Agent系统通讯理论及组织结构的研究
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摘要
Agent是计算机中活动的软件实体。它们置身于特定的计算环境中，各自控制一些资
源，负责完成不同的任务。
单个Agent己经能够完成一些较有意义的工作；但是，更有价值、研究前景更为广阔
的却是由一群自主协调、相互配合 Agent个体组成的多Agent系统。尤其考虑到未来的Agent
计算环境将是一种开放、分布、自治的网络计算环境。
当前，多Agent系统中进行协调和配合的主要手段是采用 Seech－act语言的相互通讯。
speech－act通讯在多Agend系统中所起的作用就如同话语交流在人类群体中所起的作用。
本论文正是抓住Speech－act通讯这个关键点对多Agent系统进行研究。我们的研究将
专注于Agent的通讯特性；因此，我们称被研究的Agent系统为Agent通讯系统。
具体地，本论文对Agent通讯系统在以下几个方面进行了研究：
1．针对作为通讯基础的Speech－act语言，提出了一种以会话观察者心灵状态为核心
的语义方法。采用这一方法，为一简单的样例语言SAIL，给出了操作语义，并说明了使
用此语义对Agent系统中通讯行为进行语义恰当性检验的方法。
2．针对Agent间的动态通讯行为，指出，如同人类的会话行为要遵守一些隐含的结
构性规律一样，Agent在通讯时也需遵循某些结构化准则。这些准则体现为：主动权交替
控制，多话题嵌套进行，话题中隐含协议等等。这些准则构成了我们关于Agent通讯的ARC
模型。
3．针对多Agent系统中Agent间的组织关系，提出了以机构这种可伸缩的组织单位
为核心的组织域理论。并且我们还进一步引入了“内窥”机制，使得我们可以突破等级式
的组织形式，采用更复杂、更灵活的组织形式。
4．基于ARC模型和组织域理论，设计了一种形式化的Agent通讯系统规范描述语
言ASML，此语言将Agent通讯系统中静态组织结构的描述和动态通讯行为的描述较好地
结合在了一起。
5．针对Agcnt通讯系统（尤其是动态通讯行为部分）的分析和设计中面临的挑战，
我们借鉴会话分析理论，提出了从会话场景中解析会话，话题和话题协议的方法。
6．提出了基于测试机的方法来验证会话协议的实现策略，并证明了测试机定理。
在总体上，本论文是以一种软件工程的方式对Agent通讯系统进行研究。最终，我们
将以上提出的各种语言、模型和方法应用子分析和设计一个实例系统，并对结果进行了评
价，把我们的方法与传统的和其他Agent的软件工程方法进行了比较，指出其优缺点及未
来工作的方向。
Agents are active computational entities siuated in complex environmnts, where they
utilize available resources to undertake assigned tasks.
In simple cases, individual agents are capable enough to implement very meaningful
applications. However, to fuly exploit agents' potentiality (especially in a distributed,
autonomous, and open environment), we need a group of agents which could coordinate their
behaviors and be functioning together.
Almost all the coordination and cooperation activities amongst agents involve, in one way
or another the agents' ability to communicate in speech-act languages. Speech--act
communication is playing the role amongst agents what human speech is playing amongst a
group of people.
This thesis is a study of multi-agent system from the very perspective of speech-act
communication. As the communicative aspect of agents is the focus of our work, the other
aspects of agents are necessarily treated as of lesser importance. So, the mulh-agent systems
under study by us are also called agent communication systems.
As a broad outline, we can say our work on agent communication systems is carried on in
the following five respects.
l. We introduce a semantics framework based on conversational observer's mental states
for understanding and designing speech-act languages, and have used the framework to
give an operational semantics for a light-weigh exemplar speech-act language, SAIL.
2. We make it clear that, just as there are some inherent structural principle underlying
human conversation, apent communication should as well abide by some structurization
rules. Among these rules are, the turns-taking system of a conversation, the nested
occurrences of topics, and the protocols regulating communicative behaviors within a
topic. All these and some other things around conversation collectively comprise what we
called ARC Model for agent communication.
