e cl oses t

inte rac ti on e le men t t o h u mans, t o the usa bi li ty an d pro visi on o f a serv ice

and t o o ur sens or y pe rce pti on. Tec h no lo gy can be see n as the

ma ter ia liz at i on of a service; serv ices , on the o t her han d, a re the means

th r ou g h whic h o ur n eeds, o ur nec essi ties are f ina l ly sa tis f ie d. In o the r

wo r ds, tec hn o lo gy is o nly t he f in al pro d uc t o f a far m o re i m por tan t pr ocess:

“ kn ow le dge mana ge m ent ”.

Techn o lo gy , in ten de d in i ts wi des t m ea ning (as i t co u ld be , f or

instan ce, a new so ft w are para di g m deve l o pmen t, l i ke agen ts) , e nab les t he

mana ge men t of kno w l ed ge (as ex pl aine d in secti on 2.2) . I t is ir ref ut ab le t ha t

techn o l o gy em b od ies kn ow le d ge-re la te d as pects (des i gners ca pa bi li t ies wh o

crea ted i t) , b u t, per se , tec hn o lo gy sh o ul d n o t be cons id ere d as any th in g e lse

bu t t he res ul t o f a co nce pt ua li za ti on pr ocess . Ne ver t hel ess , i t is

unques t ion ab le t ha t t he va rie ty of h um an needs refe rs t o d if f ere nt s pec if ic

do ma ins , in wh ich s o me tec hn o lo gy c an be m o re s ui ta bl e and nat ura l ly

ad o pt ab le t han o t her .

M A S C o n c e p t u a l i z a t i o n a n d M o d e l l i n g



3 6

Basica l ly , acc o rd in g t o my o wn vis i on , t he iden ti f ica ti on of hu man

needs f inds i ts f oun da ti ons in ph il os o ph ica l deb ate s , w hic h, in t u r n, lea d t o

the rec o gni ti on of ne w appr oac hes in pr o bl em-s olv in g. T he la t te r just i fy the

eff or ts pu t in t o t he re ali za ti on of new techn o lo g ica l scena ri os , w h ich w ou l d

f ina l ly re prese nt the c ata lyse r of kn ow le d ge in a speci f ic a pplica t io n do main

(enab lin g, in t u rn, n e w ph i los o phica l b ra ins t or min g) .

I l l us tra t ion in Fi g ure 2 ai ms a t in tr o duc i ng th e c once pts I h ave

men ti one d bef o re. I h ave na med i t B u s i n e s s E v o l u t i o n D i a m o n dB u s i n e s s E v o l u t i o n D i a m o n dB u s i n e s s E v o l u t i o n D i a m o n dB u s i n e s s E v o l u t i o n D i a m o n d (BED).

F i g u r e F i g u r e F i g u r e F i g u r e 2222 : B u s i n e s s E v o l u t i o n D i a m o n d : B u s i n e s s E v o l u t i o n D i a m o n d : B u s i n e s s E v o l u t i o n D i a m o n d : B u s i n e s s E v o l u t i o n D i a m o n d –––– B E DB E DB E DB E D

I ha ve su bs tan ti al ly re co gni zed and def ined the f ol l o win g ass oc ia ti ons

on BED ’s e le men ts (se e Fi g ur e 2 f or re fere nc e):

1) The phi l os o ph ica l iss ue wi th the in ten ti o n o f desi gne rs t o c r eate

ar ti f ic ia l sys te ms wi th h uma n-l i ke b ehavi o ur al as pec ts and

char acte r ist ics;

2) The ne cessi ty of ad o ptin g new a ppr oac hes wi th the c once pt ua li z ati on

of t he a gent pa rad i gm ;

3) The prac tica l rea liz ati on of a tec hn o l o gica l c on tex t w i th the

deve lo pmen t o f Mu l ti Agen t Sys tems ;




3 7

4) The a pplic at i on d o m ain w i th t he h ig h ly po pu la te d an d kn ow le dg e-

dem and ing , l on g-t er m in ter act i on-b ased b us iness c on tex ts .

The i l l us tra t ion in ne xt Fi gu re 3 (a s or t of hyb ri d “ oni on g ra ph ” tha t

re-o r gan izes c once pts fr o m Fi g u re 2) h ig hl i gh ts h o w the posi ti on ing o f

techn o l o gy in a scena ri o o f new nee ds def i nit i on is cr ucia l , inde ed, b u t no t

decis ive , bein g tec hn o l ogy by i tsel f the res ul t of preced ent laye rs ’ existen ce.

As we c lea rly un de rs tan d, tec hno l o gy is neit her t he ve ry g oa l n or t he

ini tia t o r of the b ra in st or min g necessa ry t o a dvan ce t owa r ds n ew se rvices

conce ptu al iza t ion : i t i s , on t he c ont ra ry , the unsu bs ti tu ta b le me an s enabl in g

such a pr ocess .

F i g u r e F i g u r e F i g u r e F i g u r e 3333 : T e c h n o l o g y ' s p o s i t i o n i n g: T e c h n o l o g y ' s p o s i t i o n i n g: T e c h n o l o g y ' s p o s i t i o n i n g: T e c h n o l o g y ' s p o s i t i o n i n g i n i n i n i n n e w n e w n e w n e w a p p l i c a t i o n a p p l i c a t i o n a p p l i c a t i o n a p p l i c a t i o n c o n cc o n cc o n cc o n c e p t u a l i z a t i o ne p t u a l i z a t i o ne p t u a l i z a t i o ne p t u a l i z a t i o n

One o f t he pr i mary mo t iva ti ons beca us e of wh ich hu man kind

con tin ues the resea rc h o f ne w techn o l ogy is (a par t fr o m the ir n at ura l a nd

inst inc tive a t ti t ud e t o invent and asse m b le ) the c on tin u o us p e r c e p t i o np e r c e p t i o np e r c e p t i o np e r c e p t i o n o f

new (sh o ul d it be r eal o r no t) nee ds t o be sa tis f ie d. Bu t whe re d oes

techn o l o gy re al ly f i t i n? H ow c an new tec hno l o gy, s uch as t he agen ts f o r

instan ce, re presen t a mi le-s t one in an ev o l ut i ona ry scenar i o and infl uence

ou r every- day l i fe ?




3 8

Techn o lo gy is n o t t h e mere answe r t o ou r needs bu t t he mea ns for

the ir s at is fac t io n: i t c an nat u ral ly a ccele ra t e the au t o ma ti on pr oc ess of ne w

techn o l o gy cre at i on, by lev era g in g on the e m b od imen t of desi gne rs ’

kn ow le d ge. T his is th e poin t I w o ul d l i ke t o s tress: a gent- tec hn o l ogy , as a l l

o the r t echn o l ogy , is n o th ing b u t t he res u lt of kn ow le d ge co nce pt ua liz at i on ,

rea liz at i on an d e xpl oi t ati on .

2 . 12 . 12 . 12 . 1 F r o m D a t a t o K n o w l e d g e ( a n d F r o m D a t a t o K n o w l e d g e ( a n d F r o m D a t a t o K n o w l e d g e ( a n d F r o m D a t a t o K n o w l e d g e ( a n d B e y o n dB e y o n dB e y o n dB e y o n d ))))

Wha t is “ kn ow le d ge” anyway ? An d sh ou l d t he previ o us ques ti on f ind

a sui ta b le ans wer, w h at is “ kn o wle d ge man age men t” t hen? Of c o urse , t hese

are no t t riv ial in ter r o ga tives , a t a l l . Acc o rd i ng to [44 ], [45 ] , kn o wle d ge can

be seen as the res u lt of a pr ocess of ev o l ut i on or ad a pt at i on pe rce pti on.

Despi te t his , n u mer ous sys te m ex pe rts and ana lys ts t end t o c onf use

co m peten ce and kn o wle d ge w it h inf o rm at ion , and inf o r ma ti on wi th da ta .

Pe rm i t me t o cl ar i fy s o me cr ucia l as pec ts r ela ted t o these issues , bef or e we

try t o a pply the m t o the deve l o pme nt o f M ASs. As i l l us tr at ed i n Fi gu re 4 ,

kn ow le d ge is di rec tly rel ate d t o inf o rm at i on (and no t to d at a) an d i t is i tse lf

the res u l t of a “ tr ansf or ma t ion ” pr ocess , w h ich en ds u p wi t h t he c rea ti on o f

co m peten ces (ski l ls a nd ca pa bi li t ies) . N o w, let us c onsi der a l i t t l e mo re in

de pt h e ach o f t he c on cepts re por te d in t he f o ll o win g i l l us t ra ti on.

F i g u r e F i g u r e F i g u r e F i g u r e 4444 : F r o m D a t a t o : F r o m D a t a t o : F r o m D a t a t o : F r o m D a t a t o K n o w l e d g e t o C o m p e t e n c eK n o w l e d g e t o C o m p e t e n c eK n o w l e d g e t o C o m p e t e n c eK n o w l e d g e t o C o m p e t e n c e




3 9

Dat a ( green c ol o ur sq uare in Fi g ur e 4) can be seen as a se quence of

quan ti f ie d o r q uan ti f ia ble sy m b ols : a pi ece of tex t , pic tu res , f i gu res ,

rec or ded s oun ds and anima ti ons a re al l exam ples of q uan ti f ia b le da ta . In

th is l i gh t, da ta a re n ecessari ly ma the ma t ic al en ti t ies , an d th us are pu re ly

syntac tic . T his mea ns th at d a t a c a n b e t o t a l l y d e s c r i b e d t h r o u g h d a t a c a n b e t o t a l l y d e s c r i b e d t h r o u g h d a t a c a n b e t o t a l l y d e s c r i b e d t h r o u g h d a t a c a n b e t o t a l l y d e s c r i b e d t h r o u g h

s t r u c t u r a l , f o r m a l r e p r e s e n t a t i o n ss t r u c t u r a l , f o r m a l r e p r e s e n t a t i o n ss t r u c t u r a l , f o r m a l r e p r e s e n t a t i o n ss t r u c t u r a l , f o r m a l r e p r e s e n t a t i o n s . Bein g quan ti f ia b le , i t c an ob vio us ly be

st ore d in t o c o m pu te rs , as we ll as pr oces sed by t he m (m ach i ne-rel at ed

co m ponen t in Fi g u re 4) . Da ta ma ni pula t i on s are re la te d t o mac hi nes , w hic h

are a b le t o “ trans f or m” ( in a de te r minis t i c manne r) da ta in to o the r da ta

th r ou g h pr o g rams . Da ta, f ina l ly , can be sen t (receive d) t o (fr o m) s o meb o dy

(o the r c o m pu te rs) th r ou g h “ messa ges” , wh i ch may have t he f o r m o f let te rs ,

doc u men ts , re por ts , a nd s o fo r th . T he mess age is t he a bs tra ct i on key po int

in t he t ransf o rm at i o n of da ta in to i nf or ma ti on an d it presu pposes t he

existen ce of t w o e le me nts: a sen der an d a re c eiver ( of t he messa ge) .

Inf or ma ti on is an a bs tr ac ti on ( f i rst ora nge co lo u r sq ua re on t he lef t

in Fi g ure 4) in t he min d o f a pers on, i n the f o r m o f t h ou g hts wh ich

re presen t s o me th in g of s i gnif icance t o t ha t pe rs on; i t is an ele m ent of t he

hu man- rel ate d as pec t s . The rea de r sh ou l d kee p in m ind th at th i s does n ot

prete nd t o be a def ini ti on; i t is mo re a ch ar acte ri za ti on, beca use t erms suc h

as “ min d” , “ t h ou g ht ” , “s ome t hin g ” , “si gni f i cance” an d “ pers on ” canno t be

univ oca l ly d efine d an d f or ma li zed . I assu m e here an in tu i tive un ders tan din g

of t hese t er ms. It is n o t poss i ble ( in the se nse seen bef o re) t o au t om at ica l ly

proc ess inf o rm at i on i n a co m pu te r; f o r t hi s reas on, in fo r ma ti on has t o be

tr ansf or me d in t o da ta , and, then, i t is n ot inf or ma t ion an ym o re. S i mi la rly , i t

is n o t possi b le t o s t o re i nf or ma ti on (a lway s in t he sense seen be fo re) in a

co m pu te r; w ha t is s t o red is the r e p r e s e n t a t i o n o f i n f o r m a t i o n i n t h e f o r m r e p r e s e n t a t i o n o f i n f o r m a t i o n i n t h e f o r m r e p r e s e n t a t i o n o f i n f o r m a t i o n i n t h e f o r m r e p r e s e n t a t i o n o f i n f o r m a t i o n i n t h e f o r m

o f d a t ao f d a t ao f d a t ao f d a t a . The cr uc ial pro b le m is to ma ke tw o pe o ple ( m uch ha rde r is the case

of t wo c o m pute rs or ar ti f ic ia l sys te ms, in g enera l) hav e prec isely the sa me

unde rs tan din g of tha t re presen ta ti on, as iiii n f o r m a t i o n n f o r m a t i o n n f o r m a t i o n n f o r m a t i o n d e r i v e s f r o m t h e d e r i v e s f r o m t h e d e r i v e s f r o m t h e d e r i v e s f r o m t h e




4 0

u n d e r s t a n d i n g s u n d e r s t a n d i n g s u n d e r s t a n d i n g s u n d e r s t a n d i n g s o f t h e m e s s a g e w e r e c e i v eo f t h e m e s s a g e w e r e c e i v eo f t h e m e s s a g e w e r e c e i v eo f t h e m e s s a g e w e r e c e i v e . Inf o rma t ion c an be c onsi de red

as an inner pr o pe r ty o f a pers on and s o it m ay or i gina te f ro m an inne r

pe rce pti on. A fun da m enta l dis t inc ti on be t w een data an d inf o rma t ion is tha t

the f or me r is pu re ly syntac t ica l , whe reas t he la t ter necessar i l y con ta ins

seman tics ( i m pl ie d b y t he w or ds “ meanin g ” an d “ unde rs tan din g s” , use d in

its cha rac te ri za ti on be fo re) .

Kn ow le d ge is a ls o a pe rson al , in ner and f ur t her a bst rac ti on of t he

inf or ma ti on. I t i s a l l t h e i n f o r m a t i o nI t i s a l l t h e i n f o r m a t i o nI t i s a l l t h e i n f o r m a t i o nI t i s a l l t h e i n f o r m a t i o n w e g a t h e rw e g a t h e rw e g a t h e rw e g a t h e r of s ome t hin g (even ts ,

o bjec ts , pe rson , fac ts , and s o on) , a s s o r t e d w i t h o u r b e l i e f s , a s s o r t e d w i t h o u r b e l i e f s , a s s o r t e d w i t h o u r b e l i e f s , a s s o r t e d w i t h o u r b e l i e f s , i n t e n t i o n s , i n t e n t i o n s , i n t e n t i o n s , i n t e n t i o n s ,

d e s i r e s , d e s i r e s , d e s i r e s , d e s i r e s , e m o t i o ne m o t i o ne m o t i o ne m o t i o n a l p r o f i l e ,a l p r o f i l e ,a l p r o f i l e ,a l p r o f i l e , c u l t u r a l a s p e c t sc u l t u r a l a s p e c t sc u l t u r a l a s p e c t sc u l t u r a l a s p e c t s , an d s o fo r th . I t d oes n o t

de pend on ly on a per sona l in te r pret at i on, as wi t h in f or ma ti on, beca use i t

requ ires a pers ona l ex pe rience wi t h the o bj ect of kn o wle d ge. As previ o usly

int r od uce d, t he re pre senta ti on o f inf or ma t ion th ro u gh d at a can be st o re d

int o a c o m pu te r, bu t , on the basis o f t his assum pt io n, kn ow le dg e is n o t

sub jec ted to a c om pl ete and di rect re pres enta ti on (in suc h a sense, we

canno t univ oca l ly re pr esent, f o r exa m ple, bel iefs , e m ot i ons, an d se nsati ons);

so i t cann ot be inse rte d in to a c om pu ter in a c lassica l wa y (as a sequence o f

symb o ls) .

C om pe tence is kn ow l ed ge plus ex pe rience. It can be c onsi der ed a s an

abi l i ty of execu t in g a tas k in t he “ rea l w or l d” . A pers on has c om pe tence in

so me f ie ld i f he or she has de m ons tra te d t hr ou g h pas t acc o m pl ish men ts the

abi l i ty o f exec u tin g a req ui red “ tas k” . C o m pe tence c an be even associ at ed

wi th c rea tiv it y and im pro visa ti on . In t h is l i g ht , co m pe tence requi res

kn ow le d ge an d pe rs ona l ca pa ci ties f or rea liz in g s om et hin g conc ret e:

the ref o re, i t is im poss i bl e , in suc h a sense , to di rec tl y in t ro d uce c o m pe tence

int o a c o m pu te r sys te m.

Havin g rea li zed t ha t o nly in f or ma ti on c an b e di rec t ly re d uced t o d ata ,

the c hal len ge in In f or ma t ion Te chn o lo g y is to try t o ad o pt so r t of

fo rm al is ms w hic h c ou ld pe r mi t desi gne rs t o dea l d irec t ly wi th know le d ge-




4 1

and c o m pe tence-re la t ed as pec ts in a r ti f ic ia l syste ms; f or ma lis ms whi ch may

carr y t he sa me a bst rac ti on o ppor t uni ties see n in t he prev i ous sec t i on. I w il l

explain h o w M u lt i Agen t Sys tems ca n t heo re tic al ly e m b ody t hese

pec ul ia ri ties: i t de pe nds on h o w t hey ar e go in g t o be conc eived an d

expl oi te d. Des pi te the previ o us c ha rac ter iza ti on o f kn ow le d ge is n o t di rect ly

ad o pt ab le in a b usines s con tex t, the c o mb ina ti on of da ta and inf o r ma ti on, t o

whi ch it is a dde d an expe r t o pini on, s ki l ls and ex pe rience, can r esul t in a

v a l u a b l e a s s e tv a l u a b l e a s s e tv a l u a b l e a s s e tv a l u a b l e a s s e t , u ti l ize d t o s u ppor t dec isi on ma kin g pr ocesses .

This is the c r ucia l po int: t he acq uis it i on of kn ow le d ge can i m pr ove

and enhance decis ion- ma kin g s ki l ls , w hic h are t o be meas ura b le i n ter ms o f

quan ti f ia b le reven ue s. The em ph asis , t hen, is on kno w le dg e bein g

a p p l i c a b l ea p p l i c a b l ea p p l i c a b l ea p p l i c a b l e or e x e c u t a b l ee x e c u t a b l ee x e c u t a b l ee x e c u t a b l e (f o r i t is b usin ess-rel ate d) and on kn ow le d ge

bein g a ref ine men t o f in fo r ma ti on ( fo r t h is is h ow we de riv e val ue f r o m

da ta) .

2 . 22 . 22 . 22 . 2 A p p l i c a t i o n KA p p l i c a t i o n KA p p l i c a t i o n KA p p l i c a t i o n K n o w l e d g en o w l e d g en o w l e d g en o w l e d g e D e f i n i t i o nD e f i n i t i o nD e f i n i t i o nD e f i n i t i o n

Applica t ion Kn ow le d ge ( AK) is a l l t he kn ow le d ge (in the s ense

int r od uce d in the pr evio us se ct i on) neces sary t o s uccessf u l ly a chieve an

o bjec tive ( li ke runn i ng a b usiness , f or e xam ple). B o th kn o wl ed ge and

co m peten ce un iv oca ll y char ac ter ize an d dif f eren tia te en ti t ies (h u mans) of a

syste m (s ocie ty) . Th r ou g h Mu l ti Age nt Sys te ms we in ten d t o tra nsfer s uc h

pro pe r ties t o co m pute r- base d sys te ms, so t ha t we c ou l d re pro d uce

inte l l i gen t m o de ls fo r syste ms wh ich may evi dence s i mi lar i ties ( in beha vi ou r

and c ons ti t ut i on, in deed) t o a soc ie ty of “in d ivi dua ls ” . M ASs a re the

techn o l o gica l rea li za ti on wh ich m ost re semb les t hese cha ra cte ris tics ,

s im pli fyin g the f o r m a l i z a t i o nf o r m a l i z a t i o nf o r m a l i z a t i o nf o r m a l i z a t i o n , r e p r e s e n t a t i o nr e p r e s e n t a t i o nr e p r e s e n t a t i o nr e p r e s e n t a t i o n and u t i l i z a t i o nu t i l i z a t i o nu t i l i z a t i o nu t i l i z a t i o n o f the

applic at i on kn ow le d ge in a do ma in.

The wo r k I hav e pre sente d in [2 ] in t ro d uces d o mai n a ppl ica t ion

kn ow le d ge as , gene ra l ly , a c om plex ent i ty t o be de fine d beca u se o f the




4 2

hete r o genei ty of i ts co m po nents . Des pi te these d if f icu l ties , pa r tic u lar

c lasses o f kn o wle d ge c an be gene rica l ly iden t if ie d an d ci rcu msc ri be d.

Fo r ins tance:

1) Decla ra ti ve Kn ow le d ge (D K): D K c har a cte rizes “ wha t ” a

do ma in is c o m posed of; i ts c ons ti tu t ive ele ments , the ir re la ti ons,

the ir in te rac ti ons an d possi b le h ier arc hic al de pend encies . D K is

co m pose d, in t u rn, o f:

a . Do main Descr i pt i on Kn ow le d ge (DD K): i t refe rs t o the pr o fi le

of s u bjec ts ac tin g in t he d o main ( pe o ple , pro fessi ona ls , s oc ia l

or g anis m, ins ti t u ti ons and so f o r th, an d t h e ski l ls , c oncerns ,

aspira t ions of t he i ndiv id ua ls w hic h t h ey re presen t) , th e

envir on men ta l res ou rces t o b e accessed and th e po lic ies

g ove rnin g t he env ir on men t;

b. Serv ice Kn ow le dge ( S K): i t co m prises t he def ini ti on an d

descr i pti on of a l l s ervices c once ive d in the “s ocie ty o f

indi vi dua ls ” , in a s pec i f ic c on tex t o r d om ain;

c . Techn o lo g ica l Kn o w l ed ge (T K): it in ten ds t o esta b lis h a

co mm on con ce pt ua li zat i on of the tec hn o l o gica l arc hi tec t ure

and i ts cons t ruc ts , and t o enab le t he au t oma t i on of

deve lo pmen t pr ocesse s . T K incl u des va ri o us ele men ts , s uch as

the gene ra l conce pt ua li za ti on o f t he deve l o pmen t co m ponen ts

( i .e . messa ges , enc o d ings , c om m unica t ion lan g ua ges , an d s o

on), the me th o d ol o gy or t he a ppr oac h to b e ad o pte d, an d the

im ple ment at i on an d de pl oy men t po lic ies tha t m us t c o m ply

wi th se lec ted g u ide lin es .

2) P roce d ur al Kn ow le d g e (P K): i t re prese nts wha t an ac to r o f t he

do ma in is a b le o r enti t le d to d o, e m phas izi ng i ts “dyn amic

beha vi ou ra l ca pa bi l it i es” (t ha t is , i ts pe rs o nal ca pa bi l it ies w hic h can

be co m bine d to ge t h er in o r der t o def i ne muc h m o re co m plex




4 3

inte rac ti ons w i th o t h er ac t o rs of the d o main) . One of t he m ost

im por ta nt iss ues re g ard in g t he P K is th e poss i bi l i ty t o f o rm al ly

descr ib e it by f or ma l is ms enab l in g its o rches tr at i on and reu t i l iza ti on.

P K co m prises , in t urn , the O bjec t ive Kn ow le d ge (O K), w hich

descr ib es th e m oda l it ies and t he st ra te gies by wh ich a gen ts of the

syste m tr y t o ac hieve t hei r own g oa ls .

2 .2 .1 Mo de l C o mplex i ty

In secti on 2.2 I h ave pro pose d a view of t he applic at i on kn o wle d g e as

an assemb la ge of wel l de fine d co m ponen ts , w hic h de te rm ine t he

char acte r iza ti on of a bus iness c on tex t. I t c l ear ly res u l ted t ha t m o del l in g AK

is a co m plex tas k.

Al th o ug h the re can b e a t o uch of gen ius in al l of us , in t he re al m of

ind us tr ial ize d so f twa r e we canno t re ly ( onl y) on div ine ins pi ra ti on t o ca rry

us t hr o ug h. We are aske d t o co nsi der m ore disc i pl ined ways to m ast er

co m plex i ty . Wh en co nceivin g ne w a ppl ica ti on s ol u ti ons, s of t ware desi gners

are o ften requ ire d t o man ag e (a t t he s am e t im e) e le ments der ivin g fr o m

dif feren t in fo r ma ti on do mains: bus iness m ode l, envi r onm ent a l st ruc t ur e

and i ts reg u la ti ons, a nd te chn o lo g ica l req u ire men ts and di f f icu l t ies . T ryin g

t o mo de l a techn o l o gic al so l u ti on bec o m es a ch al len g ing tas k: i t is n ot

expec ta b le (no r feasi bl e) t o g ove rn suc h a com plex ity as a w ho le . T he

“Di vi de an d conq ue r ” seems to be t he res o lvin g a ppr oac h t o th is pro b le m,

used f r om ea r ly so ft w are pr ojec ts an d sti l l in use t o day. T he tec hniq ue of

mas ter in g c o m ple xi ty has been kn own si nce ancien t t i mes: “ div ide e t

im pe ra ” 6. Ho wever , t h e l ine a l on g w hic h t h e com plex i ty is d ivi de d chan ge d

and the re is s ti l l a d eba te on wh ich way i s t he b est , even i f di vis i ons by

res pons i bi l i ty an d bus iness c om pe tence seem t o meet t h e hi ghes t

acceptance in the c om mun i ty of sys tem des i gne rs .

6 h t t p : / / e n . w i k i p e d i a . o r g / w i k i / D i v i d e _ a n d _ r u l e




4 4

When desi gni ng a co m plex s of tw are s y ste m, it is essen t ia l t o

dec om pose i t in t o sm al ler an d sm al le r par ts (of c ou rse, n o t n o t n o t n o t i n d e f i n i t e l yi n d e f i n i t e l yi n d e f i n i t e l yi n d e f i n i t e l y as I

presen t in nex t s ec ti on 2 .3 .2) , e ach of wh ich we may t h en ref ine

inde pen den tly . In t his manne r, we sa tis fy th e very rea l c ons tr ain t tha t exis ts

on the chann el ca paci ty of h uman c og ni ti o n: t o un ders tan d any give n leve l

of a sys te m, we nee d on ly co m prehen d a fe w par ts (r at he r t han a l l pa r ts) a t

once. Indee d, as P arnas o bserve d, int e l l i gen t dec o m posi ti o n di rec tly

add resses t he inhe re nt c o m pl exi ty of s of t ware b y f o rcin g a di vis i on of a

syste m's st ate s pace [69 ]. T he “d ivi de e t im pe ra ” phi l os o phy a pplie d to

sof t ware en g ineer in g i s wha t bes t see ms t o appr oxi ma te t he one unde r lyin g

the a gen t- based a ppr oac h; t he phi l oso phy whic h lea ds t o con side r t he

agen t- pa rad i gm as a nat u ra l m o de ll in g t echno l o gy in h i gh ly po pul ate d

do ma ins .

2 . 32 . 32 . 32 . 3 T h e C o n c e p t o f T h e C o n c e p t o f T h e C o n c e p t o f T h e C o n c e p t o f ““““ N a t u r a l N a t u r a l N a t u r a l N a t u r a l M o d e l l i n gM o d e l l i n gM o d e l l i n gM o d e l l i n g ””””

Ho w may the a gen t para di g m be c onsi dere d as m ore e ffec t ive t han

o the rs in conc ept ua li zin g new so f twa re so l ut i ons? W hy t he ch oi ce of t he

ter m “n at u ra l” ?

The re a re seve ra l rea sons why I c ons ide r a gen t pa ra di g m as a m ore

nat ura l ( in the sense of mo re su i tab le) s o lu ti on f o r desi gne rs w h en deal in g

wi th t he m o de ll in g o f “cr o wde d ” ( popu la te d) d o mains , as presen ted in the

fo l l ow ings sec ti ons.

2 .3 .1 Mo re N at u ra l Te r min o lo gy

Firs t of a l l we sh ou l d no t f or ge t th at a gen t- base d so ft wa re is , ind eed,

s o f t w a r es o f t w a r es o f t w a r es o f t w a r e . This cons equen tly i m pl ies the fact t ha t bo t h mo d el lin g an d

rea liz at i on a re the re sul t o f a c o mm i tmen t (an d mu t ua l unde r stan din g)

be tween the c on t rac tu al par t ies inv o lved : t h e cust o mer , on the on e s ide, an d

the d evel o pin g c o m pany ( the con t rac t or , in gene ra l) , on the o t her . By

m ode l lin g d o main s t h ou g h a gen t-base d sys t ems, I T des igne rs an d cus to me rs




4 5

wi l l be na t ur al ly led t o u ti l ize a c o mm on “l an gua ge ”, use c om m on te r ms.

This re presen ts a r elevan t fac t or of fa i lu re av oi dance in a pr ojec t ’s

deve lo pmen t and i t is of ten un der est im ate d by mana ge rs .

I l l us tra t ion in Fi g ure 5 pr o poses t o c la ri f y th is conce pt. Fr o m one

s ide, w e have t he ecle ctic (an d so me ti mes t o o abs t rac t) lan g ua ge spo ken by

bus iness ex pe r ts; f r om t he ot he r, the inc o m prehens ib le te r min o lo g y of m os t

IT desi gne rs , wh o te nd to he rme t ica lly t h ink on ly in ter ms of al g or it h ms,

connec ti ons, f l o w-cha rts , o bjec ts , me th o ds, and so f o rt h. In any case , wha t

we re al ly have t o dea l wi th in t he re al w o rl d is pe o ple , t hin gs an d r u les . Al l

o the r a bs t rac ti ons c an be in her i ted f ro m t his assu m pti on.

F i g u r e F i g u r e F i g u r e F i g u r e 5555 : A g e n t: A g e n t: A g e n t: A g e n t ---- o r i e n t e d T e r m i n o l o g y C o n v e r g e n c eo r i e n t e d T e r m i n o l o g y C o n v e r g e n c eo r i e n t e d T e r m i n o l o g y C o n v e r g e n c eo r i e n t e d T e r m i n o l o g y C o n v e r g e n c e

Agen t para di g m he l p r each c o n v e r g e n c ec o n v e r g e n c ec o n v e r g e n c ec o n v e r g e n c e in expl oi te d te rms ( la bel s in

Fi gu re 5) , by synt he sizin g h u man-s peci f ic conce pts , suc h as a ct or , r o le ,

acti ons , tas ks , be havi ou rs , s t ra tegy , and s o f or t h. T hese te r ms are m uch

be tte r un de rs to o d by do main ex pe r ts , w h o are n o t IT ex pe r ts , gener al ly .

