Agent-Oriented Software Engineering

摘要

This paper has sought to justify the claim that agent-based computing has the potential to provide a powerful suite of metaphors, concepts and techniques for conceptualising, designing and implementing complex (distributed) systems. However if this potential is to be fulfilled and agent-based systems are to reach the mainstream of software engineering, then the following limitations in the current state of the art need to be overcome. Firstly, a systematic methodology that enables developers to clearly analyse and design their applications as multi-agent systems needs to be devised. Secondly, there needs to be an increase in the number and sophistication of industrial-strength tools for building multi-agent systems. Finally, more flexible and scalable techniques need to be devised for enabling heterogeneous agents to inter-operate in open environments.