A negotiation model for autonomous computational agents: Formal description and empirical evaluation

Issue title: IBERAMIA '02

Article type: Research Article

Authors: Lopes, Fernando | Mamede, Nuno | Novais, A.Q. | Coelho, Helder

Affiliations: Departamento Modelação e Simulação de Processos, INETI, Est. Paço Lumiar, 1649-038 Lisboa, Portugal | Departamento Engenharia Informática, IST, Av. Rovisco Pais, 1049-001 Lisboa, Portugal | Faculdade Ciências, Departamento Informática, UL, Campo Grande, 1749-016 Lisboa, Portugal

Note: [] Corresponding author. E-mail: fernando.lopes@ineti.pt

Abstract: Autonomous agents are being used in an increasing number of applications. The agents operate in complex environments and, over time, conflicts inevitably occur among them. Negotiation is the predominant process for resolving conflicts. This paper presents a generic negotiation model for autonomous agents that handles multi-party, multi-issue and single or repeated rounds. The model is based on computationally tractable assumptions and accounts for a tight integration of the individual capability of planning and the social capability of negotiation. This paper also describes an experiment conducted to evaluate the model in different types of situations. The experimental results confirmed a number of well-documented conclusions about human negotiation.

Journal: Journal of Intelligent & Fuzzy Systems, vol. 12, no. 3-4, pp. 195-212, 2002