Thin kin g in ter ms of “ ac to rs ” (an a gen ts) “a ct in g” in a speci f ic

“envi r on ment ” (M AS ), of ten m a ppin g a t ang ib le h u man “ r o le” , is easi ly




4 6

pe rceive d (an d i ma gi ned) by pa r ties as a m ore na tu ra l manne r t o m ode l, in

co m par is on wi th the c lassic al ter ms t ra di ti o nal ly en ga ge d.

In o t her w o rds, ag ent-r ela te d c once pts ten d t o r e d u c e t h e r e d u c e t h e r e d u c e t h e r e d u c e t h e

c o m m u n i c a t i o n g a p b e t w e e n c o m m u n i c a t i o n g a p b e t w e e n c o m m u n i c a t i o n g a p b e t w e e n c o m m u n i c a t i o n g a p b e t w e e n t h e c o m m i s s i o n e r t h e c o m m i s s i o n e r t h e c o m m i s s i o n e r t h e c o m m i s s i o n e r a n d a n d a n d a n d t h e t h e t h e t h e s o f t w a r e s o f t w a r e s o f t w a r e s o f t w a r e

d e s i g n e r s d e s i g n e r s d e s i g n e r s d e s i g n e r s a t a ve ry e ar ly s ta ge in t he c onc eptu al iza t ion o f the s of t ware , by

br in gin g c l ose r to d o main ex per ts un ders ta ndin g t hose c once pts whi ch a re

ty pica l of t he IT wo r ld ( and v ice ve rsa); c l ose to t he w ay envi r on ment is

nat ura l ly pe rce ived by h umans .

It is my opini on t ha t the f unda men ta l c on cept whi ch dif fer ent i ates

agen ts fr o m o th er te c hno l o gy, as we ll as d efines t hei r uniq uene ss , is t ha t

they ac t in c o m pl ian ce wi t h a b e h a v i o u r a l m o d e lb e h a v i o u r a l m o d e lb e h a v i o u r a l m o d e lb e h a v i o u r a l m o d e l , by synt he sizin g an d

der ivin g a ct i ons even wi th o u t the int erven t i on of hu mans , an d f o ll ow in g the

ou t lin ed g u ide lines of the ir inne r s t ra te gy a n d o bjec tives .

We can cha rac te rize b ehavi o urs as a sequen ce of a ct i ons execu te d by

an agen t in or de r t o achieve a go al , be i t explic i tly o r i m plic it l y defi ned

(even ta king n o ac t io n, in t his sense , is the s im ples t be hav io u r t h at an a gen t

can assu me). I have presen ted so me ma jo r exam ples on a gen t be havi o ura l

char acte r iza ti on in my wo r ks in pa pe rs [6 ] a nd [8 ], fo r the def ini t i on of ca re

tre at men t and a dm inis tr at i on se rvic es pro vis ion .

2 .3 .2 At om iza t ion vs . C o m plexi ty

Let us i ma gine , f or a whi le , a scenar i o in w hich s of t wa re des i gner s are

aske d t o pr ovi de t he plannin g of an a r ti f ic i al sys te m ’s deve lo pme nt a nd t he

m omen t when t hey a re a bo u t t o dec id e o n the te chn o lo g ica l s o lu ti on t o

ad o pt f o r the a dd ress ed o bjec t ive . In any c ase , t hey wi l l need t o (I name d

the m as th e “ th ree R ” – 3 R3 R3 R3 R ):

a) R e p l i c a t eR e p l i c a t eR e p l i c a t eR e p l i c a t e t he c on t ext ua l env ir on men t;

b) R e p r o d u c eR e p r o d u c eR e p r o d u c eR e p r o d u c e the b usiness d o main of in ter est ( to ge t her w i th i ts

t o po l o gy, f unc ti ona li t y , s tra te gi es , l o gics an d se rvices) ;




4 7

c) R e a l i z eR e a l i z eR e a l i z eR e a l i z e the tec hn o l og ica l a rch i tec tu re w hich w il l e m b ody al l the

co m ponen ts men t ion ed in a) an d b), n o t t o men ti on a l l t he s peci f ic

arr an gemen ts necessa ry t o o rches t ra te t he s yste m as a wh o le .

N ow , try in g t o man age a ll these el emen ts as a s in g le in teg r ate d

syste m, w it h cen tr al ized c on t ro ls an d di rec tives , w ou l d le ad t o an

un go verna b le co m ple xity , as wel l as t o t he l oss o f t he ini tia l b usiness

or ien ta ti ons, w hic h sh ou l d a l ways re main cl ear du rin g the wh o le proc ess o f

the s of t ware d evel o pmen t. I have c on t ri bu te d t o t he M AS pla t fo r m

deve lo pe d d u rin g my r esearch pe ri o d (as I i l l ust ra te d, f or exa m ple, in pa pe rs

[8] an d [11 ]) c o m pl ying w i th t hese g ui d elines . Dev el o pmen ts evi denced

ho w the ad o pti on o f a mu l ti t ude o f a t o mize d agen ts en o r mo us ly l i g htens t he

wo r k of des i gners , w ho can c oncen t ra te o n the mo de l lin g o f e ach ac to r ’s

s ing u la ri ties and ca pa bi li t ies , o bserv in g h o w the sys te m c o m ple x ity can be

the res u lt o f an e mer gin g phen omen on . In o the r wo r ds, c om ple xity can be

seen as t he resu l tan t o f c o mm unic at i on c ons tel la t io ns occ ur ri ng am on g

act o rs (a gen ts) in t he envir on men t ( M AS) .

F i g u r e F i g u r e F i g u r e F i g u r e 6666 : A t o m i z a t i o n o f a : A t o m i z a t i o n o f a : A t o m i z a t i o n o f a : A t o m i z a t i o n o f a M u l t i A g e n t S y s t e mM u l t i A g e n t S y s t e mM u l t i A g e n t S y s t e mM u l t i A g e n t S y s t e m

Acc o rd in g t o th ese i ntr o d uct o ry assu m pti ons, t he a gents I h a ve

concei ved ref lec t the appr oach i l l us tra te d i n Fi gu re 6: they c ons ti t u te t he




4 8

po pu la te d envi r on me nt whe reas the ir c a pabi li t ies a re suc h tha t they c an

rec ogn ize g ui del ines s peci f ic of the DD K, S K, T K an d O K (see s ecti on 2.2

fo r m ore de ta i ls) . Ag ents , s pe cif ica lly , can be c ons ide re d as t h e sma l les t

enti t ies (and th is is th e sense of the ter m “a t o miza t i on”) ac t ing in a bus iness

do ma in w hic h a re t o e mb o dy e lemen ts a nd di rec tives c o min g f r o m a ll leve ls

of t he AK ( refe r t o sec ti on 2.2 f o r a co m plete cha rac te r iza ti on of

Applica t ion Kn ow le d g e).

An a gent is n ot ex pecte d t o be t he s ma l lest sys tem ’s deve l o pe d

co m ponen t in a bs ol u t e ter ms, b u t i t is t h e t h e t h e t h e s m a l l e s t s m a l l e s t s m a l l e s t s m a l l e s t e n t i t y e n t i t y e n t i t y e n t i t y i ni ni ni n t h e s y s t e m t h e s y s t e m t h e s y s t e m t h e s y s t e m

w i t h w i t h w i t h w i t h t h e t h e t h e t h e m o s t m o s t m o s t m o s t cccc o m p l e t eo m p l e t eo m p l e t eo m p l e t e m i n i m a l m i n i m a l m i n i m a l m i n i m a l rrrr e p r e s e n t a t i o ne p r e s e n t a t i o ne p r e s e n t a t i o ne p r e s e n t a t i o n o f t h e A Ko f t h e A Ko f t h e A Ko f t h e A K (i nten ded as

D D KD D KD D KD D K ++++ O KO KO KO K ( c o r e o f P K ) ( c o r e o f P K ) ( c o r e o f P K ) ( c o r e o f P K ) ++++ T KT KT KT K ++++ S KS KS KS K ) nec essary f o r the ach ieve men t of i ts

g oa ls . T he a t om iza t io n of t he sys tem c o m ponen ts behav i ou r le ads us t o

consi de r co m ple xi ty as a natura l e mer gin g phen o men on; as a mere

der iva ti on o f en t it ies i nte rac ti ons .

2 .3 .3 Real iza ti on in K4C are P r ojec t

In th is sec ti on I wi l l re po r t the ma jo r aspec ts con cern in g t he

deve lo pmen ts ( base d on t he princ i ples j us t int r od uce d) rea lize d wi th in th e

K4 Ca re pr ojec t, t ryi ng t o priv i le ge the same di ffe ren tia ti on of c l asses

i l l ust ra te d in pre vi ou s Sect i on 2.2 . The c onc rete desi gn of K4Ca re AK

m ode l w as base d on the s pec if i c d o main ’s reso u rces and pr oce sses of the

Ho me Ca re, use d in t h e cl inica l ins ti t u ti ons of K4 Care m ed ica l pa r tne rs .

D o m a i n D e s c r i p t i o n K n o w l e d g e ( D D K )D o m a i n D e s c r i p t i o n K n o w l e d g e ( D D K )D o m a i n D e s c r i p t i o n K n o w l e d g e ( D D K )D o m a i n D e s c r i p t i o n K n o w l e d g e ( D D K )

The req ui re men ts an alysis necessa ry to pro vi de agen t- base d HC

services poin ted ou t t wo main d if f icu l ti es , a s i t can be ac kn o w led g ed in [11 ].

On the one s i de, n u m ero us di f fe ren t ty pes of pr ofess i ona ls , wi th very

dive rse s ki l ls an d kn ow le d ge, had t o be pro pe r ly c o or dina te d in the ir

acti vi ties in o r der to o ffer an eff icien t H C as sistan ce.




4 9

It w as necessa ry , f irs t of a l l , t o m o del med ica l an d s ocia l

prac ti ti one rs , as we l l as care g ive rs an d r ela tives o f a pa t ient (as we ll as

ski l ls , pe rm issi ons, re sponsi bi l it ies , an d s o fo r th), as f or ma l ly de scri bed in

the pr o ject by the Ac t or Pr o fi le Ont o l o gy – APO .

T a b l e T a b l e T a b l e T a b l e 1111 : L i s t o f : L i s t o f : L i s t o f : L i s t o f M a i n A c t o r s M a i n A c t o r s M a i n A c t o r s M a i n A c t o r s i n i n i n i n K 4 C a r eK 4 C a r eK 4 C a r eK 4 C a r e

- fam ily d oc t o r – F DF DF DF D

- phys ici an in ch ar ge – P CP CP CP C

- head nu rse – H NH NH NH N

- nurse – N uN uN uN u

- speci al is t physici an – S PS PS PS P

- socia l w o r ker – S WS WS WS W

- speci al ised ca re g iver – S C GS C GS C GS C G

- inf or ma l c are give r– I C GI C GI C GI C G

Nex t t o a l l phys ica l act o rs , the re is one whi ch dese rves a f ur the r

int r od uc ti on, c ons ist ing of a l o gic al g r ou pin g o f pr act i ti o ners: the

Eval ua ti on Uni t – E UE UE UE U . An E U is c o m posed of a FD, a P C o f t he HC , a H N,

and a S W wh ose o bje ctiv e is t o assess pr ob lems , def ine in te rven t ion pl ans ,

iden ti fy the pro pe r proce d ures , eva lu at e the res ul ts an d veri fy t he

achieve men t of the g o als de fine d. On t he o t her s i de, t he ty pica l H o me Ca re

pa tien t – H CP – is an elde r ly pa t ien t wi th c o- mo r bi d con d it io ns and

diseases , co gn i tive a nd /o r phys ica l i m pa ir men t, f unc ti ona l l oss f r om

mu l ti ple disa b il i t ies , and i m pa ire d se lf- de pendency . M o de ll i ng of v ery

gene ra l dise ases and the ir hea lt h ca re t rea t ments were fo r ma lly descr ibe d

wi th in t he pro jec t by t he Case P r of i le On t o l o gy - C P O.

It is pa r tic u lar ly re lev ant t o s tr ess tha t t he maj o ri ty of e l der ly pat ients

usua l ly have mu l ti ple co- mo r bi di ties and m edica t ions , w hic h mus t be ta ken

int o acc oun t. T he presence of d if feren t med ica l c on di ti ons o n a given

pa tien t c o m plica tes t h e t rea tmen t en o r mo us ly , an d ma kes i t very d if f icu l t t o

fo l l ow s tan dar d c lin ic al pr act ice gu ide l ines . A re cent pa pe r a r gue s tha t the

co mb ina ti on o f rec o mmen da ti ons f o r the t rea t men t of pa tien t s wi t h c o-

m or bi di ty is one of t he ten gr and cha l len ges in c lin ica l dec is i on s u ppo r t

[62 ]. The f o l lo win g Fi g ure 7 an d Fi g ure 8 re po r t D D K in a g ra ph ica l




5 0

di mensi on, in wh ic h H C do ma in c on cepts resu l t f o r ma li zed in an

on t ol o gic al in te rc onn ectin g ne tw o r k.

F i g u r e F i g u r e F i g u r e F i g u r e 7777 : D o m a i n D e s c r i p t i o n K n o w l e d g e o f I n t e r v e n t i o n A s s e s s m e n t s ( f r o m t h e C P O ): D o m a i n D e s c r i p t i o n K n o w l e d g e o f I n t e r v e n t i o n A s s e s s m e n t s ( f r o m t h e C P O ): D o m a i n D e s c r i p t i o n K n o w l e d g e o f I n t e r v e n t i o n A s s e s s m e n t s ( f r o m t h e C P O ): D o m a i n D e s c r i p t i o n K n o w l e d g e o f I n t e r v e n t i o n A s s e s s m e n t s ( f r o m t h e C P O )

Acc o rd in g to G AI A ( see Sec ti on 1.4 .1 f or m ore de tai ls) , in div id ua ls

(agen ts) I de vel o pe d may have in a s ocie ty one o r mo re r oles , a ctin g as a

s ing le or in a g r ou p. A r o le , in t urn , is cha r acte ri zed by t he ac ti o ns tha t can

be exec u ted , the res o urces t ha t can b e acc essed, t he per m issi on s recei ved,

the ob l ig at i ons t o be h on ou re d, t he pro ced ur es t o be f o l lo we d, an d so fo r th .

F i g u r e F i g u r e F i g u r e F i g u r e 8888 : D o m a i n D e s c r i p t i o n K n o w l e d g e o f H C D o m a i n ( f r o m t h e A P O ): D o m a i n D e s c r i p t i o n K n o w l e d g e o f H C D o m a i n ( f r o m t h e A P O ): D o m a i n D e s c r i p t i o n K n o w l e d g e o f H C D o m a i n ( f r o m t h e A P O ): D o m a i n D e s c r i p t i o n K n o w l e d g e o f H C D o m a i n ( f r o m t h e A P O )




5 1

S e r v i c e K n o w l e d g e ( S K )S e r v i c e K n o w l e d g e ( S K )S e r v i c e K n o w l e d g e ( S K )S e r v i c e K n o w l e d g e ( S K )

In K4 Ca re mo de l, H C pro cesses a re re pr esente d an d exec u ted via

agen t- base d serv ices . A se rvice is a s pec if i cati on o f c om plex in ter ac ti ons

am on g ac t ors (a gen ts ) o f a cer ta in ty pe in vo lvin g t he exe cu ti on o f one o r

severa l ac t i ons acc o rd ing to s ome c ond i ti on s.

I h ave c irc u mscr i bed t he f o l l ow ing c once pts :

• Serv ice : i t is an a bs tr act re presen ta t ion o f a co m ple x ac tiv ity ,

ty pica l ly ac co m plis he d vi a the co l la b ora t io n of seve ra l ac t ors (g reen

rec tan gles in Fi g u re 9 , ind ica te d by an “ S xS xS xS x ” l abe l) . I t may have s ev era l

instan t ia ti ons, w hic h a re ca l le d proce d ures .

Diff eren t pr oce d ures instan t ia tin g the sa m e service may b e use d fo r

dif feren t lo cal isa ti ons , e .g. , in dif fere nt c ou ntr ies o r me dic al cen t res .

In t his m anner , each med ica l cent re can i m ple men t a ser vice ta kin g

int o acc oun t b o th i t s pa r tic u la r poin t of vie w an d the eff ect ive

avai la bi l i ty o f res ou rc es;

F i g u r e F i g u r e F i g u r e F i g u r e 9999 : S e r v i c e K n o w l e d g e d e s c r i p t i o n ( p s e u d o S D A * r e p r e s e n t a t i o n ): S e r v i c e K n o w l e d g e d e s c r i p t i o n ( p s e u d o S D A * r e p r e s e n t a t i o n ): S e r v i c e K n o w l e d g e d e s c r i p t i o n ( p s e u d o S D A * r e p r e s e n t a t i o n ): S e r v i c e K n o w l e d g e d e s c r i p t i o n ( p s e u d o S D A * r e p r e s e n t a t i o n )

• P roce d ure : i t is a f or ma l desc ri pt ion o f a s et of tas ks (nes te d

services o r a t o mic acti ons) o r gani zed i n so me wo r kf l ow , b e it

sequen tia l , pa ra l le l , o r w i th c on di ti ona l b ra nches ( oran ge rec tan g les

5 2

in F ig u re 9 , in dica te d by a “ P x . yP x . yP x . yP x . y ” la be l) . T he pr oce d ure may be the

instan t ia ti on of a m edica l or mana ge men t ser vice in t he me d ical

cent re . The w o rkf lo w c on tr o l s t ruc t ures are desc ri be d in S DA *

lan gu a ge (see Sec t io n s 3 .5 and 3.6 f or a m ore det ai led ex plana ti on).

P roce d ures a re crea te d by h um ans, us ua lly med ica l cent re man a g ers

or phys icians in ch ar g e o f Ho me C are un i ts;

• Ac ti on : i t is an a t om ic act ivi ty tha t can be e x ecu ted by an ac to r

s ing u la rly (t hi r d pa ra me ter o f a Tas k – se e af ter f or m o re de tai ls) .

The se t of ac ti ons tha t an a ct o r is ab le t o perf or m c an be co nsi de red

as his /her s ki l ls o r a bi l i t ies . T hese ac ti ons a r e descr i bed in a s tan d ard

manne r us in g an a ppli cati on on t o lo gy , w hic h pr ovi des inde pen de nce

be tween t he w o r kf l ow descr i pti on of H C ac tiv i ties an d the c onc r ete

speci f ica t i on of the H C m ode l o f an or gan iz ati on .

A ve ry s im ple s erv ice can be even c o m pos ed of a s ing le ac ti on, ind eed

(Rig h t c o l umn in Fi g u re 9);

• Tas k : i t re presen ts an execu ti on s te p i n a pr oced u re or

inte rven ti on plan. T h e tas k TTTT is desc ri bed by a 4-tu ple ( l i gh t-c yan

rec tan gles in F i gu re 9 ):

T = T = T = T = <<<< s u b j e c t , o b j e c t , s e r v i c e / a c t i o n , d o c us u b j e c t , o b j e c t , s e r v i c e / a c t i o n , d o c us u b j e c t , o b j e c t , s e r v i c e / a c t i o n , d o c us u b j e c t , o b j e c t , s e r v i c e / a c t i o n , d o c u m e n tm e n tm e n tm e n t >>>>

The s u bjec t is t he ty pe of a gen t (e . g. , a n ur se , a s ocia l w or ke r) w ho

has to ini ti at e t he neste d serv ice ( whi c h, a t the sa me ti me , is

associ at ed w i th a ne w pr oced u re wi t h severa l tas ks) or exec ut e the

acti on . T he o bjec t is t he ac t or on w hic h the servi ce is ex pec ted t o be

execu ted (e .g . , a s pec i f ic pa tien t) . The res ul ts of the exe cu ti on of an

acti on are inc lu de d i n t he given d oc umen t. Al l ac t ors m us t ref lec t

the ir ac tiv i ties in t o d o cumen ts .

T e c h n o l o g i c a l K n o w l e d g e ( T K )T e c h n o l o g i c a l K n o w l e d g e ( T K )T e c h n o l o g i c a l K n o w l e d g e ( T K )T e c h n o l o g i c a l K n o w l e d g e ( T K )

In a dd i ti on t o d oma i n conce pt ua li za ti on a nd m ode l lin g, i t has been

necessary t o de te r min e, is ol ate , f o rma l ize a nd re presen t c once pt s der ivin g




5 3

fr om o the r deve lo pm ent c on tex ts , necessa ry t o bu i ld t he a gen t ’s in te rna l

re presen ta t ion of t he envir on men ta l inf ras tr uc tu re.

F i g u r e F i g u r e F i g u r e F i g u r e 1 01 01 01 0 : T e c h n o l o g i c a l K n o w l e d g e d e s c r i p t i o n ( O n t o l o g y ): T e c h n o l o g i c a l K n o w l e d g e d e s c r i p t i o n ( O n t o l o g y ): T e c h n o l o g i c a l K n o w l e d g e d e s c r i p t i o n ( O n t o l o g y ): T e c h n o l o g i c a l K n o w l e d g e d e s c r i p t i o n ( O n t o l o g y )




5 4

I have or g anize d tech no lo g ica l asse ts , suc h as MAS c om ponen ts , as

i l l ust ra te d in Fi g ure 10. They have bee n cate go ri zed acc o rd ing t o the

speci f ic as pec ts of the deve l o pment pr ocess , and gr o u ped in t o hi erar chi cal

on t ol o gy sets (f u rt he r de tai le d in sect ion 3.2 .1): FI P A, G AI A a nd JADE

on t ol o gy. In pa r tic u la r , t he Tec hno l o gic al Kn ow le d ge m o del of t he K4 Ca re

hi gh li g h ts t he rel at i o ns I have rec o gni zed and es ta bl ishe d a mo n g the th ree

dif feren t ont o l o gy lev els , m issin g un ti l t hen in a gen t- or ien ted l i ter at ure .

I have g iven pa r tic u l ar i m por tanc e t o t he assoc ia ti ons re po r te d in

fo l l ow ing T ab le 2 , wh ich have been def ined (conc ept ua l l in ks in Fi gu re 10)

in or de r t o ena b le a hi ghe r leve l of au t om at i on in a gen t c ode gene ra ti on.

T a b l e T a b l e T a b l e T a b l e 2222 : M a j o r R e l a t i o n i n K 4 C a r e T K: M a j o r R e l a t i o n i n K 4 C a r e T K: M a j o r R e l a t i o n i n K 4 C a r e T K: M a j o r R e l a t i o n i n K 4 C a r e T K

1 A G AI A Ac tiv i ty wi th a F I P A Ac ti on;

2 A J ADE Be havi o ur w i t h a G AI A Ac tiv i ty;

3 A J ADE Agen t w it h a GAI A Ro le;

4

A FI P A In te rac ti on Pr o to co l w it h a J ADE Ag ent

(whi ch re lies , in tu rn, on a J ADE Behav i ou r

emb o dyin g J ADE In te rac ti on P r o to co ls);

5 A J ADE Messa ge w it h a F I P A Messa ge.

P r o c e d u r a l ( P K )P r o c e d u r a l ( P K )P r o c e d u r a l ( P K )P r o c e d u r a l ( P K ) a n d O b j e c t i v e K n o w l e d g ea n d O b j e c t i v e K n o w l e d g ea n d O b j e c t i v e K n o w l e d g ea n d O b j e c t i v e K n o w l e d g e ( O K )( O K )( O K )( O K )

P roce d ur al Kn ow le d g e is com pose d o f al l the t rea t men ts f or co-

m or bi d c on di ti ons an d re fers t o t he nee d t o define pers ona lise d tre at men ts

t o be c ust o mise d t o each spe cif ic pat ien t, accor di ng t o his /her par t icu la r

med ica l and s ocia l c i r cums tan ces . Tea ms o f pr ofess i ona ls t ha t are in char ge

of pa tien ts can u ti l i ze K4C are a gen t pla tf o r m t o b ui l d P K t h ro u g h the s o-

cal led I nd ivi dua l In te rven ti on P lans (I I Ps) . II Ps are t une d t o t he pat ien t’s

speci f ic necess i ties , t aking in to a cco un t th e heal t h care rec o mm enda ti ons

su ppo r ted by t he cl ini cal evi dence acq ui red in clin ica l t ria ls an d re presen ted

in the f o rm o f s o-ca l le d Fo r ma l Inte rven t ion P lans (F I Ps).




5 5

A FI P is a ve ry gene r al inte rven t ion pla n, wh ose g oa l is t o pr ovi de a

pri mary o rien ta t ion i n the hea l th ca re of speci f ic we ll- kn o wn diseases .

I l l us tra t ion i n Fi g ure 11 is an exam ple of S DA-c o di f ie d P K f o r t h e pr ov isi on

of a me di cal t rea tm ent, ca l led Case Ma nage men t ( in yel l ow , decis i on

br anches; in cya n, tas ks; a nd in g rey-b o rde red rec tan g les , d oc um ent t o be

f i l le d and /o r c o mmen ts) .

F i g u r e F i g u r e F i g u r e F i g u r e 1 11 11 11 1 : : : : S c r a t c h o f S c r a t c h o f S c r a t c h o f S c r a t c h o f O b j e c t i v e K n o w l e d g e d e s c r i p t i o n (O b j e c t i v e K n o w l e d g e d e s c r i p t i o n (O b j e c t i v e K n o w l e d g e d e s c r i p t i o n (O b j e c t i v e K n o w l e d g e d e s c r i p t i o n ( E x a m p l e o f C a s e M a n a g e m e n tE x a m p l e o f C a s e M a n a g e m e n tE x a m p l e o f C a s e M a n a g e m e n tE x a m p l e o f C a s e M a n a g e m e n t ))))

The O b ject ive Kn o wle d ge, fo r an ac t o r (a gen t) of K4 Ca r e, is

gene ra lly re presen te d by t he f o l l ow ing tw o e lem ents :

1) The bus iness l o gics (explic i tly o r no t) f or ma li zed t hr o u gh i t s

beha vi ou ra l mo de ls and a t om ize d in t o t he ele men ta ry ac ti on s

(on to l o gic al ly in tr o d u ced in the APO) t a ken by t he a gent ;

2) The pro visi on l o gics ( descr ib ed by an SD A m ode l) f o l lo we d in t h e

co or din at i on of a H C service exec u ti on.




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2.3.4 C om m unica t ion Sema ntics

Agen t-b ased c o mm un icat i on is a f ar m or e powe rf u l and e le g ant

abs tr act i on t han a me th od inv oca ti on wi th in an o bje ct . T he w or k we

presen ted in pa pe rs [ 2], [ 3] , [8 ], [1 0] an d [11 ] hi g hl i gh ts h o w t he agen t is

an ac tive en ti ty wi t hi n a sys te m of in div id ua l en ti t ies , wh ose in ter ac ti on

capa b il i t ies are ena b l ed by t hei r o wn c o m mun ica ti on s ki l ls , ra t her t han by

mere sche d ule d me t ho d i nvo ca ti ons.

In gene ra l , c o mm uni c ati on is an ar t icu la te d pr ocess , rel yin g on the

tr ans po r ta ti on and in ter pre ta ti on o f messa ges . I t c ons is ts (a t le ast b u t n o t

excl usive ly) of a c o mm on lan g ua ge (ch o sen by t he inv o lve d pa r ties an d

tr ans po r tin g t he se man tics of co m mun icat i ons), ro les ( ini tia t o rs or

receive rs) , pr o t oc o ls ( inten ded as the s equence o f messa ges sent in a

speci f ic o r der am on g th e par t ici pan ts t o t he s peech) and c o m m u n i c a t i v e c o m m u n i c a t i v e c o m m u n i c a t i v e c o m m u n i c a t i v e

s p e e c h a c t ss p e e c h a c t ss p e e c h a c t ss p e e c h a c t s (w hic h c l ari fy the in ten ti on of a s in g le messa ge sen t) .

Agen t- o rien te d co m mun ica ti on t ar ge ts a l l the a b ove men ti o ned

conce pts , n ecessary t o ad d se man tics to the co mm unic at i ons, fr o m the ACL

lan gu a ge to t he inte ra cti on pr o toc o ls ty pic a l of a b usin ess ne go t ia ti on. The

agen t lan g ua ge, seen as a syste m of r u les , of fers a n inc l usive v i ew of the

speec h as a fo r m o f co mm uni ca ti on, b y cons ide rin g the “co m mun i cati ve act ”

in te r ms of the co m ponen ts w hic h c o m pr is e it and t he f unc ti ons wh ich c an

be se rved t h ro u gh i t . Fo r i nst ance, acce pt a pr o posal f ro m ano t her agen t;

ag ree on s o me th in g pr evio us ly s ta te d; can ce l an ac tiv i ty; ca l l fo r a pro posa l;

conf ir m o r d isc onfi r m s ome t hin g; a ckn o wle d ge the fai l ure o f an event t o

ano the r a gen t; inf o rm an agent a b ou t so me th in g; say it di d no t u nders tan d

the o the r’s reques t; pr o pa ga te an o rde r /in fo rma t i on; pr o pose s o m eth in g t o

ano the r a gen t; que ry whe the r so me th ing is availa b le o r no t; refuse a

pro posa l o f an a gen t; r eques t f o r s o me th in g; subsc ri be; an d s o f or t h.




5 7

2 . 42 . 42 . 42 . 4 E n v i r o n m e n t a l E n v i r o n m e n t a l E n v i r o n m e n t a l E n v i r o n m e n t a l D y n a m i c sD y n a m i c sD y n a m i c sD y n a m i c s t h r o u g h A g e n t S u b s t i t u t a b i l i t yt h r o u g h A g e n t S u b s t i t u t a b i l i t yt h r o u g h A g e n t S u b s t i t u t a b i l i t yt h r o u g h A g e n t S u b s t i t u t a b i l i t y

The pan ora ma of a l l po ten t ial dyna mics occ ur rin g in a b usin ess

envir on men t canno t be co m ple tely pred ic t ed at desi gn t ime . T his is d ue,

main ly , t o t he in ter o pera bi li ty an d avai la bi l ity of ac t ors an d envi ron men ta l

reso u rces , as we l l a s to the ev o lu t ion of bus iness st ra te gie s , str ic tly

co rre la te d wi th eac h s i ng le ac t o r’s ob jec tives .

