An exceptional handling service for the contract net protocol family

Abstract

Autonomous agents are systems that inhabit complex and dynamic environments. Attaining robust behavior in such complex conditions is a key challenge for agent-based systems. This challenge is intensified in multi-agent settings, where a diverse set of agents communicate and coordinate with each other, resulting in non-deterministic system behaviors. The standard approach to this problem relies on the notion that each agent should be equipped as much as possible in order to survive on their own in its environment, leading to several serious limitations. Dellarocas and Klein (1999) propose an alternative approach, using a generic exception handling service for providing adaptability by detecting and handling domain independent exceptions. This thesis presents an evaluation and prototype implementation of this approach using a contract net setting. The feasibility of the approach is assessed, involving identification of contract net related domain independent exceptions and their handling strategies as well as an investigation of the minimum base level interfaces required from each agent. Experimental results showing a scenario in which agents relies on the exception handling service for dealing with agent death exception are demonstrated. Lastly, a thorough analysis and comparative study of the shared service approach versus other related works are presented.