A Generalized Graph-Based Method for Engineering Swarm Solutions to Multiagent Problems (Preprint)

Abstract

We present two key components of a principled method for constructing modular, heterogeneous swarms. First, we generalize a well-known technique for representing swarm behaviors to extend the power of multiagent systems by specializing agents and their interactions. Second, a novel graph-based method is introduced for designing swarm-based behaviors for multiagent teams. This method includes engineer-provided knowledge through explicit design decisions pertaining to specialization, heterogeneity, and modularity. We show the representational power of our generalized representation can be used to evolve a solution to a challenging multiagent resource protection problem. We also construct a modular design by hand, resulting in a scalable and intuitive heterogeneous solution for the resource protection problem.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Sep 01, 2006
Accession Number
ADA478680

Entities

People

  • Donald Sofge
  • Mitchell A. Potter
  • R. P. Wiegand
  • William M. Spears

Organizations

  • United States Naval Research Laboratory

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Autonomy
  • Energy and Power Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Algorithms
  • Application Software
  • Artificial Intelligence
  • Autonomous Agents
  • Cognitive Systems Engineering
  • Collision Avoidance
  • Engineering
  • Engineers
  • Heterogeneity
  • Information Systems
  • Military Research
  • Multiagent Systems
  • Optimization
  • Particle Swarm Optimization
  • Particles
  • Simulations
  • Systems Engineering

Fields of Study

  • Computer science
  • Mathematics

Readers

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