So , ac t ua l ly , wh ich is t he sense o f t he te rm “s ubs t it u ta bi l i ty ”?

N o t th at one o f a mer e com pu ter c om pone nt re place men t wi t h a new

one, t o b e i m ple ment ed ( o r may be jus t re tr ieve d) an d de pl oye d i nt o t he

syste m, an d ca usin g m ost o f t i mes a re-de pl oymen t of par t of t he sys tem

itse lf .

Wit h the ter m su bs t it u ta bi l i ty I ra the r i nten ded t o f ocus on the

bus iness eq uiv alen ce of al rea dy ex ist in g en t it ies , t ho u gh t t o be pe rma nent ly

avai la ble in t o t he sys t em an d assu re t he ex pecte d se rvice c on tin uo usness .

This sh o ul d be seen as one of the m os t val ua b le as pec ts in the

expl oi ta ti on of a gent- base d te chn o lo gy : t o have the pe rce pti on (and de-

fact o th e con fi dence ) of the re lia bi l ity a nd avai la b il i ty o f co m po nents

con tin u ous ly ac tin g fo r t he achi evemen t of t he ini ti al ob jec tives ; th e

pe rce pti on t o re ly on kn ow le d ge - an d c on scio usness - dr iven res ou rces . In

M AS- o rien te d pla tf o r ms t his can be seen as a special ize d def ini ti on o f

r e l i a br e l i a br e l i a br e l i a b l e l e l e l e a n d r o b u s t s y s t e ma n d r o b u s t s y s t e ma n d r o b u s t s y s t e ma n d r o b u s t s y s t e m ssss .

Refoc us ing on my re search a ppl ica ti on, w e have to po int o u t tha t

K4 Ca re was a la r ge -size , kno w led ge- in te nsive syste m in wh i ch agen t

inte rac ti on dyna mics had t o be fo r ma lly g ove rned . T his reas on su g gest ed

me t o inves t i ga te the expl oi ta t ion o f usab l e and f le xi ble , bu t a t t he sa me

ti me tr us ta b le and r ig o r ous me th o do l o gi es in t he eva l ua ti on of a gen t

subs t it u ta bi l i ty . I have add ressed tw o a ppr oa ches: one ont o l o gica l , based on

the se man tic eq ui va le nce of a gen t-cen t red K4 Ca re serv ices de fin it io n, and




5 8

one be havi o ur al , by eval ua tin g a gen ts re place men t th r ou g h c apa bi l it ies

s im ul at i on.

The f or me r h as been fu l ly a pplie d b o th in my resea rch w o r k an d in

the deve lo pmen t pr oc ess presen te d in t his man uscr i pt . The la tt er is sti l l in a

conce ptu al iza t ion pha se and w ou l d fu r the r requi re a f or ma l de f ini ti on o f

explic i t con t rac ts be t ween use rs an d a gen t s , as con te m pla ted, f o r exa m ple ,

in the the o ry on C o ntr ac t-Dr iven Sys te m s (w hich I in t r od uce d in pa pe r

[46 ]). Acco r din g ly , I wil l pr esent it in t h e fo ll o win gs on ly in the o re tica l

ter ms.

In HC , des pi te t he availa b il i ty of gen era l med ica l g ui de li nes ,

tre at men ts a re m os t ly pers ona l ize d t o the par tic ul ar pa tie nt case (whi ch is ,

in prac tice , u niq ue in its cha rac te ris ti cs) . C are prac ti t ion ers hav e t o mana ge

do ma in ac to rs ’ ca pabi li t ies , in or de r t o m o del ne w H C services .

Neve r the less , t hey ha ve to d ete r mine a new w or k-f l o w of ac ti ons t o be

co or din ate d d u rin g a service pro visi on. The ca pa bi li t ies o f act o rs are

vari o us an d, c onsi der i ng t he leve l of res pon sib il i ty an d th e sensi t i ve na tu re

of t rea tmen ts , t he “d esigne r ” w ants t o hav e the abs o l ut e assu ra nce of t he

at tain ab i li ty an d va li di ty of these ca pa bi li t ies .

This pr o b lem is eve n ampl if ie d in case of the una vai la bi l i ty of

reques te d ac t o rs: ph ysicians wi l l have t o inves ti ga te avai la b le agen ts , in

or de r t o c ol lec t “e qu i valen t ” be havi o urs , t r ying t o min i mize the “c ost ” of a

possi b le m ism at ch (co mm unic at i ons, r e ad-w ri te o pe ra ti ons, expec te d

inpu ts) w it h the ca pa bi li t ies ini t ial ly requ i red . The eq uiv alenc e in agen ts ’

capa b il i t ies can be o f tw o t ypes: “ tr us ted ” (re por te d in t he fo l lo win g a s

on t ol o gic al eq uiva len ce) o r “ inves ti ga te d” ( by s im u la tin g a gent be havi o urs) .

2 .4 .1 Beha vi ou ra l Eq u iva len ce

My in ten ti on was to f ind a me t ho d t o v ali da te a gen t beha vi o ura l

capa b il i t ies , sys te ma ti cal ly: th is requ ire d m e t o i nt r od uce a n a ge nt- or ien ted

engine er ing me th o do l o gy t o ex plici t ly de fi ne these ex pec ta ti ons fro m an




5 9

agen t ’s act ivi ty . In o th er w or ds, the i dea was t o cons ide r a gent beh avi ou rs as

taci t ly con ce pt ua li ze d a g ree ments , on t h e bas is of w hic h as sur in g the

rel ia bi l i ty and va li di ty o f a gen t ’s ac t ions .

I have t rie d to ex t rac t and a da pt beh avi o u ra l val ida t io n g ui del i nes

pro pe r of O bjec t-O ri ente d sys tems to K4 Ca re M AS. Und o u bt edly the re

appea re d a dd it i ona l ada pta ti on req ui re men ts w hic h s ti l l necessit ate

cla ri f ica ti on and f o rm ali za ti on, as re por te d herea f ter .

One of t he mos t i m por tan t n ot i ons ens ur i ng s of t wa re c o m pone nt’s

co rrec tness t o an acc epta b le ex tent , is t he conce pt of a bs t rac t da ta ty pes

(AD Ts), int r o duce d by L is kovan d [4 7] , w hich re l ies on f o und a ti on w or k

don e by Ho are [48 ] a nd Pa rnas [49 ], [50 ] .

C or rec tness f o rm u las of the fo r m P {P {P {P { QQQQ } R} R} R} R (a ls o cal le d H oa re tr i pl es)

are a m at he ma tica l n o ta ti on and f or m t he b asis f o r asse r ti ons. On t he basis

of th is n o ta ti on we c a n int r od uce c once pts such as “ prec ond it i on s”, “ pos t-

con di ti ons ”, an d “in vari ants ” , t o ex press the c or rec tness pr o pe rt ies o f

me th ods and class es . The i dea o f asse rt i ons led t o t he c once pt o f a con t rac t,

whi ch b in ds a me th o d t o i ts c l ien ts and t here by i m poses o b li g ati ons an d

g ran ts r ig h ts f o r b o t h o f the m. T his c on cept is a ls o ca l le d Desi gn by

C ont rac t (D BC) an d i t was ini t ia l ly in t ro d uc ed by Meye r [51 ].

When t ryin g t o ada pt con t rac t asse r ti ons t o t he a gen t pa ra di g m , in

any case , dif fere nt as pects m us t be ta ken in t o acc oun t. I have i den ti f ie d t he

fo l l ow ings as t he ma jo r ones:

1) Agen ts a re an ex te nsion ( im pr ove men t) of t he OO para di g m , in

the sense th at t hey m anifes t , in a d di ti on t o an ob jec t, a ut on o my,

pro- act ivi ty , s ocia l an d lea rnin g ca pa bi li t ies ;

2) P ur e a gen t- or ien ted des i gnin g a ppr oac hes d o no t inv o lve

me th ods- base d in te ra cti ons (as t ho u gh pr o gr am min g tec hniq ue s

pe rm i t i t) bu t the d efini ti on o f be hav io u ra l m o de ls , w hic h a r e

tr i g gere d by mess age pass ing mechan is ms;




6 0

3) Agen ts can in div id ua lly reas on ove r the envir on men ta l e leme nts ,

th r ou g h on t ol o gy;

4) Agen ts cann o t be o bl i ged t o f o ll o w a c on tra ct in t he s t ric t s ense

int r od uce d ear li er , as they a re ca pa bl e of “ infer ence” , ra t her tha n

bein g a “s i m ply reac ti ve” o bjec t in t he sys te m.

This in t r od uc to ry ana lysis le d me to the f o ll ow in g c ons ide ra ti ons:

1) DB C t he ory can sti l l be a da pte d an d a ppl ied t o M u lt i Agen t

Sys tem des ign , bu t pr e-con di ti ons, pos t-c o ndi ti ons and inva rian t s conce pts

sho u ld be re fer red t o the be hav io u ra l m echanis ms of an a ge nt. Tha t is ,

agen ts h ave t o reas on ove r prec on di ti ons i n or de r t o g ran t t he v erif ica ti on

of ex pec ted c on trac t- b ased ass er ti ons (inva ri ants and post-c on di t io ns);

2) An ag ent d oes n o t own envi r onmen ta l pa ram ete rs wi th in its c l a ss ,

bu t ra the r t hese sh o u ld be co nsi dere d as a n extern al res ou rce a ccessed by

the a gen t;

3) Each a gen t can be seen as an “in te l l i gen t ” b lac k-b ox , wh ose

beha vi ou r can even re main un revea le d to t h e user ’s und ers tan din g (Q te r ms

in Ho are tr i ple) , b ut wh ose effec ts a re clea rly c ons tr aine d and v ali da te d by

the de fin i ti on of a con tr ac t ( P and R te rms i n H oa re t ri ple) .

On t he basis o f a l l previ o us c onsi der at i o ns, I fee l t o a ff i r m t hat

vali da t ing an a gent ’s beha vi ou r wo u ld f ina l ly i m pl y t he ver if ica ti on of the

con tr act c on di t ions ( a g reemen t) be tween t h e tw o pa r ties inv ol ved : the use r

and the a gen t ( or eve n t w o a gen ts) . At t he m omen t I a m s t i l l inv esti ga t in g

on t he pr o pe r f or ma li sm t o be ad o pted in t he def ini ti on of a gen t -or ien ted

con tr acts , ev al ua tin g DB C g ui de lines con ta ined in [46 ].

2 .4 .2 Ont o l og ica l Eq u iva len ce

Ont o l og y is a s tand ar d AI kn ow le d ge re pre senta ti on mech anis m [52 ]

[53 ]. I ts ma in co m po nents are a se t of c on cepts (o r classes) C, whi ch are




6 1

tax on om ica l ly re la te d by the t ransi t ive “ is-a ” re la ti on an d n on- tax o no mica l ly

rel ate d by na med ob je ct re la ti ons {R *C * C* S tr in g}.

In K4 Ca re pla tf o rm o nt ol o gy re presen ts the kn o w led ge asse ts an d the

cata lys t f or a gen t beha vio u ra l m ode ls , as wel l as t he f oun da ti on f o r the a gen t

cod e gener at i on. A ne cessary an d s uf f ic ient class def ini ti on in an on t ol o gy,

whi ch c onsis ts of re str ic ti ons on a se t of pro pe r ties , i m pl ie s tha t an

indi vi dua l w hic h sa tis f ies the pr o pe rty rest ri cti ons be l on gs t o t he class . T his

is t he phi l os ophy of t he f irs t a ppr oac h I pr o pose d in va li da tin g ag ent

capa b il i t ies , as i l l us tra ted on Fi g ure 12.

F i g u r e F i g u r e F i g u r e F i g u r e 1 21 21 21 2 : O n t o l o g y: O n t o l o g y: O n t o l o g y: O n t o l o g y ---- b a s e d A g e n t S u b s t i t u t a b i l i t y M a t c h i n g M e c h a n i s mb a s e d A g e n t S u b s t i t u t a b i l i t y M a t c h i n g M e c h a n i s mb a s e d A g e n t S u b s t i t u t a b i l i t y M a t c h i n g M e c h a n i s mb a s e d A g e n t S u b s t i t u t a b i l i t y M a t c h i n g M e c h a n i s m

The des i gner of a new service c ou l d need, f or inst ance, to in vo ke the

inte rven ti on o f a f ami ly d oc to r, wh o co ul d resu l ts ( te m por ar i ly o r

pe rma nent ly) un avai l ab le . On t he bas is o f t he analys is o f o bjec t pro pe r ties ,

ano the r ac t o r c ou l d b e ad dresse d ( physic ia n in ch ar ge), w hic h ev idences t he

same ca pa bi li t i es of inte rest (f r o m the APO: “d oes ac ti on BO.01 ” or

“in it ia tes se rv ice f o r b ro ch ure c onsu l ta ti on ” ) .

This wo u ld lea d t o an ont o l o gica l ly equiva len t ac t or (a ge nt)

re pl acemen t f o r t he pro visi on of the sa m e services in th e pla tf o rm , as

int r od uce d in the f o l l ow in gs .




6 2

2.4.3 Agen t Re place men t M eth o d ol o gy ( ARM) Pr eli min ary

Gui de lines

In t his sec ti on I f i nal ly o u t line a pr ac tica l scena ri o of ge nera l

g ui del ines t o be even t ua lly f ol l o wed by t he prac ti ti one rs wh o a re invo lve d in

the pr ov isi on o f a new K4C are a gen t-bas ed med ica l se rvi ce .

Let us st ar t by sayin g tha t the AR M pr ocess is nat ur al ly c har acte r i zed

and t ri g ge red by t he unava il ab il i ty o f one or m ore a gen ts em be dd in g t he

requ ire d ca pa bi li t ies ( in ter ms o f ac t io ns).

The me th o d ol o gy sh o ul d co m prise t he f ol l o win g mi ni ma l s te ps:

1 . Rea li za ti on o f a req ues ted a gen t’s ac tiv i ty unav ai la bi l i ty;

2 . Ana lysis of the m ain ob jec tives f or t h e new me dica l t rea t men t

service;

3 . At te m pt t o ca ptu re g oa ls ’ h ier arc h ical i m po r tance by a

pa ra met er ize d ra tin g (t ime , phys ica l l oca ti on o f a gen ts , o vera l l

capa b il i t ies , and s o fo r th);

4 . Decis i on o n t he be st a ppro ach t o a d o pt (on to l o gic al , be hav i o ura l ,

or even b o t h);

5 . Appl ica ti on o f pa ra me ter iza ti ons to a gen t s res u lt in g av ai la bl e;

6 . Ana lysis o f r esu l ts o bt aine d: user ( phys i cian) wi l l be a lw ays a ske d

t o pro vi de a de cis i on of res pons ib il i ty on t h e pat ien t t rea tmen t;

8 . S te p f o rwa rd t o the co m pos i ti on of the tre at men t.

This me th od o l o gy is t o be in ten ded as an a d di ti ona l dec is i on su ppor t

t oo l f o r prac ti ti one r s , to be co u ple d w i th the m aj or kn ow l ed ge and

expe rience of phys ic ians (wh o re ma in t h e ul ti ma te res pons ib le o f t he

inte rven ti on plan): AR M d oes no t ai m at s u bst i tu tin g t hei r inva lua b le

at ti t ude to h and le une xpec te d t rea tmen t c o m pl ica ti ons w hic h s ho ul d ar ise .

2 . 52 . 52 . 52 . 5 L o n gL o n gL o n gL o n g ---- t e r m I n t e r a c t i o n st e r m I n t e r a c t i o n st e r m I n t e r a c t i o n st e r m I n t e r a c t i o n s a sa sa sa s C o m p l e x CC o m p l e x CC o m p l e x CC o m p l e x C o m p u t a t i o no m p u t a t i o no m p u t a t i o no m p u t a t i o n a la la la l R e s u l tR e s u l tR e s u l tR e s u l t

Agen t me ta pho r rev o lu t ion izes t he c once pt of co m put in g, bec om ing

“s ome t hin g ” t ha t h appens th r ou g h c om m unica t ions be t ween i nte rac tin g




6 3

enti t ies . In th is l i g h t o f r ad ica l re-c once ptu al isa ti on o f c om put in g, t he

netw o r k is t o be c onsi dere d as t he “ rea l c o m pute r ”. Agen t pa ra di g m ena b les

co m pu tin g as an act i vity w hic h is in heren t ly s ocia l , ra t her t ha n so li ta ry ,

lea din g to ne w w ays of c onceiv in g, d esi g ning , deve l o pin g an d mana gin g

co m pu ta ti ona l sys te m s. A clea r ex am ple of t he inf l uence of t his as pec t is t he

m ode l of s of tw are as a serv ice in S erv ice O ri ente d Archi tec t u res ( SO As), as

presen ted in [64 ] and [65 ].

Acc o rd in g t o t his , I T a ppl ica ti ons a re no lo nge r c once ived as

m ono l it hic , func t ion i ng on a s in g le ma chin e and fo r s in g le use r applica t ions ,

or d ist ri b u ted appl ica ti ons mana ge d by a s i ng le or gan isa ti on, b u t inste ad as

socie t ies of c om ponen ts , soc ie ties o f a gen ts . Agen ts pr ovi de se rv ic es t o each

o the r and they may n o t al l ha ve been des i g ned t o ge the r o r even by t he same

sof t ware deve l o pm ent tea m, as resu l ts c lea r , f o r exa m ple , f ro m ou r wo r ks

pub lis he d in [4 ], [8 ] and [11 ] . They m ay be crea ted , o pe ra te and be

dec om miss i oned acc o rd in g t o d if fe ren t ti me scal es; t hey may enter an d

leave d if feren t s ocie ti es at di f fe ren t t imes and f or dif fere nt reas ons; an d,

f ina l ly , th ey may fo r m c oa li t ions or vi r tua l o rg anisa t ions w i th o ne an ot he r

t o ac hieve s peci f ic te m po ra ry o bjec t ives (s ee [9 ] and [10 ]) .

Agen ts of a M AS (an d thei r se rvi ces , c ons equen tly) may be o w ned

and m ana ged by dif fe ren t o r ganis at i ons, an d t hu s have a ccess t o dif feren t

inf or ma ti on s ou rces , have di f fe ren t o bj ecti ves , and have c onf lic t in g

prefe rences . Hea l th c are man age men t sys te ms span nin g m u lt i pl e hos pi ta ls

or a u t om ate d r eso u rc e al loc at i on syste ms are in deed t he bes t e xam ples in

such a sense . Neve r t heless , a gents a re us ua lly se lf- act iva te d w hen cer ta in

con di ti ons ho l d. Eve n th ese prec on di ti o ns may be dis t ri bu t ed ac ross

co m ponen ts , s o th at a cti on by one c om pon ent req ui res pri or c o- or din at i on

and a gree men t wi th o the r c om ponen ts . T he in te ll i gence o f an agen t may

au ton o m ous ly lea d i t t o even un der ta ke self-ass em b ly of s of tw are and

syste ms (as i t wi l l be expla ined in de tai l i n t he case of a ne w II P se mi-




6 4

au to ma te d c rea ti on, i n secti on 3 .6 .1) , s o en ab lin g a da pta ti on or r esponse t o

exte rna l o r int erna l c han gin g. S uc h syste m s resem bl e th ose of t he nat ur al

wo r ld an d h u man s oci eties; ide as fr o m b i ol o gy, s ta tis ti cal physics , soci o l o gy

and ec on o mics play an inc reas in gly i m po r tan t r ole in a gen t-b ased

co m pu tin g sys te ms, in deed . S ta rt in g f ro m th e abs trac t io n of an a g ent w hic h

is capa b le o f f lex i ble and au ton o m ous ac t ions in a dyna m ic envir on men t

(usua l ly c on tain in g o the r a gen ts) , we ha ve encaps u la te d t hes e sof t ware

enti t ies an d we have de ma rca ted t he s oc i ety in wh ich t hey o pera te (e . g.

Mu l ti Agen t Sys te m). In the sense t ha t i t is a new pa ra di g m, a gen t-b ased

co m pu tin g is d isr u pti ve . As o u tl ined a b ove, i t ca uses a re-eva lua t ion of t he

very na t ure of co m put in g an d c om pu ta ti ona l sys tems , th ro u g h con ce pts

such as au t on o my, c oa li ti ons and ec osys t ems, wh ich ma ke n o sense t o

ear lie r pa ra di g ms (see Sect io n 1.2 .1 f or f u rt her ex plana ti on). In t he l i g h t of

the previ o us pre m is es I fee l de fini te ly t o aff ir m th at a n a gen t-b ased

co m pu ta ti on is no t se en as a me re f unct i on al t ransf o r ma ti on of i nputs an d

ou t pu ts , b u t as t he res ul t o f mass ive a gen t in ter ac ti ons .

In o the r w or ds, we m a y m o re f o r ma lly de fin e t he fo l l ow in g re la ti o n:

A B O A B O A B O A B O ≠≠≠≠ ΦΦΦΦ (((( A BIA BIA BIA BI ))))

( W h e r e A B O = A g e n t - b a s e d O u t p u t s , A B I = A g e n t - b a s e d I n p u t s a n d Φ = t r a n s f o r m a t i o n

f u n c t i o n )

N o t t o b e in tende d pa ssively , b u t ra t her as a s u ms u ms u ms u m (in ten ded here a s r e s u l tr e s u l tr e s u l tr e s u l t )

of a gen t i nte rac ti ons:

( W h e r e A S O / S = A g e n t - s p e c i f i c O b j e c t i v e / S t a t e , I j = j - t h a g e n t I n t e r a c t i o n a n d

A m = m - t h A g e n t i n v o l v e d i n a g i v e n i n t e r a c t i o n ) .

It is in teres t in g to n ot e h ow t he previ o us f o rm u la ti on s t i l l h ol ds e ven

in case o f b ou nda ry c o ndi ti ons:




6 5

1) N = 0N = 0N = 0N = 0 (in de penden t ly of m )m )m )m ) : n o in te rac ti on occ urs a m ong a gen ts .

In t his c ase AS O /S c an be in te r pr ete d as t he res u lt o f a s peci f ic

agen t ’s own ac ti vi ties;

2) NNNN ≠ 0 ≠ 0 ≠ 0 ≠ 0 an d m = 0m = 0m = 0m = 0 : a g ive n agen t in te rac ts wi th itse lf N ti mes ( we can

consi de r i t as t he ref le xive pr oper ty o f the ASO /S);

3) NNNN ≠ 0 ≠ 0 ≠ 0 ≠ 0 an d m m m m ≠ 0≠ 0≠ 0≠ 0 : w e a re in t he gene ric c ase of mu l ti ple a gent- base d

inte rac ti ons w i thin th e syste m.

In the l ig h t of t hese c onsi de ra ti ons, tea ms of age nts are in ten de d to

wo r k t o get he r in o rde r t o ach ieve ( poten t ia l ly co m m on go als) ; a bs trac t io n

hie rarc hies s t ren gt he n mo de l lin g in a m ore e ffec ti ve manne r and fr o m

dif feren t pers pec t ives ; in te rme dia ry a gen t s ac tin g as a s in g le po in t of

con tac t f or a n um be r of a gen ts lea d and c o or dina te c o m plex n eg o tia ti on

proc esses .


The w o r k presen te d in [8] in t r od uces the m ain de vel o pmen t

g ui del ines ad o pte d in t he rea li za ti on of K4 Ca re age nts ’ l on g-te r m

inte rac ti ons (re fer c o nstan t ly t o nex t F ig u r e 13).

F i g u r e F i g u r e F i g u r e F i g u r e 1 31 31 31 3 : K 4 C a r e A r c h i t e c t u r e: K 4 C a r e A r c h i t e c t u r e: K 4 C a r e A r c h i t e c t u r e: K 4 C a r e A r c h i t e c t u r e




6 6

Any ac t or (e . g. physic ian in cha r ge, nu rse , patien t) in te rac ts w i th the

syste m th r ou g h a we b -base d a pplica t ion an d is re presen ted in t he syste m by

a p e r m a n e n t a g e n tp e r m a n e n t a g e n tp e r m a n e n t a g e n tp e r m a n e n t a g e n t ( Agen t Ac to r) tha t kn ows a l l the de tai ls a b ou t his /her

ro les , pe rm issi ons, pe ndin g res ul ts , pen din g act i ons, and t ha t m anages a l l

quer ies an d req ues ts c o min g fr o m t he user o r o the r agen ts .

In or der t o a l l o w inf or ma t ion exc han ge b e twee n agen ts an d h u man-

act o rs t here h as been bu i lt an in te r med ia te br id ge c ons ti t ute d by serv let an d

Gate way Agen ts ( G As). The serv le t is c o nnecte d w i th t he br o wser use r

session and c rea tes a G A each t im e an ac t or l o gs in t o t he sys t em. G A’s

miss ion is t o kee p a one- to- one c onn ecti on w it h t he c o r res pon di ng

pe rma nent a gen t. Age nt- based m od u les em bed a l l the sys tem l o gi cs . Agen ts

act sem i-au t o ma tica l l y , in the sense t ha t severa l act ions , such as e xchan ge of

inf or ma ti on, c ol lec ti o n of he te ro gene o us da ta c once rnin g a pa tien t ( resu l ts ,

cur ren t t rea t ment , nex t rec o mmen de d s te p, pas t his t o ry), o r t he n eg o tia ti on

of a me dic al vis it , can be pe rf or me d by the a gen t wi th o u t t he int er venti on o f

the user . Of co u rse, o t her ac ti ons suc h as t h e confi r ma ti on in t he fo rm at i on

of an eva lu at i on tea m or t he eva l ua ti on of s o me resu l t receiv ed f r om a

la bo ra t o ry requ ire the use r v al ida t i on.

F i g u r e F i g u r e F i g u r e F i g u r e 1 41 41 41 4 : A g e n t c o o r d i n a t i o n d u r i n g a s e r: A g e n t c o o r d i n a t i o n d u r i n g a s e r: A g e n t c o o r d i n a t i o n d u r i n g a s e r: A g e n t c o o r d i n a t i o n d u r i n g a s e r v i c e e x e c u t i o nv i c e e x e c u t i o nv i c e e x e c u t i o nv i c e e x e c u t i o n




6 7

Fun da ment al ly , K4 C are M AS is c o m posed o f: ac t or a ge nts ,

re presen t in g prac ti t io ners and pa t ients wh o use t he Da ta Abst rac t ion Layer

in or der to access t he ir da ta; a se rv let ; seve ra l ga tew ay a gen ts th a t a l l ow t o

exchan ge inf or ma t ion be tween t he M AS an d a we b- base d a pplic at i on; SD A*

agen t exec u ti on en gi nes th at pe r mi t to en act proc ed ures and r eco mmen d

next ac ti ons t o be t a ke n, acc or di ng t o the pa t ient ’s c u rren t s ta te .

Wit h t he he l p o f the i l l ust ra ti on in Fi g ure 14 I wi l l s ho r t ly des c ri be

ho w a ser vice is exec ute d and c oo r dina te d by a gents . T he f i g ure sh ows t he

da ta-f l ow inv o lve d i n t he pro visi on o f a s peci f ic se rv ice (her eaf te r

red uc tive ly as S.3):

- Let ’s s u ppose t ha t a Fam il y D oc to r (J o hn Sm i th, in the s pec if ic f ic ti on

exam ple) l o gs int o th e syste m and r eques ts serv ice S.3 to pa tien t Dav id

Jones - DJ (s te p 1) .

- The req ues t is the n rece ived by the serv le t t ha t c rea t es t he

co rres pon din g Ga te w ay Agen t (G A) f o r J o hn S mi t h, w hic h w il l enab le

inte rac ti ons w i th his a ct or-a gen t (s te ps 2-3).

- John Sm i th a gen t re tr i eves the a ppr o pria te pro ced ure f o r serv ice S. 3 and

then f o rwa r ds i t to the SD A* Execu t i on En gi ne (S D A-EE) (s te ps 4- 6).

- The f i rs t t i me th e pr o cedu re is requ ir ed, a n ew ins tan ce of t he SD A-EE is

crea ted ( a s in g le S D A-EE inst ance is ass oc i ate d w it h a s in gle pr o cedu re,

whi ch refe rs t o a s ing l e pa t ient , only) . T he S DA-EE rece ives the F I P s ta te

in w hich t he pa tien t a ct ual ly is and t hen, re co mmen ds the nex t a c ti on t o

be pe rf o r med. At a c ert ain poin t o f t he pro ced ure , t he SD A-E E cou l d

rec om men d exec u tin g t he ac t ion “ A 27 ” t o t he pa tien t, an d th at t he

acti on sh o ul d be un de rt a ken by a Soc ia l W o r ker (st ep 7) .

- John S m it h a gen t sh o ul d t hen l o o k f o r an agen t c a pab le o f pe rf or m ing

the s peci f ic ac ti on . Fi nal ly , a S oci al W o r ke r (here by Pe ter Br o w n) can

pe rf or m t his tas k (s te p 8) .




6 8

- Pe ter Br o wn’s pers on al agen t , ac t ua lly , rec eives the re ques t t o perf or m

acti on “ A 27 ” on Dav i d J ones , an d s t ores i t ( ste ps 9-1 1).

- When Pe ter Br o wn lo gs in t o the sys te m, he wi l l be n o ti f ie d, by his agen t,

of a l l pen din g ac t ions he has . Af te r selec t in g the pen din g ac ti on on M r.

Jones (s te ps 12- 14) , his ac t or-a gen t re t ri eves f ro m t he re posi t ory the

doc u men t t o be f ina l iz ed in ac ti on “ A 27 ” (s t eps 15 an d 1 6).

- This d ocu men t is f o rwa r ded t o t he soc ia l w o rker th r ou g h i ts agen t,

ga te way a gen t, an d s erv let (s te ps 17-19) and is f ina l ly sh o wn in t he

br o wser .

- Af te r c om ple tin g the doc u men t, a l l t he da t a is st o red in t he EH R of the

pa tien t and i t can be co lle cte d in the next s te p by J ohn S mi t h (s t eps 20-

24).

