Title: O-MaSE: a customisable approach to designing and building complex, adaptive multi-agent systems

Authors: Scott A. DeLoach, Juan Carlos Garcia-Ojeda

Addresses: Kansas State University, 234 Nichols Hall, Manhattan, Kansas, KS 66506, USA. ' School of Systems Engineering, School of Natural Sciences and Engineering, Autonomous University of Bucaramanga, Street 48 #39-234, Bucaramanga, Colombia

Abstract: The complexity and scope of software systems continues to grow. One approach to dealing with this growing complexity is the use of intelligent, multi-agent systems. However, due in part to its relative infancy when compared to other software paradigms, the use of multi-agent systems has yet to be used extensively in industry. One reason is the lack of industrial strength methods and tools to support multi-agent development. This paper presents the organisation-based multi-agent software engineering (O-MaSE) methodology framework, which integrates a set of concrete technologies aimed at facilitating industrial acceptance. Specifically, O-MaSE is a customisable agent-oriented methodology based on consistent, well-defined concepts supported by plug-ins to an industrial strength development environment, agentTool III.

Keywords: agent-oriented methodology; method engineering; integrated development environments; software analysis; software design; multi-agent systems; agent-based systems; complex MAS; adaptive MAS; agents.

DOI: 10.1504/IJAOSE.2010.036984

International Journal of Agent-Oriented Software Engineering, 2010 Vol.4 No.3, pp.244 - 280

Received: 28 Apr 2010
Accepted: 31 Aug 2010
Published online: 20 Nov 2010 *

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