3. Agent systems (esp. large-scale multi-agent systems) usually have very complex
organhaonal relationships within. To structure these relationships, we propose a flexible
and scalable construct, scope, as the basic organizational unit for agent communication
sy5tems. ScoPe can not only orgtri a collechon of roles around an agenF it also
.'
oWze a gr'OuP of agents within an orgtrindon, which may fimchon just lthe an agent
by pwticipating in conversations. Scopes. oFgedZations, agents and roles collectively
. f
comPnse what we called OrgaItizational scope Theory
4. TO suPport the developmen of agent communication systCms based on ARC Model and
OrpboZational ScoPe TheOry we need a modeling lmpge tailored specifically fOr the
specification of agent coInInbocation sySt6m. As a result, in this thesis, we have designed
the ASML langUage to fulfill this requirement.
5. The development of agent conununication system faces many methodological challenges,
especially in the aSPect of dynndc system conUnwhcative behavior. TO alleviate the
sitUation, we develOP a suite of methods for analyZing, designing, and veribog
.
connnumcative behavior within an agent coInmtalcation system. These methOds helP us
tO extrat conversation strUbo from examPle conversation sceIhao, helP us tO check
the seInanic validity of the connntalcative act (i.e. Speech-act) occuring in the scenario,
and helP us tO verify tha different imP1ementaion strategies adOPted by different agents
indeed confOrm to the protocols they need to comPly with.
As a whole, our work has followed a softwar engineering aPProach tO investigating agent
systems. TherefOre, as a cooclusion of our work, we finally aPPly our langUaes, Inodls and
methOds to the analysis and design of a realishc distributed aPPlication system. The outCom of
the analysis nd design is evaluate4 and our methods are also comPared to many other methods
coInin hom both hational software engineering field and from the emergent agentbased
softwar enginering field, illuswi their relative meritS and drawbacks, and pointin the
direchons for the
源，负责完成不同的任务。
单个Agent己经能够完成一些较有意义的工作；但是，更有价值、研究前景更为广阔
的却是由一群自主协调、相互配合 Agent个体组成的多Agent系统。尤其考虑到未来的Agent
计算环境将是一种开放、分布、自治的网络计算环境。
当前，多Agent系统中进行协调和配合的主要手段是采用 Seech－act语言的相互通讯。
speech－act通讯在多Agend系统中所起的作用就如同话语交流在人类群体中所起的作用。
本论文正是抓住Speech－act通讯这个关键点对多Agent系统进行研究。我们的研究将
专注于Agent的通讯特性；因此，我们称被研究的Agent系统为Agent通讯系统。
具体地，本论文对Agent通讯系统在以下几个方面进行了研究：
1．针对作为通讯基础的Speech－act语言，提出了一种以会话观察者心灵状态为核心
的语义方法。采用这一方法，为一简单的样例语言SAIL，给出了操作语义，并说明了使
用此语义对Agent系统中通讯行为进行语义恰当性检验的方法。
2．针对Agent间的动态通讯行为，指出，如同人类的会话行为要遵守一些隐含的结
构性规律一样，Agent在通讯时也需遵循某些结构化准则。这些准则体现为：主动权交替
控制，多话题嵌套进行，话题中隐含协议等等。这些准则构成了我们关于Agent通讯的ARC
模型。
3．针对多Agent系统中Agent间的组织关系，提出了以机构这种可伸缩的组织单位
为核心的组织域理论。并且我们还进一步引入了“内窥”机制，使得我们可以突破等级式
的组织形式，采用更复杂、更灵活的组织形式。
4．基于ARC模型和组织域理论，设计了一种形式化的Agent通讯系统规范描述语
言ASML，此语言将Agent通讯系统中静态组织结构的描述和动态通讯行为的描述较好地
结合在了一起。
5．针对Agcnt通讯系统（尤其是动态通讯行为部分）的分析和设计中面临的挑战，
我们借鉴会话分析理论，提出了从会话场景中解析会话，话题和话题协议的方法。
6．提出了基于测试机的方法来验证会话协议的实现策略，并证明了测试机定理。
在总体上，本论文是以一种软件工程的方式对Agent通讯系统进行研究。最终，我们
将以上提出的各种语言、模型和方法应用子分析和设计一个实例系统，并对结果进行了评
价，把我们的方法与传统的和其他Agent的软件工程方法进行了比较，指出其优缺点及未
来工作的方向。
Agents are active computational entities siuated in complex environmnts, where they
utilize available resources to undertake assigned tasks.