2 .5 .2 Inte rven t ion P lans

The C o m pre hensi ve Assess men t is one of the m os t ar t icu la te d and

cruc ia l me dic al se rvi c es pr ov id ed by K4 Ca re. I ts a pplic at i on wi l l res u l t in

the synd r omes , sym pt oms and dise ases evidence d by a pat i ent. These

ele ments ( conc epts) are ass oci ate d wi th a FI P, wh ich is a ve r y gene ra l

inte rven ti on pl an. A s i ng le FI P, any way, is n o t di rec tly a pplica b le t o any re al

tre at men t o r inte rven ti on, d ue t o the un iq ueness of t he pa t ient ’ s physica l

con di ti ons an d me dic al h ist o ry. I t is a us u al prac t ice , on t he co ntr ary , t o

rec ogn ize a t t he sa m e t im e seve ra l dise as es , w hic h c an lea d t o a ve ry

co m plex an d ar t icu la t ed assessmen t. T he pl atf o rm is ab le t o a ut o ma tica l ly

ret r ieve a l l FI Ps inv o l ved, w hereas the E U mem be rs a re as ked t o co m bine

and pe rs ona lise t he m, giv in g fo r m t o a c ust o miz ed and pers ona l I I P.

The a u t oma t ion o f t he me r gin g pr ocess f or d if fe ren t F I Ps is n o t a

tr ivi al tas k and i m pl ie s an accura te ana lysis of the o bje ct ives (t his due to the

co m plex i ty and he te ro gene i ty o f the ph ysical para me te rs an d t he H C

do ma in‘s va r iab les) . T he SD A* des cr ipt i on o f an II P is pr ocessed i n or de r t o

g ui de t he exec u ti on of ac t io ns and in t erac ti ons a m on g a g ents . The




6 9

execu ti on o f ad min ist ra tive pr ocesses , co dif ied a lso in the S D A* l ang ua ge in

the f or m of pr oced u re s , fo l l ows exac tly t he same pa t tern . T he ena ct ment o f

an II P is a co m plex ta sk w hic h requ ir es the inter ac ti on o f b ot h a gen ts and

hu mans. T his ser vice can be req ueste d by th e Physi cian in Cha r ge of the H C

uni t . T he pe rson w h o is r espons ib le of t he mana ge men t of t he e x ecu ti on of

an I I P i s usua l ly t he Head Nu rse. N o te t h at e ach H o me Ca re uni t (e ach

consis t in g o f a se para t e K4 Ca re pla tf o rm) h as on ly one P C an d on e H N, bu t

it may have many F a mi ly D oc to rs , S ocia l Wo r kers an d o t her ty pes of ac t ors

(nurses , s peci al is t phy sicians , in fo r ma l ca re give rs , e tc .) .

F i g u r e F i g u r e F i g u r e F i g u r e 1 51 51 51 5 : A g e n t: A g e n t: A g e n t: A g e n t ---- b a s e d e x e c u t i o n o f I n d i v i d u a l I n t e r v e n t i o n P l a n sb a s e d e x e c u t i o n o f I n d i v i d u a l I n t e r v e n t i o n P l a n sb a s e d e x e c u t i o n o f I n d i v i d u a l I n t e r v e n t i o n P l a n sb a s e d e x e c u t i o n o f I n d i v i d u a l I n t e r v e n t i o n P l a n s

I am g o ing t o expla in in mo re de tai l t he prev io us scenar i o th r ou g h the

exam ple re por te d in F ig u re 15:

• St ep 1 : t he P hysic ian i n C ha rg e ( P C) l o gs in t o K4 Ca re pla tf o r m us ing

Web in te rfa ce. T he i nfo r ma ti on is fo r war ded by the se rv le t to the

Gate way Agen t ( G A) co uple d wi th P C. The agen t t rans mi ts the l o gin

messa ge t o i ts c o rr es pond in g pe rman ent Act or Age nt ( AA). T he AA

re gis ters t he lo g in eve nt an d rec o rds t he a d dress of t he ac t ual G A. In




7 0

th is s pec if ic case , t he P C f u r the r desi res t o reques t t he exe cu ti on o f

an II P f or a pa ti ent c al led D avi d Jones . Th ro u gh th e G A, a req u est

messa ge t o st ar t t he II P is sent t o AA co ntain in g b o th the un i que

iden ti f ie r of the pa tien t an d I I P t o be s ta r ted ;

• St eps 2 –3 : a t t his po int , AA is as ke d t o f i nd o u t wh o is ca pa b l e of

mana gin g the r equ ire d tas k. The a gen t re t rie ves th is inf or ma ti on f r o m

K4 Ca re kn o w led ge ba ses (th r ou g h t he Da ta Abs trac t io n Laye r, w h ich,

in t urn, accesses the APO . See DD K des cr i pti on in sec ti on 2.3 .3 for

m ore de ta i ls) . In t his case , t he su pe r vis i on o f an Ind ivi dua l

Inte rven t ion P lan exec ut i on is res po nsi bi l i ty of a Hea d N urse;

• St ep 4 : t he AA o f the P C c on tac ts t he AA of t he Hea d Nu rse, w hich

st ores the req uest t o be gin the exec u ti on of an II P. AA t hen f o rw ards

the II P t ri g ge rin g mes sage t o the H N, t oge t her wi t h t he in f or ma t ion

rel at in g t o t he ini tia t o r’s i den tif ier ;

• St ep 5 : w hen t he HN l o gs in to the sys tem , he r c o rres pon din g ag ent

ga the rs a l l her pend in g ac t ions (ac ti ons t ha t have been req ueste d by

o the r use rs whi le she was of f- l ine);

• St ep 6 : the HN s elec t s the pen din g act i on (“exec ut i on of the II P of

Mr. J ones”) . H N t hen con fi rms t he exec u ti on of t he II P by send i ng a

pro pe r messa ge to the AA;

• St eps 7 , 7a , and 7b : The AA of t he He ad N urse t hen dy nam ic al ly

crea tes an S D A-Exec u t or Agent (a ls o ca l led SD A E xecu ti on En gin e in

Fi gu re 14), and sen ds a messa ge t o st ar t th e II P t o t he j us t cre at ed

SD A-E Agen t con ta ini ng bo t h t he i den tif ie r of the II P an d the pa ti ent.

The SD A-E Agen t req ues ts t he c o rres pon di ng SD A* re presen ta ti o n of

the I I P f r om the EH R o f the pa tien t t hr o u gh t he Da t a Abst rac ti on

Layer;

• St ep 8 : w hen t he S D A-E receives th e II P , i t is rea dy t o s ta r t the

execu ti on by s end ing t o the AA of t he H N t he in f or ma ti on con ta i ned




7 1

in each o f the e le ment s of t he plan (i .e . , s ta t es , decis i ons an d act io ns).

In the exa m pl e in F i g ure 15 t he f irs t s te p i s t he es ta b lis hmen t o f a

dr u g the ra py by a Fa mi ly D oc t or . Act i ons t o be pe rf o rm ed can be of

eit her seq uen tia l o r para l le l nat u re, a cco rd in g t o t he S DA*

descr i pti on. T he AA of the H N dyn am ica ll y dele ga tes t hese t as ks t o

the a ppr o pria te AAs (as desc ri be d by th e II P) an d w ai ts fo r t hei r

co m ple t ion . W hen a t ask is c o m plet ed, the SD A-E is n o ti f ie d a b o ut i t ,

so t ha t i t can s end t he next tas k t o be pe rf o r med .

2 .5 .3 Sche du le d and Ti me- C onst ra ined Ac tiv i ties

As pre vi ous ly men ti one d, t he in te r pre ta ti on of SD A* st r uct ures

resu l ts i n the def ini ti on of tas ks . A tas k de scri pti on c on ta ins a s ub jec t (see

Sec ti on 2 .3 .3) , w hic h is the ty pe of ag ent ex pec te d t o exec u te th e acti on , or

ini tia te a nes te d se r vice . Ac t i ons a re t o be exe cu te d a t o mica l ly by t he

co rres pon din g ac t o r; neste d se rvices i m ply the au t o ma tic ini t ia liz ati on o f a

new se rvice , w hic h w il l be c o m posed , f o l l ow in g the f o rma l ism previ o usly

descr ib ed, of seve ral S DA* co m ponen ts . T he execut io n pro t oc o l is the same

as in t he c ase of an e x plic it in i tia li za ti on o f a serv ice by an a ct o r.

When t he AA of the HN recei ves a t ask , i t s pr i mary o bjec ti ve is t o

assig n it t o a spec if i c act or (w h o is re pres ente d by an AA in t h e system) .

Diff eren t ty pes of assi gn men ts can ta ke plac e:

a) Dynam ica lly , when th e t ask exec u ti on t ime arises .

The m ost su it ab le a gen t c ou l d be se lec ted by neg o t ia ti on, fo r

instan ce applyin g F I P A C on t rac t Ne t pr o t o co l 7, a l l o win g each a ge nt

t o ma ke a pr o pos al when a ne w t as k is a vail ab le , a nd ma kin g the

assig nmen t dec isi on dyna mica l ly at exec u t ion ti me. T he advan t ages

of th is so lu t i on cons i st in t he fac t tha t 1) we expl oi t the benef it s of

the agen t pa ra di g m a nd 2) t he med ica l s ta ff d oes n o t ha ve t o as sign

7 h t t p : / / f i p a . o r g / s p e c s / f i p a 0 0 0 2 9 / i n d e x . h t m l




7 2

act o rs t o b ranc hes whi ch a re n o t ac t ua l ly exec u ted. T his is the

assig nmen t m o del i m plem ente d in K4Ca re pla tf o rm;

b) St at ica l ly , whe n the I I P e xecu t ion beg ins .

In th is case , a gen ts ar e pre li m inary ass igne d to eac h tas k o f t he enti re

II P. The ad van ta ge of t his s o lu t i on is t hat o nce the age nts are

assig ned an d t he I I P exec ut i on is s tar te d, t he re isn ’t any o the r

ove rhea d, a nd t he S DA-E a gent can ta l k di rec tly t o t he re le vant

agen ts . H o weve r, in th is case we h ave t o assign a gen ts to ac t ions

whi ch m ay no t be exe cu ted, as they a re in a decis i ona l branc h w h ich

wi l l no t be se lec te d d ur in g t he execu ti on. T his is t he v ery

incon venien t fo r t he med ica l s taf f , beca use t hey a re a ske d t o ass ign

act o rs hy po t het ica l ly .

So me ti mes the act o r assig nmen t is a s i m pl e o per at i on bec ause b o th

the pa tien t and a gen t ty pe uni voc al ly po in t t o s pec if ic a gen t ins ta nce. I f th e

acti on has to be pe r fo rm ed by a PC , a FD, a H N o r a SW , then th e

assig nmen t is ma de au t o ma tica l ly t o t h e pat ien t, by re fer ri ng t o t he

co rres pon din g pers on in t he Eva lua t i on Un it . O the rw ise (e . g. , i f a nurse is

needed) t he H N has t o se lec t a c onc re te pe rson t o pe rf o rm t he a cti on. The

pla tf o rm pr ovi des t he Head N urse wi t h g ra ph ica l fac i l i t ies , s o th at she c an

quic kly selec t the ac t ors c ur ren t ly avai la b l e . The con cre te l is t o f act o rs is

dyna mica l ly re tr ieve d by t he syste m ac co rd ing t o: t he AAs curr ent ly

runn in g, the i r ass ocia ted ac t or- ty pe an d, c onseq uen tly , the l ist of act i ons

they a re en ti t le d t o ex ecu te (in f or ma ti on s t ore d in t he AP O).

It is i m por tan t t o min d tha t, as t h e syste m su ppo rts the

pe rson al isa ti on o f an act o r’s pr of i le , th is ha s t o be ta ken in t o c on side ra ti on

when assi gn ing the ac t ion or pr o posin g t he a ct or as a pe rf o rme r. C onc rete ly ,

an act o r m ay dec ide , at run t ime , no t t o per fo rm so me kin d of a ct ions . Th is

requ ire men t is pr oces sed by means of t he pe rson al iza t ion of an indi vi dua l




7 3

co py o f t he APO . O nce the chan ges a re vali da ted by t he P h ysician in

Cha r ge, t he ne w pers ona lise d pro fi le is i mme di ate ly ta ken in t o acc o un t.

Fr o m t he poi nt of vie w of the ac t io n assi gn men t, t he syste m a ut o ma tica l ly

reques ts each AA whe the r t he pen din g act i o n may o r may no t be pe rf or me d

in tha t s peci f ic m o me nt by t he conc re te ac t or. N ow, reca ll in g t h e exa mple

de pic te d in F i gu re 1 5, we f ina l ly have t hese a dd it i ona l exec u ti on st eps:

• St ep 9 : once the AA o f t he H N (J ane Wh i te ) has been ac kn ow le d ge d

tha t t he FD ( Pe te r B ro wn) is assi gned t o acti on “Es ta b lish a D ru g

The ra py” , i t sends a messa ge t o h is asso ci ate d AA, req uest in g t he

execu ti on of t he ac ti on (s te p 9a). The re ques t em be ds the act ion

iden ti f ie r , t he pa tien t t o w h om i t is t o be a pplie d an d the i den tif ie r of

the d oc umen t t o be f i l le d ou t. The d oc um ent i den ti f ie r is re t rie ved

(ste p 8 b) as a res u l t o f a prev io us reques t t o the APO (v ia D AL), by

speci fyin g t he act i on t o be e xecu te d (s te p 8 a ). When the FD lo gs i nt o

the sys tem , he w i ll f in d the req ues t in h is l is t of pend in g ac ti ons ( ste p

9b);

• St eps 10, 11 , an d 12 : af ter se lec t ing t his a cti on ( “Es ta b lis h a D ru g

The ra py”) , a messa ge is sent by t he Ga tew a y Agen t to h is AA. Th en,

the AA re t rieves (via DAL) the d oc umen t t o be c o mple te d, in or der

t o ref lec t t he pe rf o rm ance of t he ac t i on in t he rea l wo r ld ;

• St eps 1 3, 14, 15, and 16 : FD ’s AA f ina l ly f or wa rds t he d oc ume n t to

the user in te rfac e (th ro u gh i ts G ate way Ag ent) , s o t ha t th e hu man

user can f i l l i t o u t (ste ps 13 and 14). When t he d oc umen t is

co m ple te d, t he AA wi l l st ore i t in the EHR of t he pa t ien t (ste p 15)

and sends a c onf ir ma ti on messa ge t o the AA of the H N, ind ica tin g

tha t t he ac ti on has be en successf u l ly per f or med (s te p 16). In the end,

the AA of t he H N can req ues t t o the S D A- E t he nex t ele men t in t he

II P execu t ion (w hic h may be a gain a s ta te , d ecis i on o r ac t ion) .




7 4

An o the r fac t o r inc rea sing t he c om plex ity of an SD A m ode l is the

presence of te mpo ra l cons t rain ts in the e xecu ti on o f a gen t ac t ions (e . g. ,

a fte r the exec ut i on o f the t rea tmen t f o r P res sure Ulce rs , wa it one m ont h and

then per fo r m a P hysi cal Exa m ina ti on t o t he pa tien t) . In th ose cases , the

reques t f or ac ti on e xecu ti on wi l l be s t or ed an d ti me d, wai t in g fo r t he

expira t ion o f t he s pec if ie d per i od of t i me, b efo re sen din g i t t o t he assigne e-

act o r.

As we can pe rceive , ev en th r ou g h a no t so c o m ple x exam ple as was the

previ o us, c ont inu o us r elia b il i ty o f act o r a gen ts is c ruc ia l f or the pr ovis i on o f

a HC se rvice . In t his con tex t o f l on g- ter m HC tre at men ts to be g uara ntee d,

the ARM me t ho d o lo g y I pro pose d an d desc ri bed in Sec ti on 2 .4 .3 fo r a gen t

subs t it u ta bi l i ty c an dem ons t ra te an ef fe ctiv e co nt ri b u ti on a gai nst t he

cri tic al occu r rence of service den ia l in mu l ti a gent- base d arc hi tec t ures .



Chapter 3

3. MAS Development and

Maintenance

Al th o ug h the re have been s u bst ant ia l a d vancemen ts in s of tw are

engine er ing me th o ds and to o ls du rin g the pas t twen ty yea rs , req ui remen ts

engine er ing s t i l l rem ains a key pr o ble m i n the deve l o pmen t o f co m plex,

sof t ware- in tensive sy ste ms. Acc or din g t o [54 ] and t o t he re por t of the

Defense Science B oa r d Tas k F o rce on Mi li t ary S of tw are, we can a ff i rm tha t

sti l l n o wad ays one o f “ the ha rdes t pa rt of t he s of t ware d evel o pm ent tas k is

the se t tin g of t he exa ct re qu ire men ts ” [55 ] . One o f t he pr im ary sou rces of

con tin ued dif f ic u lt y is the la ck of ea rly requ ire men ts val id at i on. V ali da ti on

of req ui remen ts is pro b le ma tic beca use r equi rem ents o fte n ar e no t we l l

unde rs t oo d pri o r t o deve lo pmen t, cha nge freq uen tly du rin g dev el o pmen t,

and m ul t i ply as a resu l t of deve lo pmen t.

An ea r ly va li da ti on is o f gr ea t i m por tance, in deed , as many

requ ire men ts e rr o rs a re passed unde tec te d to t he la te r phases of the l i fe

cycle , and c or rec tin g t hese e rr o rs du r ing or afte r i m ple men ta ti on have been

fo und t o be ex tre me ly cost ly . Ea r ly defec t f i xes are chea pe r t han l ate de fec t

f ixes , an d the ea r ly r equi rem ents and desi gn de fec ts ty pica l ly l eave m or e

seri o us o per at i ona l c o nsequences . C lea r ly , b et ter techn iques a re n eeded f o r

ear ly va l ida t ion .

M A S D e v e l o p m e n t a n d M a i n t e n a n c e



7 6

The wa te rfa l l l i fe c ycle m o del , wh ich r equi res a co m ple te pre-

deve lo pmen t req ui re men t s peci f ica t ion , a l so c on tr i bu tes t o t hes e pr ob le ms

[57 ] [5 8] . F o r la rg e, co m plex sys tems i t is di f f ic u l t t o c om ple te ly s pec ify

requ ire men ts in ad vance of , an d ind epen den t fr o m, de sign an d

im ple ment at i on. The assu m pti on t ha t i t i s poss ib le t o c rea te a co m ple te

speci f ica t i on pr i or t o deve lo pmen t has bee n a ma jo r ca use of pr o ble ms in

many pr o jec ts , d ue t o freq uen t chan ges t o t he specif ica ti on du rin g an d af te r

deve lo pmen t.

Va li da ti on o f req ui re men ts ear ly in t he l i f e cycle is one o f the key

issues in s of t wa re deve lo pmen t beca us e a f ai lu re in th e val id at i on

requ ire men ts can res u l t in freq uen t and ex pensive chan ges in la te r l i fe cycle

ph ases .

I s tr on g ly be lieve tha t desi gne rs can no t, w it h any a mo un t of eff or t

and w isd o m, acc u ra te ly desc ri be the o pe ra ti ona l req ui re me nts f o r a

subs tan t ia l sof t wa re system w i th o ut te stin g by rea l o pe ra t ors in an

o per at i ona l envi r on m ent, a nd it era t ion on th e s pecif ica ti on. T h e syste ms

bu i lt t o day a re j us t t o o c om plex fo r th e min d of man t o f o re see al l the

ram if ica ti ons pu rely by t he appl ica ti o n o f the ana ly tic eff or t and

ima g ina ti on.

3 . 13 . 13 . 13 . 1 A g e n t S o f t w a r e F a s t P r o t o t y p i n gA g e n t S o f t w a r e F a s t P r o t o t y p i n gA g e n t S o f t w a r e F a s t P r o t o t y p i n gA g e n t S o f t w a r e F a s t P r o t o t y p i n g

Due t o t he dif f ic u l t ies evi dence d bef o re , pr o t oty pin g has b een

disc ussed in l i te ra t ur e as an im po r tan t a ppro ach t o ea r ly req ui remen ts

vali da t ion [ 60] [61 ]. A pr o t oty pe is an en acta b le m oc k-u p or m ode l o f a

sof t ware sys te m wh ic h ena bles e val ua t ion of fea tu res or func t i o ns th r ou g h

the use r and de vel o pe r i nte rac ti on w i th o pe ra ti ona l scen ar ios .

P ro t o ty pin g ex poses f unc ti ona l and be havi o ura l as pec ts of the sys te m

as we ll as i m pleme nt at ion c ons ide ra ti ons , t h ereby inc reasin g t he a ccur acy of

requ ire men ts and he l ping to c on tr o l t hei r v o la ti l i ty d ur in g deve l o pmen t.




7 7

In t he f ol l o win g yea rs s ince the w ate rf al l m o del was de vel o ped,

co m pu te r sc ience has co me t o rec o gn ize t h at s e t t i n g t h e r e q u i r e m e n t s i s s e t t i n g t h e r e q u i r e m e n t s i s s e t t i n g t h e r e q u i r e m e n t s i s s e t t i n g t h e r e q u i r e m e n t s i s

t h e m o s t d i f f i c u l t a n d c r u c i a l p a r t o f t h e s o f t w a r e b u i l d i n g p r o c e s st h e m o s t d i f f i c u l t a n d c r u c i a l p a r t o f t h e s o f t w a r e b u i l d i n g p r o c e s st h e m o s t d i f f i c u l t a n d c r u c i a l p a r t o f t h e s o f t w a r e b u i l d i n g p r o c e s st h e m o s t d i f f i c u l t a n d c r u c i a l p a r t o f t h e s o f t w a r e b u i l d i n g p r o c e s s , and

requ ires f ur t her e lic it a ti on i ter at i ons be twee n des ign ers and c om m issi oners .

In bes t m o dern prac tice , the ea r ly s peci f i cati on is e mb o die d i n a

pro t o ty pe, wh ich t he i nten ded use rs can th e msel ves d ri ve in o rde r t o see the

conseq uences of the ir im a ginin gs . T hen, as the des i gn e ff or t be g i ns t o y ie ld

da ta on the c os t and s ched u le conseq uences of par t icu la r spec if ica ti ons, the

desi gne rs an d t he user s rev ise th e s peci f ica t i ons.

Agen t- or ien ted pr o t o t ypin g f ur t her s tr eng t hens th e co m pe ti tive ness

of s uch a s of t wa re d evel o pm ent pr ocess , by ad din g t o i t the advan ta ges

here inaf te r ev idenc ed:

1) An i m med ia te gl o ba l view of the wh o le s yste m’s beh avi o ur an d

func ti ona l it ies;

2) A hi gh ly re duce d mis u nders tan din g on t he d o main c once pts ( wh o,

wha t, why, w hen and h ow) be tween IT desi gne r and

co mm issi one r;

3) An a dhe ren t re presen ta ti on of in di vi dua ls s ocie ty: d oma in ac t ors

wi l l sti l l be ac t o r-a gen ts o f t he M AS; d o mai n ru les wi l l be c o dif ie d

int o be havi o u ral ru le s o f the M AS; d o mai n act o rs ’ ro les w il l b e

ma pped i nt o a me t ho do l o gic al ly acce pte d f or ma lis m (G AI A agen t

ro les) , an d s o f or t h;

4) The o ppo rt un ity t o o bser ve the ev o lu t ion of ac t ors ’ in terac t i ons

t owa r ds ne w scen ar ios , un pre dic ta b le or mis sed un ti l t hen;

5) The possi bi l ity t o ext end the ove ra l l behav io ur o f the syste m (as

we w il l see i n next secti ons), by en ha ncing s in gl e a gents ’

capa b il i t ies an d wi th o ut te r mina t in g ac tiv i ti es of t he en ti re a gen t

po pu la t ion .




7 8

3.1.1 Gove rnin g Co m plexi t y t hr o u gh M AS Cyc lic Refin emen ts

The req ui re men ts fo r a system o r a c lass o f syste ms are ga the re d in

m ost cases ( i f no t a l l) in an evol u ti ona ry fa shi on. Req ui remen ts kn ow le d ge

canno t be c onsi dere d ever t o ta ll y c o m ple te , b u t ra the r e vo lves ov er ti me as

new r equ ire men ts a re iden t if ie d, e xis tin g r equi rem ents are ex pa nded , an d

o bso le te req ui re men ts are d isca rde d.

On t he b asis of t he new requ ire men t s acqui re d, inc re me nta l

pro t o ty pes are t o be desi gned an d ver if ie d (incre men ti ng the cos ts each

ti me) un ti l the cre at i on o f an o per at i ona l arch ite ct u re, w hic h wi l l be f i nal ly

tr ansf or me d, th r ou g h cod if ica ti ons, inte g ra t ions an d tes ts , in t o a de pl oya b le

pro d uc t. This is t he basic c once ptua l f ou nda ti on of the S pi ra l M ode l in

c lassic s of t ware de vel o pm ent (see Fi g ure 16 ).

F i g u r e F i g u r e F i g u r e F i g u r e 1 61 61 61 6 : S p i r a l M o d e l i n C l a s s i c S o f t w a r e D e v e l o p m e n t: S p i r a l M o d e l i n C l a s s i c S o f t w a r e D e v e l o p m e n t: S p i r a l M o d e l i n C l a s s i c S o f t w a r e D e v e l o p m e n t: S p i r a l M o d e l i n C l a s s i c S o f t w a r e D e v e l o p m e n t

The M AS-s pec if ic d e vel o pme nt m o del I pro pose in Fi gu re 1 7 has

been c once ive d s ta rt in g fr o m t he c lass ica l m ode l sh o wn i n F i gu re 16.




7 9

I have h ig h li gh te d an d su mma ri zed the m os t im po r tan t di f fe re nces

be tween the t w o m ode ls in the f o l lo win g c on side ra ti ons:

1 . In a f i rst ana lysis , t h e t hi rd phase (q ua dr ant) of t he s pira l

(Devel o pmen t an d T est) has been s pec if ical ly o rien te d t o

Mu l ti Agent Syste ms rea li za ti on. Conse qu ent ly , a l l inh eren t

agen t-s peci f ic c once pt s and techn o l og y h ave been a pplie d:

a . Ana lysis an d desi gn m eth o d ol o gy (in my cas e G AI A) ;

b. C od ific at i on, i m ple m enta ti on fo r ma lis m a nd su ppo r t

(JAV A, F I P A an d J AD E).

F i g u r e F i g u r e F i g u r e F i g u r e 1 71 71 71 7 : A g e n t: A g e n t: A g e n t: A g e n t ---- a d a p t e d S p i r a l M o d e la d a p t e d S p i r a l M o d e la d a p t e d S p i r a l M o d e la d a p t e d S p i r a l M o d e l

2 . The sec ond c r ucia l aspec t is t ha t t h e m o d e l d o e s n o t t h e m o d e l d o e s n o t t h e m o d e l d o e s n o t t h e m o d e l d o e s n o t

t e r m i n a t et e r m i n a t et e r m i n a t et e r m i n a t e w it h t he rele ase o f th e sof t w are pr od uc t. T he

beha vi ou r of an a ge nt, as we have seen , is a “ par t icu la r ”

sequence o f e le men tar y ac ti ons, de fine d t o b e execu te d f or t he

achieve men t of an o bjec ti ve . All t hese el emen tary act i ons,




8 0

the o re tica l ly , can be c o mb ined t o ge the r, by a pr o per fo r ma lis m

(as de ta i le d in sec ti on 3.5) , in infin i te ways , giv in g f o r m t o ne w

beha vi ou ra l m ode ls in the M AS. T hese new beha vi ou rs ( wha t I

cal l M AS Behav i ou ra l Evo lu t io n in Fi gu re 1 7) are concei ved t o

mee t new req ui rem e nts an d ac hieve ne w g oa ls , whic h c o ul d

(of ten) a rise in the pos t-de pl oy ment phase of t he end- M AS.

Neve r the less , i t is w o r th t o s tr ess t ha t, acc o r din g t o t his m o del ,

M ASs ( re la tive ly t o t he ser vices i t pr ov ide s) , can be d i r e c t l yd i r e c t l yd i r e c t l yd i r e c t l y

exten ded by the en d- u sers , w h ose orc hes tra t ions can pe r mi t t o

ref or m u la te ac t ors ’ a ctiv i ties in the de fini ti on of new M AS

beha vi ou rs . Th is ve r y re levan t as pec t al l ows end- use rs to

c a p t u r e a n d c a p t u r e a n d c a p t u r e a n d c a p t u r e a n d e m b o d y e m b o d y e m b o d y e m b o d y i n t o t h e s y s t e m i n t o t h e s y s t e m i n t o t h e s y s t e m i n t o t h e s y s t e m n e w n e w n e w n e w a p p l i c a t i o n a p p l i c a t i o n a p p l i c a t i o n a p p l i c a t i o n

kkkk n o w l e d g en o w l e d g en o w l e d g en o w l e d g e .

3 . 23 . 23 . 23 . 2 S e m a n t i c R e p r e s e n t a t i o n o f a M A SS e m a n t i c R e p r e s e n t a t i o n o f a M A SS e m a n t i c R e p r e s e n t a t i o n o f a M A SS e m a n t i c R e p r e s e n t a t i o n o f a M A S

The m ore abs t rac t is a f or ma lis m the m o re po wer fu l is i ts m ode l lin g

expressiveness . Agen t pa ra di g m see ms to nat ura l ly have t his pecu lia ri ty:

ter ms a re a na t ur al ex tensi on of hu man pe r cepti on an d s o i t is t h e seman tic

rele vance o f the ir re presen ta t ion . On t o l og ica l c once pts l i ke soc ie ty ,

indi vi dua l , ac to r, beh avi ou r, ac t ion , res pon sib il i ty , per m issi on, a nd so on ,

are ma pped t o very s i mi la r e lemen ts o f the M AS arc hi tec t ure , a u g ment in g

the le vel of e le gance a nd rel ia bi l i ty o f s of t w are deve l o pmen t pr oc esses . T his

is the le ad in g as pec t i n f ol l o win g sec t i on’s c on ten ts .

3 .2 .1 Ont o l og y Based Appr oac h

The H o me C are mo de l crea te d d u rin g t he K4Ca re pr ojec t d efines the

act o rs o f the H C d o main (e . g . phys icia ns , nu rses , s ocia l w o r kers , and

pa tien ts) , t hei r r o les and in te rac ti ons. C o ncepts of the mo de l have be en

fo rm al ize d us in g on t o lo gy as a s tan da rd AI kn o wle d ge re pr esenta ti on

mecha nis m.




8 1

The c h osen lan g ua ge fo r on t o l ogy was th e OWL 8 (On t ol o gy Web

Lan gua ge) f r om the Wo rl d Wi de We b C o nsor t iu m 9 (W3C), an d we use d

P ro té gé-O WL 10 p l u g-i n t o crea te and m anage OW L on t ol o gy. Th ey

re presen t the kno w le dg e assets of K4C are appl ica ti on an d the cata lys t f or

the a gen ts ’ be havi o u r al m o de l, as we l l as the f un da men ts fo r t he agen ts ’

cod e gene ra ti on. In t his m anner d o ma in kn ow le d ge descr i pti on was

sepa ra ted f r om the so ft wa re rea li za ti o n, assu r ing a hi g h leve l o f

inte r o per ab il i ty an d in de pendence a m on g e l emen ts of the syste m.

