Logic-Based Specification Languages for Intelligent Software Agents

Title: Logic-Based Specification Languages for Intelligent Software Agents

Abstract: This paper reviews six logic-based specification languages: ConGolog, AGENT-0, IMPACT agent programming language, Dylog, Concurrent METATEM, and Ehhf. Each language's logic foundations and an example of use are described. The paper also compares the six languages and discusses the advantages of using logic-based languages in MAS modeling and prototyping.

Keywords: Agent-oriented software engineering, logic-based language, multiagent system

Introduction: Today's software applications are complex, involving heterogeneous components that need to represent their knowledge, themselves, and other entities in the world to reason about the situation, plan future actions, and take rapid decisions when necessary. As these components interact and collaborate, they form a society of intelligent agents, known as multiagent systems (MAS). Due to the system's complexity, it is challenging to correctly and efficiently engineer applications of this kind.

One approach to addressing this challenge is agent-oriented software engineering (AOSE), which aims to find abstractions, languages, methodologies, and toolkits for modeling, verifying, validating, and prototyping complex applications conceptualized as MASs. This paper focuses on six logic-based specification languages chosen for their potential to be integrated into the ARPEGGIO project, an open framework for specifying and prototyping MAS.

The six languages are ConGolog, AGENT-0, the IMPACT agent programming language, Dylog, Concurrent METATEM, and Ehhf. For each language, the logic foundations are described, and an example of use is shown. The paper also compares the six languages and discusses similar approaches, along with considerations regarding the advantages of using logic-based languages in MAS modeling and prototyping.

Link to Article: https://arxiv.org/abs/0311024v1 Authors: arXiv ID: 0311024v1