In simple cases, individual agents are capable enough to implement very meaningful
applications. However, to fuly exploit agents' potentiality (especially in a distributed,
autonomous, and open environment), we need a group of agents which could coordinate their
behaviors and be functioning together.
Almost all the coordination and cooperation activities amongst agents involve, in one way
or another the agents' ability to communicate in speech-act languages. Speech--act
communication is playing the role amongst agents what human speech is playing amongst a
group of people.
This thesis is a study of multi-agent system from the very perspective of speech-act
communication. As the communicative aspect of agents is the focus of our work, the other
aspects of agents are necessarily treated as of lesser importance. So, the mulh-agent systems
under study by us are also called agent communication systems.
As a broad outline, we can say our work on agent communication systems is carried on in
the following five respects.
l. We introduce a semantics framework based on conversational observer's mental states
for understanding and designing speech-act languages, and have used the framework to
give an operational semantics for a light-weigh exemplar speech-act language, SAIL.
2. We make it clear that, just as there are some inherent structural principle underlying
human conversation, apent communication should as well abide by some structurization
rules. Among these rules are, the turns-taking system of a conversation, the nested
occurrences of topics, and the protocols regulating communicative behaviors within a
topic. All these and some other things around conversation collectively comprise what we
called ARC Model for agent communication.
3. Agent systems (esp. large-scale multi-agent systems) usually have very complex
organhaonal relationships within. To structure these relationships, we propose a flexible
and scalable construct, scope, as the basic organizational unit for agent communication
sy5tems. ScoPe can not only orgtri a collechon of roles around an agenF it also
.'
oWze a gr'OuP of agents within an orgtrindon, which may fimchon just lthe an agent
by pwticipating in conversations. Scopes. oFgedZations, agents and roles collectively
. f
comPnse what we called OrgaItizational scope Theory
4. TO suPport the developmen of agent communication systCms based on ARC Model and
OrpboZational ScoPe TheOry we need a modeling lmpge tailored specifically fOr the
specification of agent coInInbocation sySt6m. As a result, in this thesis, we have designed
the ASML langUage to fulfill this requirement.
5. The development of agent conununication system faces many methodological challenges,
especially in the aSPect of dynndc system conUnwhcative behavior. TO alleviate the
sitUation, we develOP a suite of methods for analyZing, designing, and veribog
.
connnumcative behavior within an agent coInmtalcation system. These methOds helP us
tO extrat conversation strUbo from examPle conversation sceIhao, helP us tO check
the seInanic validity of the connntalcative act (i.e. Speech-act) occuring in the scenario,
and helP us tO verify tha different imP1ementaion strategies adOPted by different agents
indeed confOrm to the protocols they need to comPly with.
As a whole, our work has followed a softwar engineering aPProach tO investigating agent
systems. TherefOre, as a cooclusion of our work, we finally aPPly our langUaes, Inodls and
methOds to the analysis and design of a realishc distributed aPPlication system. The outCom of
the analysis nd design is evaluate4 and our methods are also comPared to many other methods
coInin hom both hational software engineering field and from the emergent agentbased
softwar enginering field, illuswi their relative meritS and drawbacks, and pointin the
direchons for the
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