I h ave div ide d a ppl ica ti on on t o l ogy in t o di f f eren t s ou rces , in re la ti on

t o the ir a pplica ti on cohe rence, acc o rd ing t o t he descr i pti on a vail ab le in

secti on 2.3 .3 . T he on t ol o gy is c om pos ed of sev era l inner ele men ts ,

inde pen den t o f each o the r, exce pt f o r K4 Car e g lo ba l one, whic h in clu des a l l

the o the r on t o l o gy, a s wel l as al l the c ros s-refe rences necessa r y to re la te

conce pts c o min g f ro m t he di f fe ren t e le ment ary on t o lo gy.

The a ppl ica ti on on t ol o gy in K4 Ca re (char acte ri zin g t he AK

previ o usly in t r od uce d in sec ti on 2.3 .3) has b een st r uc tu red as f ol l o ws:

• D o m a i n D o m a i n D o m a i n D o m a i n o n t o l o g yo n t o l o g yo n t o l o g yo n t o l o g y d iv ide d in t o A P OA P OA P OA P O an d C P OC P OC P OC P O . As a lrea dy men ti o ned

APO re presen ts t he pro fi les of s u bjec ts i n K4 Ca re mo de l (h eal thc are

pro fessi ona ls , pa tien ts and so cia l o r ganis ms ) and c ont ains s ki l ls , conce rns ,

and aspir at i ons of t he pe o ple th at they represen t, t o ge the r wit h t he

defin i ti on o f he al t hca re se rvices tha t t h ose pe o ple of fer t o o r rec eive f r o m

K4 Ca re mo de l. C PO re pr esents a l l t he r elevan t me dica l c onc epts (e . g.

sym pt o ms, d iseases , s yndr o mes). D oma in o nt ol o gy desc ri bes “ kn ow- wh at ”

kn ow le d ge ab o u t ac to rs accessin g K4 Ca re m ode l an d pa t h ol o gi e s K4 Car e

m ode l g ives s u ppor t t o;

• F I P AF I P AF I P AF I P A o n t o l o g yo n t o l o g yo n t o l o g yo n t o l o g y . I t d efines the gen era l c o ncept ual iza t i on f or M AS

deve lo pmen t st anda r d iza ti on. I t re presen ts t he “ kn ow- wha t ” kno w l ed ge of a

8 h t t p : / / w w w . w 3 . o r g / T R / o w l - f e a t u r e s / 9 h t t p : / / w w w . w 3 . o r g / 10 h t t p : / / p r o t e g e . s t a n f o r d . e d u /




8 2

M AS ( messa ges , enc od in gs , c o mm unic at i on lan gua ges , and s o on) an d

“ kn ow- ho w ” kno w le dg e o f t hei r in te r acti ons (c o mm un ica tive a cts ,

inte rac ti on pr o t oc ols , co mm unic at i on on t ol o gy, and s o f o r th);

• G A I AG A I AG A I AG A I A o n t o l o g yo n t o l o g yo n t o l o g yo n t o l o g y . I t in clu des t he ont o l o gica l d escr i pt i on of the M AS

deve lo pmen t me th o d o lo gy ad o pte d in K4Ca re pro jec t, wi t h pa r tic ul ar

at ten ti on t o con ce pts such as r ol e , res ponsi bi l i ty , per m issi on;

• J A D EJ A D EJ A D EJ A D E o n t o l o g yo n t o l o g yo n t o l o g yo n t o l o g y . I t expresses i m ple me nta ti on an d de pl oy men t

conce pts tha t mus t c o m ply wi t h t he e lec ted MAS of th e pr ojec t, i .e . J ADE

(agen t- ty pes , be havi o urs , c on taine rs , m o bi li ty , and s o f o r th);

• K 4 C a r eK 4 C a r eK 4 C a r eK 4 C a r e o n t o l o g yo n t o l o g yo n t o l o g yo n t o l o g y . Th is on t o l o gy was req ui r ed in o rde r t o mo de l t he

inevi ta b le on to l o gic al cr oss-re fe rences: a ge nt ca pab i li t ies , f o r exa m ple , a re

expressed in ter ms o f “act i ons” in the APO ; these are then c onsi dere d as

“res pons ib i l i t ies ” or “ pe rm issi ons ” in G AI A; the beha vi ou ra l lo gic of an

agen t in her ent t o i t s capa bi l it ies is ex pressed in J ADE in ter ms of

“b ehav i ou rs ”, whi ch can con ta in, in tu rn, FI P A c o m plian t “in ter ac ti on

pro t oc o ls” .

3 . 33 . 33 . 33 . 3 A g e n t C o d e G e n e r a t i o nA g e n t C o d e G e n e r a t i o nA g e n t C o d e G e n e r a t i o nA g e n t C o d e G e n e r a t i o n

In K4C are pr ojec t I have a u to ma ti cal ly gene ra ted a gen t- o rie nte d

cod e de riv in g i t fr o m the a ppl ica ti on on t ol o gy. T he acc u racy an d the leve l

of de tai ls of c o de ar e di rec tly pr o po r ti on al t o t he f o rma l ism a do pte d to

descr ib e t he d o main m ode l. Pa r tic ul ar ly i m po r tan t is the re pre senta ti on of

the a gen t ca pa bi l it ies , w hic h c onsis t of a fo rm al re presen ta ti on of the ir

bus iness l o gic .

The o bjec tiv e of the au to ma t ion pr ocess was t o ana lyze , rec o g nise

and ex t rac t the en t ire M AS-c o m plian t a gen t- or ien ted inf o rma t io n: we had

t o ta ke in t o acc o un t, f irs t of a l l , t he i m plem enta ti on req ui reme nts re la ted t o

the e lec ted M AS st r uc tu re (agen t c lass defin i ti on, pr o t oc ols , message

str uc t ures , messa ge con ten ts , be hav i ou rs class) . In o rde r to gua ran tee




8 3

f lex ib i l i ty in t he on t o lo g ica l t rave rs ing an d pars in g, an d t o de co uple t he

conce ptu al iza t ion la ye r f r om t he pa rsin g one , t he in t r od uc ti on of a ma ppin g

dic ti ona ry w as necess ary . T his th esau r us de scri bed t o pa rser th e “ ro o t ” le vel

of c once pts w he re t o s ta rt c o llec t in g a gen t ’s kn ow le d ge.

Al l ext rac te d inf o rma ti on h as been tem po rar i ly re presen ted by an

inte rna l m ode l. I ha ve o b taine d a gen ts cod e c om bi nin g t o g ethe r t wo

cate g or ies o f e le ments :

• Fixe d and inva ria b le (key wo r ds re la te d to pro g ra mm in g lan gua g e,

JAV A, and the M AS, J ADE) – a s o r t of s ta tic con tex t;

• Deri ved f r o m t he kno wle d ge m o de l – a kin d o f dyna mic c on tex t,

necessary t o e m be d expressi ons wh ich c o m ply w i th t he c o rrec t

cod e c o m ple t ion of an a gent .

An a gen t’s ca pab i li t ie s (fr om do ma in kno w led ge) a re re presen te d by

its ac t ions , l iste d in th e APO: f r o m t he para di g m’s poin t of vie w, t hese m us t

be t rans la ted in ter ms of be havi o ur al m o de l s com plian t w i th t he M AS. T he

cod e was b ui l t t akin g i nt o acco un t t he f o ll o w ing as pec t: d if feren t b ehavi o urs

have been de di ca ted t o d if feren t s ki l ls in o rde r t o in te rac t in pa ra lle l wi th

dif feren t ot he r en ti t ie s (cal le d Exe cu ti on Te st En g ines) .

This is a f un dam ent al aspec t in J ADE a gen t s: even i f be havi o urs can

be of di f fe rent na tu re (pa ra lle l , cycl ic , one-s ho t, and s o on), t he ex ecu ti on of

a spe cif ic beh avi o ur inh ib i ts ( bl oc ks) t he exec u ti on of al l the o t hers

(fo l l owi ng the po lic y of a “ beha vi ou rs queue ”) . Wi t h r eg ar d t o th is

pro b le ma tic I pr o pos ed as a possi bl e so lu t ion the ins tan t ia ti on of an o the r

iden tic al beh avi o ur a t the ve ry be g innin g of the f irs t inv oc ate d. I n th is way

we w o ul d g ran t rea l para ll el in terac t i on inv oca ti ons of t he sa me nat ure (a

sor t of “ dyna mic be ha vio u ra l po ol in g”) .

3 .3 .1 M AS C o de Gener at i o n in K4 Ca re P la t fo r m

The pla tf o rm ch osen f or t he sys te m pr o t o ty pes was J ADE (as a lre ady

int r od uce d in sec ti o n 1.4 .1) . K4C are a g ent c o de gene ra to r has been




8 4

im ple ment ed as a P r o té gé plu g- in, wh ich accesses do ma in on t ol o gy via

P ro té gé ’s O WL AP I a nd sh o ws a user in te r face w i th f ie lds s pecif ying b o th

de pl oy men t pa ra me t ers (J ADE h o me, J AV A ho me, ou t put di rec to ries ,

ou t pu t pac ka ge na me s and s o f o rt h) an d fa ci l i t ies t o genera te an d c om pile

agen ts ’ s ou rce f i les . Neve r the less , t he plu g-in is a b le t o s tar t J ADE a gen t

pla tf o rm, la unch tes t agen ts f or eac h ac t or ty pe (t he nu mbe r of agen ts is

pa ra met er ize d), an d one ( o r seve ra l) tes t en gines tha t inv o ke ran do m

acti ons of ran d om ly s elec ted a gen ts in s pec if ie d t ime in te rva ls . T his la t te r

func ti ona l ity c an be u sed t o benc hma r k, s t r ess tes t t he c ur ren t c o nfi gu ra ti on

(har dw are , s of tw are) , meas ur e per f or manc e, res ponse t imes of agen ts a t

dif feren t lo ads.

Genera te d a gent c o de consis ts o f a set of J ava classes . These c la sses

can be g r ou pe d in to th ree mai n cate g o ri es: b e h a v i o u rb e h a v i o u rb e h a v i o u rb e h a v i o u r c lasses , m e s s a g em e s s a g em e s s a g em e s s a g e

o n t o l o g yo n t o l o g yo n t o l o g yo n t o l o g y c lasses , and a g e n ta g e n ta g e n ta g e n t c lasses . Be havi ou r c lasses i m plem en t d if fe ren t

acti ons o f a gen ts . Me ssage on t o l ogy de fine s t he on to l o gy of e le men ts tha t

agen ts can use w i th in con ten t of messa ges . Agen t c lasses i m ple men t

dif feren t agen t ty pes th at s ta r t the be ha vio u rs and re gis te r t he re la te d

(messa ge) on t ol o gy. The c o de gene ra t or r elies on the a ppl ica ti o n on t o lo gy

presen ted in t he pre vio us s ect i ons, and als o on an im ple me nta ti on o f

dif feren t act i ons d ecl ared in the APO. The re a re seve ra l a lte rna t ives in t he

defin i ti on o f ac ti ons at di f fe ren t abs t rac t ion leve ls (e .g . usin g busin ess

proc ess des cr i pt i on la ng ua ge); the pl u g-in c ur ren t ly ex pec ts a Java l i b ra ry in

whi ch ac ti ons a re i m pl emen ted b y s i m ple J av a me t h ods.

Met h od na mes c or res pond t o ac ti on na mes in the d oma in o nt o l o gy

so t ha t t hey can be de r ived by the c o de gene r at or . C o mplex ac ti ons based on

speci f ic pr o toc o ls (f o r exam ple, th ose ones r equi rin g inte rac t ion w it h ot he r

agen ts w it hin the ac t i on b o dy) are i m pleme nte d by sever al me th o ds inv o ked

at s peci f ic s ta tes of t h e pro t oc o l. Ac tiv i ties of a gen ts a re e mbe d de d in a gen t

beha vi ou rs . P oss ib le a ctiv i ties of age nts are the act i ons; the ref o re beha vi ou r




8 5

classes can be ge nera t ed by i te ra tin g th r ou g h al l the ac ti ons in t he APO. Fo r

each ac ti on a un ique behav i ou r cl ass has been cre ate d, wh ich exten ded a

beha vi ou r sc he ma c o r res pon di ng t o t he pro t oc ol o f the ac ti on (a s dec lar ed

in the d o main on to l o g y).

Depen din g on the giv en pr o t oc o l, a l l rel a te d cal l- bac k met h ods had

t o be ove rr id den t o pe rf or m s pec if ic ac t i vit ies a t s pe cif ic s ta t es . T hese

me th ods we re gene ra ted by t he plu g- i n wi t h bo dy c on ta inin g the

appr opr ia te me t h od cal ls t o t he ex te rna l l i b rary o f ac ti ons. The pro pe r

co mm unic at ive ac ts of messa ges , the c on versa ti on-i d, pr o t oco l , on t o l ogy

f ie lds a re au t o ma tica l ly set by t he genera t ed co de acc or din g t o the given

pro t oc o l.

Messa ge on t o l ogy c la sses define the c once pts t ha t can b e use d in

messa ges excha nge d b etwe en agen ts . Acc o r din g to FI P A s tand ar ds, req ues t

messa ges c on tain a ge nt ac t ions ( Age nt Ac t i on Sche ma in J ADE), whi le res u lt

messa ges c on tain pred ica tes ( Pre di ca te Sche ma). Agen t a ct ions and

pred ica tes can c on tai n s lo ts ( f ie lds) , as w el l as su bs tr uc tu res defin ed as

conce pts (C once pt Sc hema) . J ADE on to l o g y consis t of a se t of J ava classes

(wi th t he a ppr o pria t e schem a su pe r-c las s) , and on t ol o gy c l asses t ha t

re gis ter these e lemen t s in J ADE. Al l t hese c l asses ar e gene ra ted by t he pl ug-

in, t hr o u gh the d o ma in on t ol o gy. Ac t ors a re re presen ted in the syste m by

agen ts . Ca pab il i t ies o f agen ts are de te rm ine d by the ac ti ons dec la red f or t he

act o r ty pe in t he APO . Be havi o urs are re gis tere d wi th t he a ppro pri ate

messa ge te m pl ate : co mm unic at ive a ct , pr ot oc o l, on t o l ogy (t ha t is ,

beha vi ou rs can on ly be act iva te d by a de d icat ed mess a ge be l on gin g to the

acti on) . In ad di t ion to th is , a gen ts are capa b le o f han dl in g un kn o wn

messa ges sen t t o the a gen t ( l o g ged), an d a d min iste r i ts l i fe-cyc le .

3 . 43 . 43 . 43 . 4 B e h a v i o u r a l D y n a m i s mB e h a v i o u r a l D y n a m i s mB e h a v i o u r a l D y n a m i s mB e h a v i o u r a l D y n a m i s m

The l i fe-c ycle of an a g ent- based sys te m d oes no t re f lec t th at one o f a

“ tra di t ion al ” IT pla tf or m, w hich a lm os t e nds w i th the de pl oy men t o f the




8 6

applic at i on i tse lf . S o me one may i mme di at ely a r g ue th at even t rad i ti ona l

applic at i ons usua l ly i nclu de ac tiv it ies ty pic al of the pos t- de pl oy men t ph ase,

such as pr ov isi on o f pa tches an d b u gs-c o rrec t in g u pgra des , t o cite only

so me. This is , o f c o urse , tr ue b ut n ot t h e poi nt w hic h I w o u ld l i ke t o

em phas ize .

The na tu re of a gen t- pa rad i gm pe rm i ts t he extens i on o f syst em

beha vi ou ra l c apab i li t ies , bey ond t he mer e co rre ct i on of pr o g ram mi ng

mis ta kes: t he sense is th at i t pe rm its t o ref l ect , re present and em b ody in to

the sys tem , th r ou g h a su it ab le f or ma lis m, t he e me r gin g kn o wl ed ge ( taci t

unt i l th at m o men t) m anifes te d by in di vi dua ls wh o act (an d in te ra ct) wi t hin

the sys tem . An d th is al l m i gh t be poss ib l e wi t h ou t m o dify in g eit her the

m ode l or t he i m ple m ente d st r uc tu re of th e M AS itse l f . B u t h o w can i t be

achieve d ?

The key c once pt on whi ch t o f ocus ou r a t ten ti on is th at of a g ent

beha vi ou r an d i ts e le men tary c o m po nents . As l on g as the re is an occ ur rence

of in ter act i ons be twe en t w o en ti ti es of t he syste m, t he M AS w il l na t ur al ly

ten d t o evo lve to wa rds a m o re sui ta b le confi g ur at i on of i ts e lemen ts

(act or s) , by inc reas i ng a gen ts ’ ca pa bi li t ie s to in te rac t and a d apt t o the

envir on men t and its newer requ i remen ts; by ex pec tin g a gen ts t o ma na ge

events whi ch we re unr eveale d un t i l t ha t m o men t. T he ev ol u ti ona r y pa th of a

syste m ref lec ts i ts ca pa bi li ty t o “c o heren t l y” ada pt t o t he envi r on ment al

chan ges an d e x pect at i ons.

I n t e l l i g e n t S y s t e m s C o h e r e n c eI n t e l l i g e n t S y s t e m s C o h e r e n c eI n t e l l i g e n t S y s t e m s C o h e r e n c eI n t e l l i g e n t S y s t e m s C o h e r e n c e

Wit h t he te rm “co he re nce” we gene ra l ly iden ti fy:

1) „The qu al i ty or st ate of co he rin g, es pec ia l ly a l o g ica l , o rde r ly , an d

aest het ica l ly c onsis ten t re la ti onsh i p of pa rts ” 11;

11 T h e F r e e D i c t i o n a r y - h t t p : / / w w w . t h e f r e e d i c t i o n a r y . c o m / c o h e r e n c e




8 7

2) „When t he pa rts o f s o me thi ng f i t t o ge the r i n a nat u ra l or sens i bl e

way ” 12;

3) „The qu al i ty of bein g l o gica l an d c ons ist ent, o r of f or min g a

unif ied wh o le” 13.

In hu man behav i ou rs the a b ove men t ione d defin i ti ons rea ch a fu r the r

leve l o f spe cia li za ti on and di f fe ren tia ti on . Hu man behav i ou ra l r eact ions a re

co m plex an d many-s ide d beca use psyc hi c ac tiv ity pr ov o kes em ot i ona l

sta tes , w hic h cha nge the o bjec tive pa ra m ete rs o f a man. The sense of

cohe rence refe rs t o t he way ind ivi d ua ls ex amine t hei r l ives an d the ir place

and h ow they deve l o p a gene ra l o rien ta ti on t ha t ensu res kn own an d

pred ic tab le envi r on me nts .

In a rt i f ic ia l sys te ms, s pea king c lear ly , t he e m ot i ona l s phe re d oes no t

re presen t a f und ame nta l as pec t o f t he syste m’s pe rf or mance ; we have

the ref o re the o ppor t u nity t o s i m pli fy b o th t he de fini t ion and t he applic at i on

of t he te rm co he rence. In [6 ] I in t ro d uce pre li mina ry g ui de lines t o war ds t he

defin i ti on of c ohe ren t b ehav i ou rs in Mu l t i Agen t Sys tems (ev i denced in

pa pe r main ly in te r ms o f a gen t ’s s ubs t i tu ta b il ity) . The be hav io u r of a M AS ,

l i ke any o the r IT ar c hi tec tu res , is t o be re fer red t o the req ui re men ts an d

expec ta ti on of i ts use r s . The sense of c ohe re nce fo r an agen t can b e seen in

ter ms of i ts “ de te rm in ati on ” in ac hiev ing its ment o r’s ( user) o bje ctiv es: a na na na n

a g e n t a g e n t a g e n t a g e n t a c t s a c t s a c t s a c t s c o h e r e n t l y c o h e r e n t l y c o h e r e n t l y c o h e r e n t l y i f i t i f i t i f i t i f i t s u b s t i t u t e s t h e h u m a n a c t o r i n t h e s u b s t i t u t e s t h e h u m a n a c t o r i n t h e s u b s t i t u t e s t h e h u m a n a c t o r i n t h e s u b s t i t u t e s t h e h u m a n a c t o r i n t h e a t t aa t t aa t t aa t t a i n m e n t i n m e n t i n m e n t i n m e n t

o f h i s / h e r i n t e r e s t so f h i s / h e r i n t e r e s t so f h i s / h e r i n t e r e s t so f h i s / h e r i n t e r e s t s .

The re is n o t any f or m al an d ex pl ici t a g reem ent bet ween an a gen t and

its “ men t or ”: f o r th is r eason, c o h e r e n c e c a n b e i n t e n d e d c o h e r e n c e c a n b e i n t e n d e d c o h e r e n c e c a n b e i n t e n d e d c o h e r e n c e c a n b e i n t e n d e d a s t h e a s t h e a s t h e a s t h e e f f e c te f f e c te f f e c te f f e c t o f a o f a o f a o f a

t a c i t c o n t r a c t b e t w e e n t h e a g e n t a n d t a c i t c o n t r a c t b e t w e e n t h e a g e n t a n d t a c i t c o n t r a c t b e t w e e n t h e a g e n t a n d t a c i t c o n t r a c t b e t w e e n t h e a g e n t a n d t h et h et h et h e h u m a n u s e rh u m a n u s e rh u m a n u s e rh u m a n u s e r .

In M ASs I in ten ded t o rel ate t he c once pt o f co her ence to t w o le vels

of ana lysis: a m icr o level (sin g le co m po nents /pers on al behav io ur) an d

12 C a m b r i d g e D i c t i o n a r y - h t t p : / / d i c t i o n a r y . c a m b r i d g e . o r g / d i c t i o n a r y / b r i t i s h / c o h e r e n c e 13 O x f o r d D i c t i o n a r y - h t t p : / / o x f o r d d i c t i o n a r i e s . c o m / v i e w / e n t r y / m _ e n _ g b 0 9 7 8 6 1 0 # m _ e n _ g b 0 9 7 8 6 1 0




8 8

mac ro leve l ( t he syste m as a w ho le en t ity – ass emb l in g o f

co m ponen ts /g l ob al b ehavi o ur) . At a mic r o leve l , a gen ts ma p u sers ’ inne r

conf i gu ra ti on, thei r nat ure an d the exis t entia l a tt i tu des ( d o main r o les ,

capa b il i t ies , pe rm issi o ns, dues , l i kes , d is l i ke s , pe rso nal g oa ls , an d so f or t h).

At a mac ro lev el , t he M AS s h ou l d pr ov ide a soc iety , a mar ke t, o r any o th er

applic at i on a g g lo me ra ti on wi t h th ose se rv ic es and l oya l ties f or w hich i t has

been c once ive d an d re ali zed .

Kee pi ng co he rence i m pl ies t o a da pt to u navo ida b le env ir on m enta l

chan ges; ada pt in g of t en resu l ts int o de cisi on- ma kin g, w hic h, in tu rn, is a

ref lex of in te l l i genc e. Int el l i genc e, on the o the r han d, is , in i ts

indef ina b leness , man i feste d by an en ti ty (and pe rce ived by t he o the rs)

th r ou g h its beha vi ou r al g ui de lines .

C oncl u din g, in my o pi nion ev o lu ti on is g ive n by tw o ma in fac to rs:

1) Na t ura l occu r rences and co m bin at i ons o f agen t pre-es ta b lis he d

inte rac ti ons;

2) Enhance men ts and ( t heo re tic al ly in fini te) new co m bina t ions of

agen ts ’ e le ment ary ac t ions (new behav i ou rs) .

In ad di ti on, c ohe ren ce ho lds un ti l an ag ent syste m c on tin ues to

purs ue the ob jec tives whi ch h ave been (ex pl ici tly o r i m pl ici t ly) a g reed wi th

the use rs o f t he sys te m.

3 . 53 . 53 . 53 . 5 I n t e r a c t i o n s E v o l u t i o n i n I n t e r a c t i o n s E v o l u t i o n i n I n t e r a c t i o n s E v o l u t i o n i n I n t e r a c t i o n s E v o l u t i o n i n A g e n tA g e n tA g e n tA g e n t ---- b a s e d S y s t e mb a s e d S y s t e mb a s e d S y s t e mb a s e d S y s t e m ssss

Li ke m os t of resear ch ers d o at the end of t hei r inves ti ga ti on w o r k, I

have als o syn thes ize d my own pers on al vie w on a gen ts , by c ou plin g t hei r

pa ra di g m wi t h an o the r me ta ph or of ex cel le nce: t ha t o f a c h i l dc h i l dc h i l dc h i l d . This v is i on

di rec tly der ives f ro m my pe rs ona l expe rie nces , on t he b asis o f wh ich I

subs tan t ia lly see a ge nts c o m pa red, the o re tica l ly , t o ch il d ren in a s or t o f

educ at i ona l me th od o l o gy t ow ar ds a behav i o ura l ev ol u ti on:

as c h i l d r e nc h i l d r e nc h i l d r e nc h i l d r e n , a t t hei r bi rt h, h a v e p u r e a n d i n c r e d i b l e p o t e n t i a l sh a v e p u r e a n d i n c r e d i b l e p o t e n t i a l sh a v e p u r e a n d i n c r e d i b l e p o t e n t i a l sh a v e p u r e a n d i n c r e d i b l e p o t e n t i a l s

pro vi ded by th ei r ver y natu re ( i n s t i n c ti n s t i n c ti n s t i n c ti n s t i n c t , a d a p t a t i o n, a d a p t a t i o n, a d a p t a t i o n, a d a p t a t i o n , i m m e d i a t e l e a r n i n g , , i m m e d i a t e l e a r n i n g , , i m m e d i a t e l e a r n i n g , , i m m e d i a t e l e a r n i n g ,




8 9

e m u l a t i o n , l o g i c a l d e r i v a t i o n , s p o n t a n e o u s n e s se m u l a t i o n , l o g i c a l d e r i v a t i o n , s p o n t a n e o u s n e s se m u l a t i o n , l o g i c a l d e r i v a t i o n , s p o n t a n e o u s n e s se m u l a t i o n , l o g i c a l d e r i v a t i o n , s p o n t a n e o u s n e s s an d many ot hers) , b u t

need t o be t rain ed an d di rec ted un de r the su perv is i on o f the ir paren ts ( i .e .

the “ex pe rts ” wh o hav e alre ady ex pe rience d the pr ocess) , so d o a g e n t s a g e n t s a g e n t s a g e n t s n e e d n e e d n e e d n e e d

t o t o t o t o l e a r nl e a r nl e a r nl e a r n aaaa ““““ m o d e lm o d e lm o d e lm o d e l ”””” o f e x i s t e n c eo f e x i s t e n c eo f e x i s t e n c eo f e x i s t e n c e , i n o r d e r t o a c k n o w l e d g e , i n o r d e r t o a c k n o w l e d g e , i n o r d e r t o a c k n o w l e d g e , i n o r d e r t o a c k n o w l e d g e i n d e p e n d e n c e i n d e p e n d e n c e i n d e p e n d e n c e i n d e p e n d e n c e

a n d s u r v i v a la n d s u r v i v a la n d s u r v i v a la n d s u r v i v a l .

The pr ocess of ag en t beh avi o ura l pe rf o r mance is of incr eme nta l

nat ure . At t he ve ry b eginn in g, t hey a re a b le of ex pl oi tin g s i m pl e ac ti ons,

on ly . B ut i f they re cei ved an a dequ ate “ed u cati on ” t hey a re ab le t o exec u te

even t he m os t c o m pl ex and l ong- te r m o pe ra ti ons. O ne o f the g oa ls of my

invest i ga ti ons w as ind eed t o f ind a su i ta ble for ma l ism t o st ren g t hen agen t

beha vi ou ra l re presen t ati on: st ar tin g fr o m sim ple c once pts bu t wi th t he

eno rm o us po tent ia li ty of ha vin g th em co m bine d t o ge the r in t he def ini ti on

of m o re c o m plex ones .

The de pl oy men t of a Mu l ti Agen t Sys tem c a n be seen as a screen-s ho t

of t he s pec if ic d o ma i n con fi g ura t ion a t a speci f ic t i me (c om in g fr o m the

analys is and desi gn phases): we l l de fine d act o r r o les w it h pre-e sta b lishe d

beha vi ou ra l gu ide li ne s (and int erac t ion ca pabi li t ies) re presen t t h e star t- u p

co re of t he M AS.

Any way, t he envi r on men t wi l l (nat ur al ly and unav o ida b ly) ten d t o

evo lve t o wa rds d if fe re nt and un kn o wn scena ri os , de riv in g fr o m t he evidence

of n ew kn o w led ge e mer g in g in t he sys t em do ma in: th e a d o pti on of

fo rm al is m desc r ib in g M AS- re la ted ac tiv ity i nde penden t o f the de vel o pme nt

cons tr uc ts c an le t us a chieve t his f und amen t al o bjec t ive .

In s uch a sense a ge nt- pa rad i gm ena b les fo rm al ex tensi ons o f t he

ove ra ll Mu l ti Agen t S yste m’s beha vi ou ra l m ode l, wi th o u t in ter f erin g w i th,

and av oi din g re pe rc us sions on, t he a ppl ica ti on’s de pl oy men t cycle . This is a

fun dam ent al as pec t i n t he rec o gn it i on, m anage men t an d e m bo di men t of

new e me rg in g a ppli ca t ion kn ow le dge , as in t r od uce d im me dia te ly a fte r .




9 0

3.5.1 Int r od uc ti on to M AS Beha vi ou ra l E xtens i on s

It is im me dia te ly w or t h h i gh li g h tin g t h at M AS ex tensi ons are

expec te d t o be mana g ed and orc hes tra te d d i r e c t l yd i r e c t l yd i r e c t l yd i r e c t l y by t he end- us ers o f th e

pla tf o rm ( pra ct i ti one rs and me dica l s taf f , in ou r case) . Beca u se of t his

reas on, beh avi o ura l e xtensi ons are t o be e asy-t o-a pply f r om t he poin t o f

view of a n ot-e x per t t ar ge t in co m put er sci ence. Bu t wha t d o I i nten d wi t h

the ter m “ M AS ex tensi ons ” an d h ow d o t hey ta ke f or m?

As al rea dy i l l us tr ate d i n prev io us sec ti ons ( li ke , f or exa m ple, in 2 .3 .3)

a M AS g l ob al beh avi ou r is t he res u lt in g o f di f fe ren t ca teg o ries of ac t ions

ta ken by ac t ors (a gen ts) in t he syste m, in d eed. Th ose ones o f i nte rest , in

ou r s pec if ic case , a re the ac ti ons c ha r acte ri zin g t he P K ( P roce d ur al

Kn ow le d ge) of the M AS, whi ch re presen t t he c ore of serv ices pr ovi de d by

the sys tem .

In t he m o de ll in g a ppr oac h presen te d in this disse rt at i on (see sect i ons

fr om 2.2 t o 2 .3 .3) , an agen t is ca pa b le of ac t ing in a s peci f ic d o ma in, unde r

wel l- def ined r ules , pro t oc ols and be hav io u ra l po licies . W hi le these ele men ts

are us ua l ly lon g- te rm e d and ha rd ly m od ifi ab le or a l te ra ble , use rs o f spec if ic

do ma ins ( li ke H C) o f t en need to re-ar ran ge the pr ov isi on o f ce r tai n serv ices

t o c om ply wi t h c us to mer ’s necess i ties . T h ese s i gnif ican t m od ifi cati ons in

the pr ovisi on of a se r vice wi l l re presen t t h e e x t e n s i o n se x t e n s i o n se x t e n s i o n se x t e n s i o n s of the M AS ’ g l o ba l

beha vi ou r. Le t us see imme di ate ly w ha t I mean by a s im ple an d prac tica l

exam ple de ri ved f r o m K4C are c on tex t. L et us s u ppose t ha t a doc t o r (a

pla tf o rm ac to r) wan ts t o pr ovi de a pat ien t wi th a HC t rea t men t service , let

us say a “ Trea t men t of Hy pe rtens i on” , as re por te d on pa ge 90 .

In ad d it i on to t his , le t us su ppose t ha t, f o r so me r eas on, the ac t ua l

m ode l f or the gi ven ca re t rea t ment cann o t b e direc t ly a pplie d t o t he pa t ient ,

beca use his /her phys i cal par ame te rs d o no t pr o pe rly f i t in t he pr ovis i ona l

con di ti ons. In ot her wo r ds, t he do ct o r nee ds t o m od ify t he II P (tha t is , to

al ter a gen t int erac t ion s wh ich c ons ti tu te the M AS ove ra ll b ehav i o ur f or the




9 1

give n I I P) an d in tr o d uce f u r the r ac t ivi ties and c on t ro ls , or e l im i nate s o me

of t he e xis tin g on es , as i l l us tr at ed in t he fo l l o win g Fi g ure 18.

F i g u r e F i g u r e F i g u r e F i g u r e 1 81 81 81 8 : M A S B e h a v i o u r a l E x t e n s i o n: M A S B e h a v i o u r a l E x t e n s i o n: M A S B e h a v i o u r a l E x t e n s i o n: M A S B e h a v i o u r a l E x t e n s i o n i ni ni ni n H y p e r t e nH y p e r t e nH y p e r t e nH y p e r t e n s i o ns i o ns i o ns i o n T r e a t m e n tT r e a t m e n tT r e a t m e n tT r e a t m e n t

Let us ana lyse t his sc enari o f r o m t he user ’ s poin t of v ie w, f irs t . The

II P on t he le f t s ide o f the previ o us i l lus t ra ti on (Hy pe r tensi on T rea tmen t

Dia gr am) have been a pplie d by the d oc to r i n prece dent car e case s b ut no w

needs t o be c us t om i zed t o t he ac t ua l pa t ient req ui re men ts . T he gene ra l

g ui del ines o f the tr ea t men t are acce pta ble f or the ne w pa ti ent bu t t hey are

no t co m ple tely c o m pl ying wi th ex pec ta t ion s. The d oc t o r d oes n o t req ui re

the “D ru g T he ra py” i n po in t 1 no r t he con sequen t connec t ion s t o t he nex t

dia g ra m bl oc k – t he yel lo w rh o m bus c ond it io n che ck) . On the con t ra ry ,

he/s he wis hes t o m o dify the t rea t men t, b y ad din g s o me o t her necessary

ste ps a fte r t he ac ti vi ty of “ Li fe S ty le M o dif ica ti ons ” . M od ifi ca ti on wi l l

invo lve the inse r ti on of t w o new act i ons – “ Ur ine Ana lysis ” and “ Bl o o d

Ana lysis ” – pro vi ded by d oma in ac to rs ( agen t- base d) – po int s 2 and 3

wi th in the re d- dashe d rec tan gle – and of al l re la tin g l in ks ne cessary t o

connec t t he ab ove me nti one d act i ons t o t h e cond it i on chec k – poin ts 4 , 5

and 6. As we wi ll see , doc t o rs are a b le to int ro d uce and s t ore II P m ode ls an d




9 2

the ir m od ifi ca ti ons by the ex pl oi ta ti on of a g ra ph ic t o o l (II P E di t or) , wh ich

is pa rt of K4C are pl at f or m, as de ta i le d in sec ti on 3.6 .1 .

Wha t ha ppens, on the con tr ary , w i th in the M AS?

As we al rea dy kn o w, do ma in ac t o rs a re m appe d int o J ADE ( FI P A-

co m pl ian t) ag ents an d t hei r ski l ls ta ke f or m as JADE be havi o u r s . The b asic

co m ponen ts of a gen t’ s behav i ou rs are a l l t h e elemen ta ry ac ti ons i t may ta ke

(in t he d o main), wh ic h are f o r mal ly def ined in th e AP O and im ple men ted as

agen t c o res (J AV A cl asses) , an d a re a vai la bl e t o med ica l s taf f a s r un-t i me

m ode l lin g ent i ties (t h ro u gh J AV A ref lec ti on tec hn o lo gy) in care tr eat men ts .

When t he execu ti on of an acti on (d en o ted by 4-t u ples in SK

descr i pti on – see sec t ion 2.3 .3 f or m o re de t ai ls) is re m oved f ro m, o r a dde d

t o, an II P, the M AS be havi o ura l scena ri o is , i n any case , a l te red, be cause:

1) Agen ts previ o usly pr o vid ing ac tu al ly c ancel led ac ti ons a re as ke d

no t t o d o i t any l on g er, as s om e o the r ac t or w i l l be dele g ate d t o

execu te t hem;

2) Agen ts pr ovi din g ne w ly int r od uce d ac t ions , on t he c on t rary , wi l l

be as ke d t o execu te th em fo l l ow in g the I I P ’s co or din at i on l o gics .

Fina l ly , t he M AS w i l l rea l ize behav i ou ra l mo di fica t ions , b o th on

mic r o- (previ o us poi nt 1) and mac r o-l evel (prev i ous po in t 2) , due to the

extensi ons req u ire d a t r un- ti me by me dica l u sers .

C oncl u din g, I can su mm ar ize the pre ceden ts ste ps by sayin g tha t II P

or ches tr a ti ons a re t o be in any way:

a) FFFF o r m a lo r m a lo r m a lo r m a l , as prac t i ti one rs ac t on an acce pte d kn ow le d ge-desc ri b in g

fo rm al is m in med ica l con tex ts;

b) EEEE x t e n s i o n sx t e n s i o n sx t e n s i o n sx t e n s i o n s , beca use they req ui re a re-a r ra nge men t of the M AS

ove r-a ll behav i ou r, w h ich wi l l res u lt in the pro visi on of a ne w ca re

tre at men t;




9 3

c) DDDD e p l o y m e n te p l o y m e n te p l o y m e n te p l o y m e n t ---- i n d e p e n d e n ti n d e p e n d e n ti n d e p e n d e n ti n d e p e n d e n t , beca use a gen t’s “na tive ” ca pa bi li t ies

rem ain in- fac t una l te r ed: w ha t chan ges is t hei r o rches t ra ti on an d

exte rna l c o or din at i on in the pr ov isi on o f a s peci f ic H C t rea t men t.

3 .5 .2 Int ui t ive R epresen ta ti on of Behav i ou ra l C o r e Ele men ts

The b asic i dea I he r eafte r pr o pose is t o dec om pose the c onc ept

beha vi ou r of an a gen t int o s i m p l e rs i m p l e rs i m p l e rs i m p l e r re la ted c o n c e p t sc o n c e p t sc o n c e p t sc o n c e p t s , wh ich a re a t t he b asis

of any a gen t’s ac t ivi ti es and, t he m o re i m por tan t , can be orc hes tr ate d an d

arr an ged t o crea te ne w (o r ex tend previ o us ) behav i ou ra l l ines , ev en afte r the

de pl oy men t phase.

The w o r k we pu bl ishe d in [1 0] an d [11 ] su mm ar izes , s pec ia lizes and

exten ds t he conce pt u ali za ti on eff o r t int r od uced by D. Riañ o in [63 ] fo r a

gene ra liz at i on and s t anda rd iza ti on of a ge nt- or ien ted c lin ica l g ui del ines

descr i pti on fo r ma lis m t hr o u gh t he SD A* f l o wcha r ts .

As a lre ady men ti one d, the ro le of an a gen t is pr im ar ily t he ma ppin g o f

i ts d o ma in user ’s pr of i le . Neve r the less , c om pe tences o f a user in a do mai n

may va ry , de pen din g on his /her a t ti t u de to lea rn an d im pr o ve in t he

applic at i on posi t ion , and even due t o cha nges in t he re g ul at i o ns of t he

do ma in i tse lf ( f o r ma l va ria t ions in use r ’ s pe rm issi ons, res po nsib il i t ies ,

co m peten cies and s o f or t h).

Ques ti on: “ Co nsi der i ng tha t a M AS may b e cons tan t ly r unnin g and

its c o m plex i ty may be f inal ly g ove rnab le , h o w can we ex tend sys te m ag ents ’

capa b il i t ies wi t h ou t in ter r u ptin g t he ac t ua l pro visi on of M AS se rvi ces?”

Ans wer : “We ne ed t o dec om pose the P r oce du ra l Kn ow le d ge (P K ) of

the d om ain in t o reass emb la b le s i m pler c on cepts , t o be in tu i tive ly and easi ly

ada pta ble t o a gen t- bas ed tec hno l o gy “.

The c once pts I a m ta l kin g ab o u t ( whi ch are the f oun da t ions o f SD A*)

are t he decis io ns , t he acti ons an d the s ta tes of an a gen t .




9 4

3.5.3 C once pts

I a m g oin g no w t o b r ief ly ex plain eac h of t he pr evi o usly men t i o ned

conce pts mean in g:

- D e c i s i o nD e c i s i o nD e c i s i o nD e c i s i o n : t he set o f decis i on var ia bles is com pose d of a l l the

vari ab les tha t m ay be requi re d by h u man u sers t o ch o ose am on g

al tern at ive ac ti ons d ur ing the oc cu rre nce of M AS in te rac ti ons;

- A c t i o nA c t i o nA c t i o nA c t i o n : t he se t o f ac t i on v ar ia bles c om prise s al l t he var ia bl es tha t

re presen t the pers ona l capab i li t ies of an enti ty (h um an act o r i n

the d o ma in, a gen t in t he M AS) in t he sys te m;

- S t a t eS t a t eS t a t eS t a t e : t he se t of s ta te var iab les re presen t te rms t ha t a re usef ul t o

descr ib e an d dete r mi ne t he c on di ti on ( o f any kin d - physic al ,

beha vi ou ra l , e tc .) of a n ent i ty ( in ou r case a do ma in ac t o r) .

P roce d ur al kn o wl ed ge in K4C are ( b o th re la ted t o a d min ist ra ti ve and

heal t hca re pro cesses) was re presen ted in a f or ma l n o ta ti on ca ll ed S ta tes-

Decisi ons- Ac ti ons (S DA*), f o ll o win g t he e x plana ti on given be f ore .

In the f o ll o win gs o f t his sec t io n I sh o w h ow H C pr ocesses c an be

cus to mise d t o the cas e of a pa r tic u la r pa tie nt, by lever in g on t he fo rm al is m I

have in tr o duce d. Nev ert he less , I w il l sh o w how h u man use rs o f K4 Ca re

(prac ti ti one rs) can c o or dina te t hei r ac t ivi ties t o ex ecu te ne w perso nal ise d

tre at men ts f o r a pa t ie nt, by exten din g a gen ts ’ beh avi o ura l ca pa bi li t ies an d,

do in g s o, c a pt u rin g and f or ma li zin g ne w e mer g in g kn ow le d ge in the

applic at i on do ma in.


Devel o pmen ts o f the conce pts pre vi ous ly i ntr o d uced have led u s t o

the f o l lo win g s pecia l iz ati ons:

a) S t a t eS t a t eS t a t eS t a t e ssss : f r om a se man tic poin t of vie w, a s t ate ( or En tr y P oin t –

EP) desc ri bes a ge nera l pa t ient c on di ti on in w hic h al l t h e

vari ab les o f the st at e ho l d wi th in the c on te xt of the dis ease (f o r

exam ple, dia be tes , c o mple te- ini tia l-assess men t, e tc) . F r o m a




9 5

l og ica l po in t o f vie w, a sta te is a co njun ct ion of s ta te va ria b les .

Fr o m a fun ct i ona l po i nt of vie w, the s ta tes of a FI P a re t he E Ps o f

tha t F I P o r, in o the r wo r ds, t he poin ts whe re t he t rea tmen t

descr ib ed by the F I P c an st ar t;

b )b )b )b ) D e c i s i o nD e c i s i o nD e c i s i o nD e c i s i o n ssss : a decis i on (o r br anch ing poin t) desc ri bes in a FI P a

poin t whe re the t rea t men t can f o l lo w a l ter nati ve c ou rses of ac ti o n

de pend in g on wh ich v aria b les of the decisi o n ho l d. F ro m a l og ica l

poin t of v iew , a dec is ion re pr esents t he ev al ua ti on to t ru e o r t o

false of the c onj unc ti o n of dec is i on va ria b les of a l l the a l te rna tives

in t he dec isi on. F r om a func ti ona l po in t o f view, decis ions a l l ow

the F I P to be as ge nera l an d f lex ib le as t o c o mb ine seve ra l

vari at i ons in t he t rea t men t o f a disease , and ma ke t he a ppl ica ti on

of t hese var ia ti ons de pend on t he pa r tic u la ri t ies of t he pa t ien t;

c) A c t i o n sA c t i o n sA c t i o n sA c t i o n s : an ac ti on e le men t ( or ac ti on b l oc k) desc ri bes a g ro u p o f

th in gs-t o- d o whi ch a physic ian pr o pose s in s o me pa rt of a

disease ’s t rea t men t. An ac ti on on ly re pre sents t he pr o po sal o f

med ica l s t uff , whe reas t he appl ica ti on o f th e ac ti on is “ ou t of t he

FI P desc ri pti on ”. Ty pical s or ts of ac ti ons a re: rec om men da ti ons,

prescr i pt i ons, ra di o g r aphies , ana lyses , me di cal , su r gica l or c l inic a l

proc ed ures , s peci al is t cons u lt at i ons, a pplic ati on o f an a l te rna tiv e

FI P and so f o r th.

Fr o m a f unct i ona l poi nt of vie w, ac ti ons b l o cks re presen t the c ore

ele ments in a FI P s in ce t he f ina l pur pose of F IPs is t o re presen t

heal t hca re pro ced ure s l ike the t rea t men t o f a d isease, i .e . th e

applic at i on o f act i on s. Ac ti on b loc ks a re inde pen dent of t he

pa tien t s i t ua ti on. T he ref or e they use t o be prece de d eit her by a

sta te t ha t desc ri bes w hat the s i t ua ti on o f a pat ien t sh ou l d be in

or de r t o deser ve t ha t acti on, o r b y a dec i s ion t ha t de te rm ines

whe the r th e pa tien t f ul f i ls s om e fea t ures o r n ot , and acc or din g t o




9 6

tha t dec ide i f t he ac ti o n ta kes place o r n o t. E m pty ac ti ons have t he

meanin g of d o in g no t hin g, b u t s ince th is is the sa me as no t h avin g

the act i on, the SD A* m o de l d oes n o t perm i t em pty ac t ions .

Fl o wcha r ts have been used t o re presen t FI P in a g ra ph ica l way.

Fi gu re 19 s h ows ho w sta tes , decis io ns and a cti ons a re re presen te d

in th is s o rt of f or ma l f l owc ha r ts .

F i g u r e F i g u r e F i g u r e F i g u r e 1 91 91 91 9 : E l e m e n t s o f a n S D A * M o d e l: E l e m e n t s o f a n S D A * M o d e l: E l e m e n t s o f a n S D A * M o d e l: E l e m e n t s o f a n S D A * M o d e l

The c or rec t co m bina t ion of s ta tes , de cis i on s and act i ons co m pos e

a F I P in an S D A* m o d el, and is ma de by m ea ns o f c onnec ti ons .

3 . 63 . 63 . 63 . 6 M o d e l l i n g M o d e l l i n g M o d e l l i n g M o d e l l i n g I n d i v i d u a l I n t e r v e n t i o n P l a n sI n d i v i d u a l I n t e r v e n t i o n P l a n sI n d i v i d u a l I n t e r v e n t i o n P l a n sI n d i v i d u a l I n t e r v e n t i o n P l a n s

As in t r od uce d in sec ti on 2.3 .3 w hen ta lki ng a b ou t P K, the re e xist

many st anda r d spec if icat i ons o f me dica l g ui del ines (F I Ps) asso ciat ed to

conc ret e pa th o l o gies , whi ch can be co di f ie d in SD A*.

Gener ic rec om men da t ions ma y n o t pr o pe r ly f i t in the tre at men t o f a

conc ret e pa th o lo gy in a spec if ic pa tien t (e . g. t he c o-m o rb id i ty o f pat ien ts

int r od uces inte r-ac t io ns am on g gu ide l ines) . In or der t o s o lve th is s it ua ti on,

K4 Ca re su ppo r ts t he defin i ti on of Ind ivi du al In te rven ti on P lans . An II P is a

pe rson al ised vie w of o ne o r sever al FI Ps t o be a da pted t o the pa t ho l o gy of a

conc ret e pa tien t. Pra cti t ione rs are t he on es wh o have the c a pabi li ty t o

synthes ize an d a ppl y new me dica l kn o wle d ge necessa ry to new care

tre at men ts , whe reas a gen ts are the techn o l o gy w hic h can bes t ada pt t o these

kn ow le d ge-in tensi ve e nvir on men ta l f l uct ua t ions . F r om t he med ic al poin t o f

view, t he cre at i on an d mana ge men t o f I I Ps f o ll o w a c om plex pr oc edu re (as

sho wn in nex t Fi g u r e 20), con tr o l led by the Eva l ua ti on Uni t (EU) and

cent red on a l l th e asse ssmen ts resu l ts .




9 7

F i g u r e F i g u r e F i g u r e F i g u r e 2 02 02 02 0 : D e f i n i t i o n o f a n I n d i v i d u a l I n t e r v e n t i o n P l a n: D e f i n i t i o n o f a n I n d i v i d u a l I n t e r v e n t i o n P l a n: D e f i n i t i o n o f a n I n d i v i d u a l I n t e r v e n t i o n P l a n: D e f i n i t i o n o f a n I n d i v i d u a l I n t e r v e n t i o n P l a n

The res u lts of a C o m pre hensive Assess m ent cons is t of syn dr o mes,

sym pt o ms a nd dise as es o f the pat ien t. The se ent it ies a re assoc ia ted w i th a

FI P, w hic h is a very g enera l in terven t ion pl an. A s in g le FI P, any way, is no t

di rec tly a pplica b le t o any real tre at men t o r inte rven t ion , d ue t o th e

uniq ueness of the pa t ient ’s physica l co nd it i ons an d me dica l his t o ry. I t is a

usua l prac ti ce , on th e con t rary , to rec o g nize a t t he sa me ti me seve ra l

diseases , whi ch can le ad t o a ve ry c o m plex a nd a r tic u la ted assess m ent.

3 .6 .1 P rel im ina ry Gu ide line s t o war ds I I P Sem i-su pe rvise d

Defin it i on

Ma kin g t he poin t on t he key e le men ts , le t us reca l l t ha t:

- RRRR e c t a n g l e se c t a n g l e se c t a n g l e se c t a n g l e s re prese nt i ng tas ks t o be exec u t ed in a F I P a re al l a g ent-

ta ken ac ti ons (a gen t c apa bi l it ies);

- CCCC i r c l e si r c l e si r c l e si r c l e s ex pressin g c o ndi ti ona l reas onin g a re the ev al ua ti ons of an

agen t ’s in ner st at e (en vir on men ta l re presen t ati on va ria b les);

- R h o m b u s e sR h o m b u s e sR h o m b u s e sR h o m b u s e s dic ta te th e con di t io ns t o be v er i f ied .

9 8

A C om prehe nsive Assessmen t re presen ts the very bas ic pr o cess

tha nks t o wh ich me m bers of t he E U are en ab led to reas on and r eact on the

pa tien t ’s s ta te and c ond i ti ons. Onc e al l the resu l ts of th is service a re

avai la ble , the E U me mbe rs a nalys e the m i n o rde r t o dete r mine syndr o mes,

sym pt o ms a nd dise as es o f the pat ien t. Ba sical ly , any of these enti t ies is

associ at ed w it h a F I P, wh ich is , as we have seen, a very genera l d escri pti on

of in te rven ti on g ui de li nes .

The a u to ma t ion in th e uni on pro cess o f d if feren t F I Ps is n o t a t ri vial

tas k an d i m plies , a m on g the o the rs , an a c cura te anal ysis of the o bjec tive

feasi bi l i ty . T his is ma inly d ue t o t he c o m plexi ty and he te r o gene ity o f t he

phys ica l par ame te rs a nd t he H C d o ma in v aria b les . As r eg ar ds t his iss ue, I

have de fine d so me pr eli min ary gu id el ines whi ch I re por te d in th e fo l lo win g

secti ons. Basica l ly , t he f i rs t s ta ge cons is ts in the c rea ti on of a m o de l.

It is necessary t o ve ri fy b o th the prec ond it i ons to th e in te gra t ion of

FI Ps and the c o m pa ti bi l i ty of t he d if fe ren t dr u gs presc ri bed in each o f t he

FI P of in teres t (w hose ad min ist ra ti on may g l o bal ly res u lt in c onf l ic t) . W hen

the m o del is cr ea ted , a f or ma l ve rif ica ti o n of t he m o de l av oi din g n on-

det er min is tic seq uenc es of ac t ions is req u ire d. F ina lly , ma nua l revis ions

sho u ld b e pe rf or me d i n o r der t o cus t o mi ze t he II P f or the cu rre nt pa tien t .

3 .6 .2 M AS Be hav io u ra l O rc hest ra ti on in I I P Mo d el lin g

In prac tice , a F IP ’s i nte rface c onsis ts of a n Ent ry P o in ts (E P) set

(Fi gu re 21). E Ps a r e essentia l beca use they re pr esent a n a gen t-b ased

execu ti on ’s possi b le s ta rt in g poin t in the pro visi on o f the F IP . I n an S D A*

m ode l, a pat ien t c ond i ti on c on ta ins a l l t he v aria b les o bserve d f o r t he pa tien t

in a pa rt ic ula r m o me nt (i .e . , s i gns , sym pt o ms, ante ceden ts , ta ken dr ugs ,

secon dary d iseases , t est resu l ts , e tc .) . St at e var ia bles are con ta i ned in t he

EPs of a F I P and the ir va l ue is ex presse d by l o gi cal c on di ti ons (exam ple:

PRE SS URE<140 and WEIGH T>75), w hi ch are at the basi s of t he

veri f ica ti on of prec on di ti ons in t he FI Ps in t eg ra ti on’s pr ocess .




9 9

F i g u r e F i g u r e F i g u r e F i g u r e 2 12 12 12 1 : I n t e r a c t i o n e x a m p l e a m o n g E P s d e r i v i n g f r o m 3 F I P s: I n t e r a c t i o n e x a m p l e a m o n g E P s d e r i v i n g f r o m 3 F I P s: I n t e r a c t i o n e x a m p l e a m o n g E P s d e r i v i n g f r o m 3 F I P s: I n t e r a c t i o n e x a m p l e a m o n g E P s d e r i v i n g f r o m 3 F I P s

I can sum ma ri ze t h e pr oce du ra l ste ps of the a gen t-b ased tas k

inte g ra ti on pr ocess as fo l l ows:

• Ana lyse a l l sets of c on di ti ons c on taine d in t he EPs of a l l FI Ps an d l is t

the s ta te va r iab les;

• C onsi der t he possi b le inte rsec ti ons o f E Ps i n al l FI Ps, t ha t is , the set

of st at e va ria b les t ha t are s ha red a mon g E Ps of d if fe ren t FI Ps;

• If the i nte rsec ti on is em pty, the FI Ps can be c onsi dere d as

inde pen den t of eac h o the r, and the ne w I IP can be au t oma t ica l ly

defin ed as the uni on of di f fe ren t min o r I I P s (each of t he m der iv ing

fr om i ts c or res pond ing FI P) , t o be pe rson al ised , m er ge d and

co m ple te d by me dica l staf f , as re po r te d a t t h e end o f t his se ct i on;

• If t he s ta te va ri ab les i nte rsect i on is n ot e mpty, t hen we can asser t tha t

so me M ode l In te rac ti on - MI - h as occ u rre d am on g the or i gina l FI Ps

(ro un ded c o rne r rec ta ng les in Fi g ure 21). H ereby , I def ine d a M I as a

1 0 0

co uple of E Ps of t w o dif feren t F I Ps tha t sha re at leas t one var ia bl e (1

or mo re t han 1 va ri ab l e) .

F i g u r e F i g u r e F i g u r e F i g u r e 2 22 22 22 2 : I I P d e f i n i t i o n m o d e l i n c a s e o f c o m p a t i b l e : I I P d e f i n i t i o n m o d e l i n c a s e o f c o m p a t i b l e : I I P d e f i n i t i o n m o d e l i n c a s e o f c o m p a t i b l e : I I P d e f i n i t i o n m o d e l i n c a s e o f c o m p a t i b l e c o n d i t i o n sc o n d i t i o n sc o n d i t i o n sc o n d i t i o n s i ni ni ni n a l l F I P s a l l F I P s a l l F I P s a l l F I P s

e n t r ye n t r ye n t r ye n t r y ---- p o i n t sp o i n t sp o i n t sp o i n t s

At t his poin t, the ve r if ica t io n of c on di ti on s associa te d t o the s t ate

vari ab les in c o m m on mus t be ta ken in t o acco un t. F o r each MI, I ha ve

fo rm al ize d t he f o l l ow i ng ad di ti ona l st eps :

• If a l l c on di ti ons re la ti ng t o t he va ria b les s h ared bet ween 2 d if fer ent

EPs in 2 di f fe ren t F IPs a re co m pa ti b le 14, then b ot h o ri g ina l EPs

causin g t he MI can be re place d by a s in g le new E P. T his ne w E P wi l l

be n on-de te rm inis t ica l ly conne cte d (s ta rs i n) t o b o th FI Ps in w hich

the or i gina l E Ps f r om the M I we re l oca ted .

The f ol l ow in g exa m pl e, t o ge t her w it h th e r epresen ta ti ons in F i g ure

21 and Fi g ure 22 , a ims a t c l ar i fyin g the poin t in the pre vi ous

sta te ments .

( E x a m p l e 1E x a m p l e 1E x a m p l e 1E x a m p l e 1 ) C onsi de r the f o l lo win g tw o E P s:

E P a 1E P a 1E P a 1E P a 1 : ( S U G A R > 4 0 ) a n d ( 5 0 2 0 ) a n d ( 7 0 6 5 )

14 N o t e t h a t t h e e x p r e s s i o n “ c o m p a t i b l e c o n d i t i o n s ” o n l y r e f e r s t o t h e f a c t t h a t t h e r e i s a t l e a s t 1 ( o n e ) v a l u e

t h a t s a t i s f i e s b o t h c o n d i t i o n s .

1 0 1

We can then defin e t he new en try poin t as fo ll o ws (ci rcles c o l o ure d

in l i gh t cyan in prev io us Fi gu re 22):

N e w E P = E P nE P nE P nE P n ---- a 1 b 1a 1 b 1a 1 b 1a 1 b 1 : ( S U G A R > 4 0 ) a n d ( 7 0 6 5 )

In o the r w or ds, f or s hare d v ar ia bles we ta ke t he m ost c ons tra i ning

con di ti on, and we ke ep the o t her o ri g ina l con di ti ons fr o m the tw o

EPs as t hey are . I t is easy to ve rif y th at a pa tien t en ter in g t he II P

th r ou g h the new Ent r y P oin t (EP n-a1 b1 i n Fi g ure 22) c ou l d h ave

als o ente re d it th r ou g h EP a1 o r EP b1 (Fi g ure 21). T he o pposi te , on

the c on t ra ry , w o u ld n o t h o ld , s ince a pat ie nt w i th s u ga r 50, pres sure

60 and i r on 15 c o u ld g o th r ou g h E P a1 of F IP “a” , bu t no t t h ro u g h E P

n-a1b1 o f t he II P. E ntr y poin ts no t inv o lve d in any MI wi l l be

nat ura l ly ke pt in t he new II P (r o unds c ol o ure d in ye l l ow, gree n and

bl ue in F i gu re 21 and Fig u re 22). Fi g ure 22 , fur t her m o re, sh ows t wo

add i ti ona l M o de l In t erac ti ons occ ur rin g a m ong t he or i gina l F I Ps:

one bet ween FI P “ b” a nd F I P “c ” ( lea din g t o the E P n- b3c1 ) an d the

o the r be twe en F I P “a ” and FI P “c ” ( le ad in g t o t he E P n-a4c1);

• If the re is a t le ast 1 v aria b le lea din g t o inc o mpat i ble con di t io ns, the

invo lve d E Ps canno t b e mer ge d and in the r esul t in g II P bo t h EPs wi l l

be ke pt as t hey we re in the o ri gin al FI Ps (red-c o l ou red c irc le s in

Fi gu re 23). Th is case i s i l l us tr at ed by the f o ll ow in g ex am ple.

( E x a m p l e 2E x a m p l e 2E x a m p l e 2E x a m p l e 2 ) Let us c onsi de r the f o l lo win g EPs:


E P b 1E P b 1E P b 1E P b 1 : ( S U G A R < 1 5 ) a n d ( P R E S S U R E > 1 2 0 ) a n d ( A G E > 6 5 )

In th is case , sha re d con di ti ons on su gar an d pressu re are

inco m pa ti b le; the ref o re, as de pic te d in nex t Fi g ur e 23, t he EPs wi l l

no t be me r ged.

1 0 2

F i g u r e F i g u r e F i g u r e F i g u r e 2 32 32 32 3 : I I P : I I P : I I P : I I P d e f i n i t i o nd e f i n i t i o nd e f i n i t i o nd e f i n i t i o n m o d e l i n c a s e o f i n c o m p a t im o d e l i n c a s e o f i n c o m p a t im o d e l i n c a s e o f i n c o m p a t im o d e l i n c a s e o f i n c o m p a t i b l e c o n d i t i o n s b e t w e e n b l e c o n d i t i o n s b e t w e e n b l e c o n d i t i o n s b e t w e e n b l e c o n d i t i o n s b e t w e e n

E P a 1 a n dE P a 1 a n dE P a 1 a n dE P a 1 a n d E P b 1E P b 1E P b 1E P b 1

Once t he FI P-in te g ra t ion ’s ve ri f ica ti on phas e te rm ina tes , m o tiva t i ons

ab ou t the in te gra t ion inco m pa ti bi l ity are pro vi ded t o pra ct i ti o ners as a

possi b le decis i on-ma king su ppo r t base.

3 .6 .3 To wa rds a De ter min is tic Eva l ua ti on of I I P B ranches .

As re po rte d in t he previ o us pa ra g ra ph, th e in tr o du ct i on of a new

ent ry poin t c om es wi th a n on-de te rm inis t i cal ly conne cte d b ranc h t o b o th

or i gina l FI Ps (n on-de ter m inis tic b ranc hes are re pre sente d as ex pl osi ons in

Fi gu re 23). T he re as on f or s uch a f l o w uncer ta in ty l ies on t he ini ti al

im possi bi l ity t o un iv oca l ly iden t ify the s t ar tin g F I P t o w hic h t he new E P

sho u ld b e c onnec te d.

Any way, des pi te t he o bjec tive dec isi ona l c o mplex i ty , s o me kin d of

det er min is tic me t rics (even th ou g h ele men tary) can be pr eli min ar i ly

int r od uce d, in o rde r t o a u t om ate the c ont in ua ti on o f an I I P pro vi sion . I w i l l

now pr ocee d t o ex plai n my prev i ous c onsi d era ti ons th r ou g h t he e xam ple in

the f o l lo win gs .

( E x a m p l e 3E x a m p l e 3E x a m p l e 3E x a m p l e 3 ) Let us br ief ly reca ll the E Ps fr o m th e Exa m ple 1:


E P b 1E P b 1E P b 1E P b 1 : ( S U G A R > 2 0 ) a n d ( 7 0 6 5 )

1 0 3

N e w E PN e w E PN e w E PN e w E P = E P nE P nE P nE P n ---- a 1 b 1a 1 b 1a 1 b 1a 1 b 1 : ( S U G A R > 4 0 ) a n d ( 7 0 6 5 )

Let us c onsi de r the fo l l ow in g poss i ble Pa tien t S ta te C ond it ions

(P SCs) , bef o re ent er i ng t he E P n-a1b1 . Le t us assu me t ha t prac t it ione rs can

consi de r a var ia b le as no t re levan t when i ts measu re men t is n o t man da to ry

fo r t he s pec if ic assess men t:

P S C 1P S C 1P S C 1P S C 1 : ( S U G A R = 5 0 ) a n d ( P R E S S U R E = 7 5 ) a n d ( I R O N = 1 0 ) a n d ( A G E = N o t - R e l e v a n t )

P S C 2P S C 2P S C 2P S C 2 : ( S U G A R = 6 0 ) a n d ( P R E S S U R E = 7 5 ) a n d ( I R O N = N o t - R e l e v a n t ) a n d ( A G E = 8 0 )

P S C 3P S C 3P S C 3P S C 3 : ( S U G A R = 6 0 ) a n d ( P R E S S U R E = 8 0 ) a n d ( I R O N = N o t - R e l e v a n t ) a n d

( A G E = N o t - R e l e v a n t )

P S C 4P S C 4P S C 4P S C 4 : ( S U G A R = 6 0 ) a n d ( P R E S S U R E = 8 5 ) a n d ( I R O N = 1 5 ) a n d ( A G E = 8 0 )

The ev al ua ti on, case by case , of t he bra nch a ut o ma tic al ly c h osen

when en te rin g t he E P n-a1b1 ( decis i on-ma king pr ocesses in F i gu r e 23) can

be s u mma ri zed as f ol l ows :

1) Case P S C 1P S C 1P S C 1P S C 1 : a l l rele vant va r iab les (an d con di ti ons) in vo lve d

be lon g to the E P a 1 of F I P “a ” , w hi le t he las t v ar ia ble , the a ge,

th o u gh presen t and be lon g in g t o t he E P b1 of FI P “b ” is no t

rele van t f o r t he ev al ua ti on o f t he pa tie nt c on di ti on. F r om he re, we

can assu me th at t he II P ex ecu ti on can a ut o ma tic al ly c on ti nu e

t owa r ds the bran ch o f FI P “a ” .

2) Case P S C 2P S C 2P S C 2P S C 2 : a l l rele vant va r iab les (an d con di ti ons) in vo lve d

be lon g t o t he E P b1 of FI P “ b ”, wh ile t he las t va ria b le , t he i r on,

th o u gh presen t and be lon g in g t o the E P a1 of FI P “a ” is n o t

rele van t f o r t he ev al ua ti on o f t he pa tie nt c on di ti on. F r om he re, we

can assu me th at t he II P ex ecu ti on can a ut o ma tic al ly c on ti nu e

t owa r ds the bran ch o f FI P “ b ”.

3) Case P S C 3P S C 3P S C 3P S C 3 : th is is n o t a s t ra ig h tf o rwa r d cas e , bec ause al l re levan t

vari ab les des cr ib in g t he pa t ien t’s c ond i ti on are exac tly c on tain ed

b ot h in FI P “a” (E P a 1) and FI P “ b ” (EP b 1). In th is case we can

det er mine , fo r exa m pl e, ho w cl ose the meas ure d st ate ’s va l ue fo r a

1 0 4

vari ab le is t o the b o u ndar ies of t he c on di ti on c on tain in g the sam e

vari ab le in the d if fere nt EPs . In o t her wo r d s, we can meas ure t o

whi ch de gree t he va r iab le ’s va lu e is c on ta ined i n t he c ond i ti on

ran ge. The cl ose r th e val ue t o th e m id d le poin t o f a ran ge

(presence o f l o we r an d u ppe r b o und ary), t he m o re t he c ond it i o n

can ta ke i nt o acc o u nt h o w fa r t he va ria bl e va lue is fr o m th e

b oun da ry i tse lf . The prev io us eva lua t ion mus t be re pe ate d f or

each va ria b le an d, f in al ly , the maj o ri ty of v erif ied con di t io ns w il l

lea d t o a F I P inste ad t o an o t her .

Recal l in g br ief ly th e a ct ual case , w e h ave:

• S UG AR= 60, w hic h b et ter ( m ore la r ge ly) satis f ies the

con di ti on of E P b 1 (S UG AR>2 0) t h an EP a1:

(S UG AR> 40). One po int to F I P “ b” ;

• PRE SS URE=80, whi c h be t ter sa tis f ies the con di ti on of

EP b1: (70< PR ESS URE<90) than EP a1:

(50<PRE S S URE<100) , s ince EP b1 ’s m id d le poin t is 80

whi le E P a1 ’s is 7 5. An o the r poin t to F I P “ b” .

In this s pecif ic case F IP “ b ” wo u ld au t o ma ti cal ly a dd resse d as the

candi da te t o t he c on ti nua ti on o f the I I P pr o visi on.

4) Case P S C 4P S C 4P S C 4P S C 4 : th is c ase lea ds b ac k t o t he non- de ter m inis tic

appr oach previ o us ly men ti oned . T ha t is , fu r the r inf o r ma ti o n

sho u ld be ta ken in t o acc o unt in or der t o have a dec is i ona l

o ppor t uni ty . F o r exa m ple , im po rt an t g ui del ines are i m plici t l y

pro vi ded by the na t ur e of the FI Ps: t h ou g h t hey can ha ve var ia b les

in c om m on, thei r pr o visi on l o gics (ca re tr eat men t) can a dd ress

co m ple te ly d if feren t diseases . Fr o m he re, I a r gu e t ha t t h e

re presen ta t ion of t he care pro visi on kn ow le d ge is a lway s

susce pti ble of re levan t i m pr ove men ts .




1 0 5

The II P res ul t in g f r o m the au t o ma ted def i nit i on phase is ne it h er a

co m ple te n o r an execu ta ble I I P by the M AS: pe rson al i sed d r u g

quan ti f ica ti ons, t i me cons t rain ts in t he execu t ion of ac ti ons, non-

det er min is tic e ven ts mana ge men t, an d o t h er as pec ts , ha ve t o be ex pl ici t ly

adde d t o t he m o de l, a s wel l . Once t he f ina l II P is c o m ple te d, i t i s saved in

the E lec tr on ic Hea l th Recor d o f t he pat ien t. T hus, the med ica l t eam d oes

no t h ave t o bu i ld t h e II P f ro m sc ra tc h, and can t a ke in t o a c co unt t he

inte rna ti ona l rec o mm enda ti ons in t he tr ea t men t of the pat ien t’s con di ti ons,

co m pos in g a f u lly pe rson al ised and ac cu r ate ca re plan f o r hi m. T he I I P

usua l ly c on tains fo l l ow- u p ac ti ons in w h ich the s ta te of the pa tien t is

chec ked . If t he ev o lu ti on of the pat ien t th ro u gh his c ust o mi zed pl an fo l l ows

an und esi rab le c o urse , the E U can c onsi der chan gin g or e ven canc el l in g the

II P.



Chapter 4

4. Evaluation Results

The ev al ua ti on of th e wo r k presen te d in t his m anusc ri pt is s tr i ct ly

co rre la te d and in te rl a ced wi t h t ha t of the wh o le K4 Ca re pl at f or m and w as

wo r ke d o u t th r ou g h a n ela b ora te pr oced u re , in th ree d if feren t s te ps , by a l l

of t he hea l thca re par t ners in c l ose int erac t i on wi t h the techn ica l s taf f .

I w i l l presen t t he a cce ptance res u lts w hic h di rec tly re fer to the M AS

conce ptu al iza t ion , r eali za ti on an d f unc ti on ing ( h om e car e services

mana ge men t and exec ut i on, main ly) , s ki ppi ng the refe rences t o o the r pa r ts

of t he pl at f or m w hic h conce rned as pects , f or exam ple, o f the v is ua liz at i on

and a ppea rance ef fec tiven ess wh ich we re ou t of my rese arc h’ sco pe an d,

the ref o re, o u t of th is man uscr i pt ’s one , t o o.

The eva lu at i on of the MAS-c ore d arc hi tec t ure h as been execu te d in

dif feren t places and w as conc lu ded in t he ci ty o f P o l lenza (I ta ly) , whe re t he

pla tf o rm w as tes te d by hea l thca re pr o fes siona ls an d care g iver s on rea l

pa tien ts , in or de r t o v erify the a dhe rence of the a pplica t ion t o:

1) Thei r needs and du tie s;

2) The poss ib i l i ty of u se in eve ry day ac tiv ity ;

3) The poss i bi l i ty o f co l lect in g and in te g ra ti ng inf o rm at i on fr o m

dif feren t s ou rces;

4) The poss i bi l i ty to use co m pute r m ana ge men t t o ols f o r F I P

pe rson al iza t ion .

E v a l u a t i o n R e s u l t s



1 0 7

St aff of he al t hcar e pro vi ders in rea l h o me care fac i l i t ies has

pe rf or me d the f in al t est . The ch oice of ha ving the f ina l tes t of a resea rch

pro jec t i n a sma l l t own f o l lo ws a n e s t a b l i s h e d t r a d i t i o n o f e s t a b l i s h e d t r a d i t i o n o f e s t a b l i s h e d t r a d i t i o n o f e s t a b l i s h e d t r a d i t i o n o f

e p i d e m i o l o g i c a l s t u d i e se p i d e m i o l o g i c a l s t u d i e se p i d e m i o l o g i c a l s t u d i e se p i d e m i o l o g i c a l s t u d i e s . Since the se m i nal s tu dy on ca rd io v ascu lar ris k

fact o rs th at st ar te d in Fra min g ha m, Massac h use tts , in 1948 an d en ro l le d i ts

th ir d c o ho r t in 2002 15, many have f o ll o wed t his appr oac h. A s m al l t own

gives in deed t he uniq ue o ppo r tun i ty of s t u dyin g an “en ti re ” , h o m ogen eo us

po pu la t ion .

The c lo sin g test has been per fo r med in a rea l envi r onmen t and

invo lve d th e en ti re ho me ca re faci l i ty , GPs , the Mun ici pa l i ty , S ocia l

Assis tan ts , c i t izens ’ re presen ta tives . T he K4 Ca re pla tf o rm has bee n a ppl ied

in t he usua l ca re ac t ivi ty d el ive red du r in g the pe ri o d of s t ud y. Al l the

pa r tici pants inv o lved have pr ov id ed a s t ru c tu re d eva l ua ti on of th e syste m,

expressin g t hei r ju d ge men t th r ou g h a va li da ted q uest i onnai re .

4 . 14 . 14 . 14 . 1 G u i d e d E x e c u t i o n T e s tG u i d e d E x e c u t i o n T e s tG u i d e d E x e c u t i o n T e s tG u i d e d E x e c u t i o n T e s t

A pa r tic u lar par t of t he test in g per i od was re prese nte d by the e vent

ded ica ted to gu ide pa rt ici pa nts in execu t in g a scena ri o, t o ge t fa mi lia r wi t h

the pla tf or m.

The exec u ti on o f nu m ero us scena ri os (~100 ) gave t he o ppo rt un ity to

b ot h te chni cal an d me dica l par tne rs t o o bse rve pla t fo r m’s f unc ti o nali t ies , t o

face rea lis tic ci rc ums t ances an d t o ma ke nec essary a men d ments .

The desc ri pt io n and disc ussi on on t he di f f eren t ele men ts in K4 Ca re

M AS pla tf o r m, t o get h er w i th t he exec u ti on of g ui de d scena ri os , pr ovi ded

the o ppo r tun i ty t o tes t , d iscuss , an d ref ine t he f o l l ow ing f unc ti ona li ties :

� Agen t-b ased access t o the med ica l da ta in th e EH CR;

� Ac tiv at i on of a gen t-m anage d H C se rvices ;

15 h t t p : / / w w w . f r a m i n g h a m h e a r t s t u d y . o r g / i n d e x . h t m




1 0 8

� Recept ion an d exec u ti on of a gen t-exec ute d pen din g a ct i ons ( wi th t he

co rres pon din g e di t in g o f d ocu men ts);

� C onst r uc ti on and exe cu ti on of I I Ps .

The vi r t ual his t o ry o f avera ge H C pa t ients , defin in g ca rin g pr oces ses

whi ch n ecessi ta te t he ma in e le men ts of K4Ca re m ode l and pla tf o rm , was

presen ted and pa rt ici pan ts we re invi te d t o s i mu la te a ro le o f o ne o f the

act o rs in t he m ode l a nd pr ov ide an ans we r t o the req ues ts of t h e case , in

or de r t o s o lve i t wi t h in the re al m o f h ome care . Si mu la t io n – b ased on a

rea lis tic pr oce du re, e ncl osin g a nony mi zed rea l d at a in key mo m ents of t he

proc ess – was pe rf or med by a rea l t i me c o nnecti on wi th the K4 Ca re serve r,

accessed by l a pt o ps o pe ra ted by pa r tici pant s .

4 .1 .1 Mana gin g Rea l Pa t ien ts

The eva lua t i on pro ces s was com ple te ly t rans fer red in the han ds o f the

staf f o f P o l lenza. T he fou r G Ps se lec ted th e gr o u p of pa t ients t o enro l and

sta rte d the pr oce d ure s of “ us ua l care ”, try in g t o use as mu ch as possi b le t he

M AS- base d K4C are pla tf o rm t o su ppor t the ir dai ly ac tiv i tie s , t o sha re

inf or ma ti on, and man age th e ser ies of even t s and pr oce d ures im pl ied in t he

execu ti on of ho me ca re serv ices . D u rin g th e wo r k w i th rea l pa tie nts , o the r

act o rs of t he H C se r vice were inv o lved , i n o rde r t o res pec t – as l on g as

possi b le – the us ua l m anage men t o f H C pa ti ents . T ha t means t ha t the wh o le

g ro u p o f ac to rs inv o lved ke pt t rac k of each ste p of the ca r e pr ocess

(acti va tin g serv ices , makin g req ues ts , crea tin g, f i l l ing , and mo dify in g

doc u men ts) .

The ac ti vi ty w as per fo rme d by a rea l t ime c onnec ti on wi th t he se rver

of K4 Ca re pla tf or m , accessed by la pt o ps or des kt o ps o pe ra ted by

pa r tici pants an d l oca ted as they v ir t ua lly were a t pa tien ts ’ ho mes, G Ps ’

of f ices and in the Dis tr ict ’s o ff ice . P r o fessi ona ls pa r tic i pa ti ng in t he

eval ua ti on were: me di cal (4 G P, 1 P hysic ia n in C har ge an d Ge ri at ric ian as




1 0 9

S pecia lis t Phys ici ans , 4 Nu rses) , s ocia l (1 S ocia l W o r ker) , an d in sti t u ti ona l

and po li ti cal (2 C ity C ounc i l l o rs an d t he T err i to ri al Se rv ice Di re ct or) .

Pa tien ts t o tes t t he pla tf o rm in P o l len za we re se lec te d f r o m

vo lun tee rs . Each pa rt ici pan t s i gned an inf or me d c onsen t and e ach of the

fo ur G Ps was as ked to en r ol a t le ast f i ve pa tien ts nee din g ho me ca re

services .

Al l of the pa tien ts w ere h ome-c are pa tien ts , in ch ar ge of t he h o me

care serv ices , b o th h eal th ca re and so cia l . The mean a ge of th is kin d o f

pa tien t is qu i te hi gh , defin in g a ta rg et po pul at i on of main ly ge ri at ric use rs .

This po pu la t io n is hi gh ly reso u rce cons u m ing , m os tly of n urs in g serv ices .

Bo t h o f t he synd r o m es consi der ed by K4 Ca re we re inc lu de d (co gni ti ve

im pa ir men t, i mm o bi li ty) .

4 . 24 . 24 . 24 . 2 C l o s i n g E v a l u a t i o n C l o s i n g E v a l u a t i o n C l o s i n g E v a l u a t i o n C l o s i n g E v a l u a t i o n a n d R e s u l t sa n d R e s u l t sa n d R e s u l t sa n d R e s u l t s

Af te r ac ti vely usi ng t h e pla tf o rm , i t was pos sib le t o pr ov ide inf o r med

ju dge men ts a b ou t the enti re K4Ca re a rch it ect ure (in te rms of e nd use rs);

the f unc ti ona l it ies tes ted were th ose ones i ntr o d uced a t t he be g i nning of

Sec ti on 4. 1 . D u rin g t he per i od o f the K4C are pla tf o rm tes t in g, 23 pat ien ts

were ch osen by the G Ps t o be mana ged w it h t he use of t he pla tf or m i tsel f .

The assis tance was pe rf or me d t han ks t o the ac tiv at i on of 1 84 acti ons,

tr o u gh 87 l o gins .

T a b l e T a b l e T a b l e T a b l e 3333 :::: U s e o f t h e M A S p l a t f o r m d u r i n g t h e f i n a l t e s tU s e o f t h e M A S p l a t f o r m d u r i n g t h e f i n a l t e s tU s e o f t h e M A S p l a t f o r m d u r i n g t h e f i n a l t e s tU s e o f t h e M A S p l a t f o r m d u r i n g t h e f i n a l t e s t




1 1 0

T a b l e T a b l e T a b l e T a b l e 4444 : : : : S o m e o f t h e S o m e o f t h e S o m e o f t h e S o m e o f t h e a g e n ta g e n ta g e n ta g e n t ---- m a n a g e d d o c u m e n t s c r e a t e d d u r i n g t h e f i n a l e v a l u a t i o nm a n a g e d d o c u m e n t s c r e a t e d d u r i n g t h e f i n a l e v a l u a t i o nm a n a g e d d o c u m e n t s c r e a t e d d u r i n g t h e f i n a l e v a l u a t i o nm a n a g e d d o c u m e n t s c r e a t e d d u r i n g t h e f i n a l e v a l u a t i o n

Ten pa tien ts have req ui red t he c ons ti t u ti on of an Eva l ua ti on Un i t i n

or de r t o ma ke a c o mpre hensive assess men t of the case a nd def ine

inte rven ti on plans . Doc u ments crea te d du rin g t he ac tiv i ty were o f 43

dif feren t ty pes , f o r a t ot al a m o unt o f 206. The n um be r o f d oc u men ts pe r

pa tien t ran ge d f r om 2 t o 26. Al l the pr o fessi ona ls par t ici pa t i ng in t he

eval ua ti on in Po l lenz a have de live red suc h ques t ionn ai res . It has to be

cla ri f ied tha t s ince s o me f i gu res ( C ity C o u ncil l ors , G Ps , an d G e ria t ric ian)

coinc ide d in t he same indi vi dua ls , i t was dec ide d t o co l lec t inf o rm ati on only

fr om the “ pr ofess i onal ” s ide.

The f o r ms con ta ine d an ada pte d ve rsi on of a s tan da rd Tec hno l ogy

Acce ptance M ode l ( T AM) ques t ionn ai re (s ee Appen dix sec t io n f or fu r the r

det ai ls) and q ues ti ons speci f ic f o r K4 Care pro jec t, pr o pose d in a TAM- li ke

feat u re , t o ma ke i t po ssib le the use o f a s i mi la r sc or in g sca le ( min 1 – max

7). At the en d o f t he e val ua ti on, ni ne ques ti onnai res were c o m ple ted : 4 fr o m

GPs , 1 fr o m a Hea d N urse , 2 fr o m N urses , 1 fr o m a Ge ria t ric ian, a nd 1 fr o m

a S oc ia l W o r ker.

The mea n ove ra ll sc or in g o f the eva l ua ti on was 5 .8 /7 (S D 0.5) .

Rega r din g t he sc o re f o r the d if feren t sec ti on s, they we re:




1 1 1

� Pe rceive d E ase of use : 5 .8 (0 .5);

� Pe rceive d Use fu lness : 5 .9 (0.7);

� At ti t ude T ow ar d Us in g : 6 .0 (0 .8);

� Ho w w ou l d y o u ra te t he dif feren t sec ti ons of K4C are pl at f or m? : 5 .6

(0.8);

� Do y ou t hin k to o ls l i ke K4 Care a re needed in hea l th c are?

(Muc h=7 /L i tt le= 1): 6 .3 (0.9);

� Are y o u a wa re of s ome si mi la r t oo ls ? ( Many= 7/N one=1): 1 .9 ( 0.8);

� Are yo u a ware of s o m e simi la r to o ls in use? (Many=7 /No ne=1): 1 .9

(0.8) .

T a b l e T a b l e T a b l e T a b l e 5555 : R e s u l t s o f t h e p l a t f o r m ' s e v a l u a t i o n: R e s u l t s o f t h e p l a t f o r m ' s e v a l u a t i o n: R e s u l t s o f t h e p l a t f o r m ' s e v a l u a t i o n: R e s u l t s o f t h e p l a t f o r m ' s e v a l u a t i o n

Th ro u gh 8 7 l o gins , 10 Eval ua ti on Un its we r e cons ti t ut ed, 1 84 ac ti ons

acti va ted and 206 d o cumen ts c rea te d (w i t h m in 2, max 26 d oc umen ts pe r

pa tien t) . T hese n um bers de fin ite ly re pres ent s o me thin g m o re tha n a bi g

am oun t of wo r k: the y pr o ba b ly evi dence the fac t t ha t t he us e of an IC T

str uc t ure pr ov ides a t o ol tha t al l ows the e xecu ti on of a bi g ge r am oun t o f

wo r k wi t h res pec t t o t he ave ra ge execu te d w it h ou t s uc h s t ruc t ure .

As a ma t ter o f fac t , such n u mbe rs u s u a l l y r e p r e s e n t t h e w o r k o f u s u a l l y r e p r e s e n t t h e w o r k o f u s u a l l y r e p r e s e n t t h e w o r k o f u s u a l l y r e p r e s e n t t h e w o r k o f

m o n t h sm o n t h sm o n t h sm o n t h s , m o re t han wee ks. T h e e x a m i n e r sT h e e x a m i n e r sT h e e x a m i n e r sT h e e x a m i n e r s , w ho p r o v i d e d a v e r y g o o d p r o v i d e d a v e r y g o o d p r o v i d e d a v e r y g o o d p r o v i d e d a v e r y g o o d

s c o r e o f t h e p l a t f o r ms c o r e o f t h e p l a t f o r ms c o r e o f t h e p l a t f o r ms c o r e o f t h e p l a t f o r m , wi t h a mean o f 5 .8/7 , have pr o ba bly pr o m pt ly

pe rceive d t his rea li ty . Examin ing t he sco res of t he re la te d i tems (see ta ble




1 1 2

3), i t can be aff ir me d tha t t he use has b een ju d ged m o re tha n easy, the

usef uln ess was q u ote d very hi g h, and t ha t the pro fessi ona ls h ad a ve ry

posi ti ve a t ti t ude t owa rd a rea l use o f the pla tf o rm .

T a b l e T a b l e T a b l e T a b l e 6666 :::: R e s u l t sR e s u l t sR e s u l t sR e s u l t s o f t h e p l a t f o r m ' s e v a l u a t i o n (o f t h e p l a t f o r m ' s e v a l u a t i o n (o f t h e p l a t f o r m ' s e v a l u a t i o n (o f t h e p l a t f o r m ' s e v a l u a t i o n ( C o n t i n u a t i o n )C o n t i n u a t i o n )C o n t i n u a t i o n )C o n t i n u a t i o n )

M o s t a p p r e c i a t e d w e r e t h e a g e n tM o s t a p p r e c i a t e d w e r e t h e a g e n tM o s t a p p r e c i a t e d w e r e t h e a g e n tM o s t a p p r e c i a t e d w e r e t h e a g e n t ---- m a n a g e dm a n a g e dm a n a g e dm a n a g e d a c c e s sa c c e s sa c c e s sa c c e s s t o da ta an d the

a c t i v a t i o n o f a g e n ta c t i v a t i o n o f a g e n ta c t i v a t i o n o f a g e n ta c t i v a t i o n o f a g e n t ---- b a s e d s e r v i c e sb a s e d s e r v i c e sb a s e d s e r v i c e sb a s e d s e r v i c e s . W hi l e the use rs af f i rm t ha t the re is a

very hi g h need in hea l th ca re o f t o o ls l i ke K4 Ca re, a t t he same ti me they

tes ti fy the sca rceness of suc h t o o ls in us e .

It has t o be em phas ize d tha t P o llen za hea lt h service is usua l ly ca rr ied

ou t a t a l o w tec hn ol o g ical pr o fi le an d t ha t ev en at an in div id ua l pr ofess ion al




1 1 3

leve l , the s taf f is nei th er use d no r fa mi li ar w it h t he use of I C T t o o ls d ur in g

pro fessi ona l ac t ivi tie s . Tha t means th at K4 Ca re pl at f or m s uc ceeded in

bre a kin g the wa l l of n ega tiv e b ias t o war ds t he ex tensive use o f I CT us ua lly

veri f ia b le in s ma ll se rv ices wi th lo we r use of techn o l o gies .

The use r-f rien d liness of t he pla t fo r m was a ppa ren tly en ou g h t o ma ke

it poss i ble to a p p r e c i a t e t h e a d d e d v a l u e o f a p p r e c i a t e t h e a d d e d v a l u e o f a p p r e c i a t e t h e a d d e d v a l u e o f a p p r e c i a t e t h e a d d e d v a l u e o f K 4 C a r eK 4 C a r eK 4 C a r eK 4 C a r e a p p r o a c ha p p r o a c ha p p r o a c ha p p r o a c h .

Su m mar iz in g, t he eva lu at i on o f K4C are pl atf o rm c an be j u dge d pos it ive

b ot h w i th re ga rds t o the c onc re te re al i zat i on o f the t o o l a nd to t he

possi bi l ity an d wi l l in g ness o f usa ge in rea l h eal th ser vices .



Chapter 5

5. Conclusions

Agen t tec hn ol o gy, as wel l as any o the r te chno l o gy, c omes wi th its

own s pec if ic c hara ct eris tics , t han ks t o whi ch, in s peci f ic a pplica t ion

con tex ts , i t ca n be a pplie d as the m os t s ui ta b le and ad o pta b l e so lu t ion .

Acc o rd in gly , t he agen t- pa rad i gm can pro vi de rea l c om pe ti t ive a dvan ta ges ,

when des ig ners and users ex plo i t th is tec hno l o gy’s f u ll po ten t i ali t ies , by

dele g at in g t o t he sys te m decis i onal an d beh a vio u ra l c o m pete nces .

The resea rch w or k I h ave presen te d in t his man uscr i pt ai med , f irs t of

a l l , at in ves ti ga tin g t he rea l po ten tia l it ies of t he agen t- base d t echno l o gy

(li ke in te l l i gence an d au ton o my) an d, then, at pr ov id in g IT desi g ners w it h

prac tica l and use fu l g ui del ines t o war ds t he ind us tr ial iza t io n of a g ent- based

syste ms. I have cus t o miz ed as pec ts ty pic al o f OO s o ft wa re en g i neerin g t o

Mu l ti Agent Syste ms.

Neve r the less , I h av e pr ovi ded t he re ader w it h a pe rs o nal

char acte r iza ti on o f t he a gen t pa ra di g m, meas ure d t hr o ug h a so-ca l le d

Agen t ome t ric Ne t. Acc o rd in g t o t his vis i on, an a gen t is not the

speci al iza t ion of a l im ite d set of par t icu la r s ki l ls b u t a co m ple te “i nte ll i gen t”

and a da ptive en ti ty , whi ch c an d eci de, t i me by ti me, w hic h is t he mos t

pro pe r ab i l i ty t o apply in t he ac hie vemen t o f t he s pec if ic o bjec tive s .

Neve r the less , I have presen ted t he fo r mu l ati on o f my fo u r the ses ,

whi ch syn thesi zed the resu lts o bt aine d du r i ng my en ti re pe ri o d o f resear ch.

C o n c l u s i o n s



1 1 5

My d iscuss i on h o m o gene ous ly f ocuse d b o th on t he ore t ica l an d prac tica l

rele vance of a gen ts ’ expl oi ta ti on in t he mo de l lin g of c om plex, h i gh ly

po pu la te d do ma ins . These d oma ins a re usu al ly c ha rac ter ize d by the

presence of lo ng- te r m inte rac ti ons a mon g th e ac to rs o f the sys te m.

In pa rt icu la r , my f i r st thes is (T 1.1 on pa ge 32) dea ls wi t h t he

conce ptu al iza t ion o f a gen t- pa rad i gm and re l ates t o the o ppo r tun i t y g iven by

the la t te r t o ena b le a m ore n at u ra l desc ri pt ion o f a pplica t ion kn ow le d ge. I t

pe rm i ts t o g ove rn a nd em bo dy c om plex kno w led ge r epresen ta ti ons by

at o miz in g be havi o ur al cha rac te ris tics o f do ma in ac to rs . This f irs t

fo rm u la ti on ai ms a t hig h li gh t in g h ow a gen t- pa rad i gm can r epresen t a

nat ura l , s tra te gi c c or e tec hn ol o gy fo r t ho se syste ms i n w hic h kn ow le d ge

plays a f un dam ent al c hara cte ri zin g r o le .

The se con d t hesis I have presen ted (T1 .2 on pa ge 32) in ten ds t o

i l l ust ra te h ow a gen t- b ased s of t wa re can gr a cefu l ly a da pt t o l on g- t erm ac tive

neg o tia ti ons an d con tin u ous env ir on men ta l and s tr ate g ic chan g es . These

are al l cr uci al e lem e nts in a pr ojec t f or the ac hieve men t o f t he ini tia l

o bjec tives , c onsi de rin g t o day’s bus iness c o m ple xi ty an d o rc hest ra ti on, as

indi vi dua ls a re of ten l ed to l on g- ter m ne g o ti ati ons and c han ges , w hich cause

a c ont inu o us gene ra ti on of ne wer kn ow le dg e and s tra te g ies .

On t he o t her han d, t he ad o pti on of an en ginee rin g a ppr oac h in the

rea liz at i on of a gen t- b ased a ppl ica ti ons is to be consi de red as man da to ry, in

or de r t o gua ran tee th e extensi bi l ity , ada pta bi li ty an d tes ta bi l ity o f a syste m,

as we ll as to dec rease the o bje ct ive deve lo pmen t c om plexi ty , w h ich a gen t-

base d sys te ms i nevi ta bl y in vo lve .

Wit h re ga rd t o t his as pec t, my t hi rd t hesis ( T2.1 on pa ge 32) asse rts

ho w t he a u to ma t ion of a gen t-o rien te d c o de gene ra ti on c an pr ovi de wi t h

muc h h ig he r seman t i cs and pr o m ptness t he M AS’ pro t o ty pin g pr ocess .

Genera l ly s pea ki ng , c os ts an d eff o r ts de vo t ed to t he rea liza t i on of s of t wa re

arch i tec tu res can be s ign if ican tly pa l l ia te d by t he ad o pti on of seman tics-

C o n c l u s i o n s



1 1 6

base d pr o to ty pin g tec hniq ues . T his is pa r ti cul ar ly tr ue a ls o in pr esence of

Mu l ti Agent Syste ms.

Acc o rd in gly , t he f o ur t h t hesis I prese nte d ( T2.2 on pa ge 32) a im s at

cons o li da tin g a f und amen ta l as pec t in a g ent tec hn ol o gy, t ha t is a gen t-

pa ra di g m enab les f o r ma l extens i ons o f act or beh avi o ura l mo de l s , whi ch, in

tu rn, pe rm i t t o rec o g nize , m ana ge and e m b ody new e me rg in g Applica t ion

Kn ow le d ge. T he pro c ess of KM, i n a given do ma in, does no t en d w it h the

rele ase of t he s of t war e desi gne d f o r th e s pe cif ic pu r pose. T he u ti l i za ti on of

the sys te m itse l f , by t he users , wi l l inevi ta b ly cause the gener at i o n of new

mani fes ted kn ow le dg e, pre vi o usly unrec o gni zed , and so , un re veale d. In

o the r w o rds , a gen t b ehavi o ur al m ode ls ca n be orc hes tra te d an d ex tende d

th r ou g h t hei r e lem en ta ry f oun din g c o m po nents , i n o rde r t o perm i t t he

syste m t o g racef u lly e vo lve t o war ds newe r a pplica t ion scena ri os .

The pr inci ples f o rm u l ate d in my t heses hav e been ac tua l ly a pplie d t o

a rea l M AS- base d pla tf o rm , w hic h was dev el o ped in c o m pl iance wi t h the

speci f ica t i ons of K4 C are Eu r o pean pr ojec t. The o bjec t ive was , a m ong the

o the rs , t o pr ovi de t he pa r tic i pan t c o unt ri es wi t h an in te ll i gent a g ent- based

pla tf o rm ca pab le of as sur in g t he pr ov isi on o f l on g- ter m h o me ca r e services

t o el der ly pa tien ts , wi th c o-m o r bi d con di ti ons and diseases , cogn i tive

and /or phys ica l i m pa i rmen t.

Resu lts inhe ren t in te stin g ph ase of K4 Ca re MAS pl at f or m have b een

sepa ra te ly re por te d. They ha ve evi denced bo t h t he inn ova ti ve ness of the

appr oach in mo de l lin g h o me ca re se rvices t hr o ug h a gen t- base d sy ste ms and

the h i gh le vel of acce ptance by pr ac ti ti one rs ( d oma in ex pe r ts) i nvo lve d i n

the pr ojec t rea liz at i on , wh o pr ovi ded a pos i t ive eva lu at i on w i th re ga rds b o th

t o the conc re te rea li z ati on o f the M AS-b as ed pla tf or m an d t he possi bi l ity

and wi l l in gness o f usa ge in rea l hea l th serv ic es .

This is the essence o f my invest i ga ti ons wh ich I have c on duc te d and

i l l ust ra te d in the prese nt man usc ri pt.



Appendix

T e c h n o l o g y A c c e p t a n c e M o d e l ( T A M )T e c h n o l o g y A c c e p t a n c e M o d e l ( T A M )T e c h n o l o g y A c c e p t a n c e M o d e l ( T A M )T e c h n o l o g y A c c e p t a n c e M o d e l ( T A M )

Techn o lo gy Acce ptan ce M ode l (T AM) is an in f or ma ti on sys t ems

the o ry t ha t m ode ls h o w users c ome t o acce pt an d use a tec hn ol o gy .

The g oa l of T AM is t o pr ov id e an ex plana ti on of t he de te r minan t s of

co m pu te r acce ptanc e tha t is gen era l , ca pa b le of ex plain in g user beha vi ou r

acr oss a br oa d r an ge of en d-use r c o m put in g techn o l o gies and use r

po pu la t ions , wh i le at t he sa me ti me bein g b o t h pa rsi m o nio us and

the o re tica l ly jus ti f ie d [67 ].

The m o de l su g ges ts tha t w hen use rs ar e presen te d w it h a new

techn o l o gy, a n um be r of fac t ors inf l uence t hei r decis ion a b ou t h ow and

when t hey wi l l use i t , no ta bly :

• Pe rceive d use fu lness ( P U) - Th is was def ine d by F re d Dav is as

“ the de gree t o wh ich a pe rs on bel ieves th at usin g a pa r tic u la r

syste m wo u ld enh ance his or he r jo b per fo r mance ”

• Pe rceive d e ase-o f-use (PE O U) - Davis de fined th is as “ th e

de gree t o w hic h a perso n be lie ves t ha t usin g a pa rt ic ula r

syste m wo u ld be f ree f ro m eff o r t” .

TAM is one o f t he m o st inf l uen tia l ex tensi o ns of Ajzen an d F ish b ein’s

the o ry of reas one d a cti on ( TR A) in the l i te ra t ure [68 ]. Fre d Davis an d

Richa r d Ba g ozz i dev el o ped i t . T AM re pl aces many o f TR A’s att i tu de

meas ures wi t h the tw o tec hno l o gy ac ce pt a nce meas u res— ease of use , and

usef uln ess . TR A an d TAM, b o th of whi ch h ave st r ong be havi o ur a l e l emen ts ,

A p p e n d i x



1 1 8

assu me tha t when so me one f o rms an in ten ti on t o ac t , t his so me one wi l l be

free t o ac t wi t h ou t l i mi ta t i on. In the rea l w o r ld t here ca n be many

cons tr ain ts , suc h as l i mi t t he free d om to ac t [66 ].

Ba g ozz i , Davis an d W arsha w s ay: “ Because new tech no l o gies suc h as

pe rson al c om pu ters a r e co m plex a nd an e le men t of unce r tain ty e xists in t he

min ds o f dec is i on m a ke rs wi t h res pec t t o t he success fu l a do pt io n of the m,

pe o ple f or m a t ti t udes and in ten ti ons t ow ar d t ryin g t o lea rn t o u se the ne w

techn o l o gy pri o r t o i nit ia tin g e ff o rts di rec ted a t usin g . At ti tu de s t o war ds

usa ge an d in tent i ons t o use may be i l l - fo r med o r lac kin g i n c o nvict i on o r

else may occ ur onl y af ter pre li min ary str ivin gs t o lea rn t o use the

techn o l o gy ev o lve. T hus, ac tua l usa ge ma y no t be a di rec t o r im med ia te

conseq uence of suc h at ti t udes and in ten ti o ns”. See [66 ] a nd re pr esenta ti on

in F i gu re 2 4.

F i g u r e F i g u r e F i g u r e F i g u r e 2 42 42 42 4 : D i a g r a m o f t h e a t t i t u d e o f p e o p l e w h e n c o n f r o n t e d t o n e w t e c h n o l o g i e s: D i a g r a m o f t h e a t t i t u d e o f p e o p l e w h e n c o n f r o n t e d t o n e w t e c h n o l o g i e s: D i a g r a m o f t h e a t t i t u d e o f p e o p l e w h e n c o n f r o n t e d t o n e w t e c h n o l o g i e s: D i a g r a m o f t h e a t t i t u d e o f p e o p l e w h e n c o n f r o n t e d t o n e w t e c h n o l o g i e s

Seve ral resea rch ers ha ve re plica te d Dav is ’s or i gina l s t udy t o pr ov ide

em pi rica l ev idence on the re la ti onsh i ps t ha t exis t be tween usef u l ness , ease

of use and sys tem use. The exte nsive r esearc h act ivi ty pr o du ced 1 47 ar tic les

be tween 1990 an d 2003, dem ons t ra tin g s tr on g re l ia bi l i ty and vali d ity of

inst r umen ts . Many di f feren t ve rsi ons of t he or i gina l one have bee n pro pose d

and used , s peci f ica l ly ad dress in g d if feren t areas o f in te res t an d sh o win g

TAM as a go o d ex am ple of h o w a mo de l is ex ten ded and a pplie d.



Abbreviations

[ A K ] = A p p l ic a tio n K n o wl e d ge ( f ir s t c ita t io n p a ge : 3 93 93 93 9 )

[ DDK ] = Do ma in De s c r ip t io n K n o wl e dge ( 3 93 93 93 9 )

[ DK ] = De c l a r a tiv e K n o wl e d ge ( 3 93 93 93 9 )

[ FD] = Fa mi l y Do c to r ( 4 54 54 54 5 )

[ FI PA ] = Fo u n da t io n fo r I n te l l ige n t Ph ys ic a l A g e n ts ( 2 72 72 72 7 )

[ HC] = Ho me Ca r e ( 2 92 92 92 9 )

[ HC P] = Ho me Ca r e Pa tie n t ( 2 92 92 92 9 )

[ HN ] = He a d N u r s e ( 4 54 54 54 5 )

[ I CG ] = I n fo r ma l Ca r e G iv e r ( 4 54 54 54 5 )

[ I T] = I n fo r ma t io n Te c hn o l o g y ( 9999 )

[ JA DE ] = Ja v a A ge n t D E v e l o p me n t fr a me wo r k ( 2 82 82 82 8 )

[ K 4 Ca r e ] = K n o wl e dge fo r Ca r e ( 2 92 92 92 9 )

[ K M ] = K n o wl e dge M a n a ge me n t ( 3 23 23 23 2 )

[ M A S ] = M u l t i A ge n t S ys te m ( 1 31 31 31 3 )

[ N u ] = N u r s e ( 4 54 54 54 5 )

[ O K ] = O b je c t iv e K n o w l e dge ( 4 04 04 04 0 )

[ O W L ] = O n to l o g y W e b L a n gu a ge ( 7 57 57 57 5 )

[ PC] = P h ys ic ia n in C h a r ge ( 4 54 54 54 5 )

[ PK ] = Pr o c e du r a l K n o wl e d ge ( 4 04 04 04 0 )

[ S CG ] = S p e c ia l is e d Ca r e G iv e r ( 4 54 54 54 5 )

[ S K ] = S e r v ic e K n o wl e d ge ( 4 04 04 04 0 )

[ S P] = S p e c ia l i s t P h ys ic ia n ( 4 54 54 54 5 )

[ S W ] = S o c ia l W o r ke r ( 4 54 54 54 5 )

[ TK ] = Te c hn o l o g ic a l K n o wl e d ge ( 4 04 04 04 0 )



My Research Related Publications

[ 1 ] P e d o n eP e d o n eP e d o n eP e d o n e , G . : A n a ge n t- b a s e d f r a me wo r k fo r s u p p o r ti n g e - he a l t h: f r o m O W L

de s c r ip t io n to M A S . Pe r io d ic a Po l y te c hn ic a - E l e c tr ic a l E n g in e e r i n g. V o l . 5 1 -

I s s u e 3 - 4 , p p . 1 4 7 - 1 5 6 ( 2 0 0 7 )

[ 2 ] Ha jn a l , Á . , I s e r n , D. , M o r e n o , A . , P e d o n e , G .P e d o n e , G .P e d o n e , G .P e d o n e , G . , V a r ga , L . Z. : K n o wl e dge Dr iv e n

A r c h ite c tu r e fo r Ho me Ca r e . L N A I , S p r in ge r B e r l in / He i de l b e r g. V o l .

4 6 9 6 / 2 0 0 7 . I S B N : 9 7 8 - 3 - 5 4 0 - 7 5 2 5 3 - 0 , p p . 1 7 3 - 1 8 2 ( 2 0 0 7 )

[ 3 ] Ha jn a l , Á . , M o r e n o , A . , P e d o n e , G .P e d o n e , G .P e d o n e , G .P e d o n e , G . , R ia ñ o , D. , V a r ga , L . Z. : The r o l e o f

kn o wl e dge in de s i gn in g a n a ge n t p l a tfo r m fo r ho me c a r e .

Ude n / Da m ia n i / Pa s s ia n te E d s . 2 n d K M O I n te r n a t io n a l Co n fe r e n c e . I S B N :

9 7 8 - 8 8 - 9 0 3 1 2 0 - 0 - 7 , p p . 1 0 2 - 1 0 8 ( 2 0 0 7 )

[ 4 ] Ha jn a l , Á . , P e d o n e , G .P e d o n e , G .P e d o n e , G .P e d o n e , G . , V a r ga , L . Z. : O n to l o g y- dr iv e n a ge n t c o de ge n e r a tio n

fo r ho me c a r e in Pr o té gé . 1 0 th I n te r n a t io n a l Pr o té gé c o n fe r e n c e , B u da p e s t ,

p p . 9 1 - 9 3 ( 2 0 0 7 )

[ 5 ] I s e r n , D. , M o r e n o , A . , P e d o n e , G .P e d o n e , G .P e d o n e , G .P e d o n e , G . , V a r ga , L . Z. : A n in te l l ige n t p l a t f o r m to

p r o v i de ho me c a r e s e r v ic e s . K n o wl e dge ma n a ge me n t fo r he a l th c a r e

p r o c e du r e s , f r o m kn o wl e dge to gl o b a l c a r e . W o r ks ho p K 4 CA R E ( 2 0 0 7 )

[ 6 ] P e d o n e , G .P e d o n e , G .P e d o n e , G .P e d o n e , G . , V a r ga , L . Z. : S u p p o r ti n g M A S c o m p l e x s e r v ic e mo de l l in g t hr o u g h

a ge n t s s u b s ti tu ta b il i t y . I CA I 2 0 0 7 . 7 t h I n te r n a tio n a l Co n fe r e n c e o n A p p l ie d

I n fo r ma t ic s . E ge r , V o l . 2 , p p . 4 0 9 - 4 1 6 ( 2 0 0 7 )

[ 7 ] I s e r n , D. , M il l a n , M . , M o r e n o , A . , P e d o n e , G .P e d o n e , G .P e d o n e , G .P e d o n e , G . , V a r ga , L . Z. : Ho me c a r e

in div idu a l in te r v e n t io n p l a n s in t he K 4 Ca r e p l a t fo r m . CB M S 2 0 0 8 .

Pr o c e e d in g s o f the 2 1 s t I E E E I n te r n a tio n a l S y mp o s iu m o n Co mp u te r - b a s e d

M e dic a l S ys te m s . Jyv ä s kyl ä . I S B N : 9 7 8 - 0 - 7 6 9 5 - 3 1 6 5 - 6 , p p . 4 5 5 - 4 5 7 ( 2 0 0 8 )

[ 8 ] I s e r n , D. , M o r e n o , A . , P e d o n e , G .P e d o n e , G .P e d o n e , G .P e d o n e , G . , V a r ga , L . Z. : A n in te l l ige n t p l a t f o r m to

p r o v i de ho me c a r e s e r v ic e s . L N CS , S p r i n ge r B e r l in / He i de l b e r g. V o l .

4 9 2 4 / 2 0 0 8 . I S B N 9 7 8 - 3 - 5 4 0 - 7 8 6 2 3 - 8 , p p . 1 4 9 - 1 6 0 ( 2 0 0 8 )

[ 9 ] I s e r n , D. , M il l a n , M . , M o r e n o , A . , P e d o n e , G .P e d o n e , G .P e d o n e , G .P e d o n e , G . , V a r ga , L . Z. : A ge n t - b a s e d

e x e c u tio n o f I n d iv i du a l I n te r v e n t io n Pl a n s . Pr o c e e d in g s o f t he Fif t h

W o r ks ho p o n A ge n ts A p p l ie d i n He a l t h Ca r e ( 7 t h I n te r n a t io n a l Co n fe r e n c e

M y R e s e a r c h W o r k R e l a t e d P u b l i c a t i o n s



1 2 1

o n A u to n o mo u s A ge n ts a n d M u l ti A ge n t S y s te ms ) . E s to r i l , Po r tu ga l , p p . 3 1 -

4 1 ( 2 0 0 8 )

[ 1 0 ] I s e r n , D. , M o r e n o , A . , P e d o n e , G .P e d o n e , G .P e d o n e , G .P e d o n e , G . , S á n c he z, D. , V a r ga , L . Z. : Ho me Ca r e

Pe r s o n a l iza t io n wi t h I n div i du a l I n te r v e n t io n P l a n s . K n o wl e d ge M a n a ge me n t

fo r He a l th Ca r e Pr o c e du r e s : E C A I 2 0 0 8 W o r ks ho p , K 4 He l P 2 0 0 8 , Pa t r a s ,

G r e e c e . L N CS V o l . 5 6 2 6 . I S B N : 9 7 8 - 3 - 6 4 2 - 0 3 2 6 1 - 5 , p p . 1 3 4 – 1 5 1 ( 2 0 0 9 )

[ 1 1 ] I s e r n , D. , M o r e n o , A . , S á n c he z, D. , Ha jn a l , Á . , P e d o n e , G .P e d o n e , G .P e d o n e , G .P e d o n e , G . , V a r ga , L . Z. :

A ge n t- b a s e d e x e c u t io n o f p e r s o n a l is e d ho me c a r e tr e a t me n ts . A p p l ie d

I n te l l i ge n c e , V o l u me 3 4 , N o 2 , D O I : 1 0 . 1 0 0 7 / s 1 0 4 8 9 - 0 0 9 - 0 1 8 7 - 6 , p p . 1 5 5 -

1 8 0 ( 2 0 0 9 )

[ 1 2 ] Ha jn a l , Á . , M o r e n o , A . , P eP eP eP e d o n e , G .d o n e , G .d o n e , G .d o n e , G . , R ia n o , D. , V a r ga , L . Z. : Fo r ma l i z in g

a n d l e v e r a g in g do ma i n kn o wl e dge in the K 4 CA R E ho me c a r e p l a tfo r m .

S e ma n t ic kn o wl e d ge m a n a ge me n t: a n o n to l o g y- b a s e d fr a me wo r k. He r s he y.

I S B N : 9 7 8 - 1 - 6 0 5 6 6 - 0 3 4 - 9 , p p 2 7 9 - 3 0 2 ( 2 0 0 9 )



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B i b l i o g r a p h y



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de v e l o p me n t o f a ge n t- b a s e d p e e r - to - p e e r s y s te ms . I n Pr o c e e din gs o f t he 2 2 n d

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in c o - ge l ds . I n P r o c e e din gs o f the 6 t h S ym p o s iu m o n A u to n o mo u s

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A l a m ito s , Ca l i f . , p p . 6 3 – 7 0 ( 2 0 0 3 )




1 2 4

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1 4 , 3 , p p . 5 3 3 – 5 6 2 ( 1 9 9 5 )

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r o b o t te a m . I n Pr o c e e di n gs o f t he 2 n d I n te r n a t io n a l Co n fe r e n c e o n M u l ti

A ge n t S y s te ms ( K yo to , Ja p a n ) . I E E E Co mp u te r S o c ie t y Pr e s s , L o s A l a mi to s ,

Ca l i f . ( 1 9 9 6 )

[ 3 9 ] Ha t to r i , F . , O hgu r o , T. , Y o ko o , M . , M a t s u b a r a , S . , Y o s h ida , S . : S o c ia l w a r e :

M u l tia ge n t s y s te ms fo r s u p p o r t in g n e t wo r k c o mmu n i tie s . Co mmu n i. A CM 4 2 ,

3 ( M a r . ) , p p . 5 5 – 6 1 ( 1 9 9 9 )

[ 4 0 ] R ip e a n i , M . , I a mn i tc hi , A . , Fo s te r , I . : M a p p in g the gn u te l l a n e t wo r k . I E E E

I n te r n e t Co mp u t. 6 , 1 ( Ja n . ) , p p . 5 0 – 5 7 ( 2 0 0 2 )

[ 4 1 ] Ha n dy, C. : Un de r s ta n di n g O r ga n iza tio n s . Pe n gu in B o o ks , L o n do n , UK

( 1 9 7 6 )

[ 4 2 ] De ma ze a u , Y . , R o c ha Co s ta , A . C. : Po p u l a t io n s a n d o r ga n iza tio n s in o p e n

M u l ti A ge n t S ys te ms . I n Pr o c e e din gs o f the 1 s t N a t io n a l S y mp o s i u m o n

Pa r a l l e l a n d Di s tr ib u te d A I ( 1 9 9 6 )

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o r ie n te d s o f twa r e e n g i n e e r in g fo r in te r n e t a p p l ic a t io n s . I n Co o r din a tio n o f

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[ 4 6 ] Pl o s c h, P. : Co n t r a c ts , S c e n a r io s a n d P r o to ty p e s - A n I n te gr a te d A p p r o a c h

to H ig h Q u a l i t y S o f t wa r e . I S B N 3 - 5 4 0 - 4 3 4 8 6 - 0 . S p r i n ge r - V e r l a g, B e r l in ,

He i de l b e r g ( 2 0 0 4 )

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S tr u c tu r e s G r o u p . M e m o N o . 9 9 , M I T Pr o je c t M A C, Ca mb r id ge , M A ( 1 9 7 4 )

[ 4 8 ] Ho a r e , C. A . R . : Pr o o f o f c o r r e c tn e s s o f da ta r e p r e s e n ta tio n . A c ta

I n fo r ma t ic a 1 , p p . 2 7 1 – 2 8 1 ( 1 9 7 2 )

[ 4 9 ] Pa r n a s , D. L . : A te c h n iq u e fo r s o ft wa r e mo du l e s p e c i f ic a t io n wi t h

e x a mp l e s . Co m mu n ic a t i o n s o f the A CM , 1 5 ( 5 ) , p p . 3 3 0 – 3 3 6 ( 1 9 7 2 )

[ 5 0 ] Pa r n a s , D. L . : O n t he c r ite r ia to b e u s e d in d e c o mp o s i n g s y s te ms in to

mo du l e s . Co mmu n ic a ti o n s o f the A CM , 1 5 ( 1 2 ) , p p . 1 0 5 3 – 1 0 5 8 ( 1 9 7 2 )

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Up p e r S a ddl e R iv e r , 1 5 ( 1 2 ) ( 1 9 9 7 ) .




1 2 5

[ 5 2 ] S o wa , J . F : Co n c e p tu a l S tr u c tu r e s . I n fo r ma t io n Pr o c e s s in g in M in d a n d

M a c hin e . R e a d in g, M A : A d di s o n W e s l e y ( 1 9 8 4 )

[ 5 3 ] G r u b e r , T. R . : A tr a n s l a t io n a p p r o a c h to p o r ta b l e o n to l o g ie s . K n o wl e dge

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E n gin e e r in g . I E E E Co m p u te r ( 1 9 8 7 )

[ 5 5 ] O ff ic e o f t he Un de r S e c r e ta r y o f De fe n s e fo r A c q u is i t io n : R e p o r t o f the

De fe n s e S c ie n c e B o a r d Ta s k Fo r c e o n M i l i ta r y S o ft wa r e . US Do D ( 1 9 8 7 )

[ 5 6 ] A l a n M . D. : S o f twa r e R e q u ir e me n ts : A n a l ys is a n d S p e c if ic a t io n . Pr e n tic e

Ha l l . I S B N : 0 - 1 3 - 8 2 4 6 7 3 - 4 ( 1 9 9 0 )

[ 5 7 ] R o yc e , W . : M a n a gi n g t he De v e l o p me n t o f L a r ge S o ft wa r e S ys te m s , I E E E

W E S CO N , p p : 1 - 9 ( 1 9 7 0 )

[ 5 8 ] Pa r n a s , D. L . , Cl e me n ts , P. C. : A R a t io n a l De s ign Pr o c e s s : Ho w a n d W h y to

Fa ke I t . I E E E Tr a n s a c tio n s o n S o ft wa r e E n g in e e r in g, V o l . S E - 1 2 . N O . 2

( 1 9 8 6 )

[ 5 9 ] B o e hm, B . W . : A S p ir a l M o de l o f S o f twa r e De v e l o p me n t a n d E n ha n c e me n t .

I E E E Co mp u te r , p . 6 1 ( 1 9 8 8 )

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Pr o to t yp in g . Ca r n e gi e - M e l l o n Un iv e r s i ty , P it ts b u r gh, P A S o ft wa r e

E n gin e e r in g I n s ti tu te . CM U/ S E I - 9 2 - TR - 1 3 ( 1 9 9 2 )

[ 6 1 ] S mi t h, M . F. : S o f twa r e Pr o to t yp in g: A do p tio n , Pr a c tic e a n d M a n a ge m e n t .

M c G r a w- H il l , L o n do n ( 1 9 9 1 )

[ 6 2 ] S it t i g , D. F. , W r i g ht , A . , O s he r o ff , J . A . , M i d dl e to n , B . , Te ic h, J . M . , A s h, J . S . ,

B a te s , D. W . : G r a n d c ha l l e n ge s in c l i n ic a l de c is io n s u p p o r t . Jo u r n a l o f

B io me d ic a l I n fo r ma t ic s 4 1 , p p . 3 8 7 – 3 9 2 ( 2 0 0 8 )

[ 6 3 ] R ia ñ o , D. : T he S D A * mo de l : a s e t t he o r y a p p r o a c h . I n : K o ko l , P. ,

Po d go r e l e c , V . , Du š a n k a , M . , Zo r ma n , M . , V e r l ic , M . ( e ds ) . Pr o c o f 2 0 th I E E E

in te r n a t io n a l s ym p o s iu m o n c o mp u te r - b a s e d me d ic a l s ys te m s , CB M S 2 0 0 7 .

I E E E Pr e s s , M a r ib o r , p p . 5 6 3 – 5 6 8 ( 2 0 0 7 )

[ 6 4 ] M ic ha e l , B . : I n tr o du c ti o n to S e r v ic e - O r ie n te d M o de l in g . S e r v ic e - O r ie n te d

M o de l in g: S e r v ic e A n a l ys is , De s i gn , a n d A r c h ite c tu r e . W il e y & S o n s . I S B N

9 7 8 - 0 - 4 7 0 - 1 4 1 1 1 - 3 ( 2 0 0 8 )

[ 6 5 ] M ic ha e l , B . : S O A M o d e l in g Pa t te r n s fo r S e r v i c e - O r ie n te d D is c o v e r y a n d

A n a l y s i s . W il e y & S o n s . I S B N 9 7 8 - 0 4 7 0 4 8 1 9 7 4 ( 2 0 1 0 )

[ 6 6 ] B a go z zi , R . P. , Da v i s , F . D. , W a r s ha w, P. R . : D e v e l o p me n t a n d te s t o f a

the o r y o f te c hn o l o gic a l l e a r n in g a n d u s a ge . Hu ma n R e l a tio n s , 4 5 ( 7 ) , p p . 6 6 0 -

6 8 6 ( 1 9 9 2 ) ( h ttp : / / hu m. s a ge p u b . c o m/ c gi / c o n te n t / a b s tr a c t / 4 5 / 7 / 6 5 9 )




1 2 6

[ 6 7 ] Da v i s , F . D. , B a go zz i , R . P. , a n d W a r s ha w, P . R . : Us e r A c c e p ta n c e o f

Co mp u te r Te c hn o l o g y: A Co mp a r is o n o f T wo The o r e tic a l M o de l s .

M a n a ge me n t S c ie n c e , 3 5 , p p . 9 8 2 - 1 0 0 3 ( 1 9 8 9 )

[ 6 8 ] Fis hb e i n , M . , A jze n , I . : B e l ie f , A t t itu de , I n t e n tio n a n d B e ha v io r : A n

I n tr o du c t io n to T he o r y a n d R e s e a r c h . R e a d in g, M A : A dd is o n - W e s l e y ( 1 9 7 5 )

[ 6 9 ] Pa r n a s , D. L . : O n t he C r ite r ia To B e Us e d i n De c o mp o s in g S y s te ms in to

M o du l e s . Co m mu n ic a t io n s o f the A CM , V o l . 1 5 , N o . 1 2 . Co p yr i gh t ©

A s s o c ia t io n fo r Co mp u t in g M a c h in e r y I n c , p p . 1 0 5 3 – 1 0 5 8 ( 1 9 7 2 )

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