Spatially distributed normative infrastructure

Abstract

In previous work, we introduced an approach to describe and simulate environments for situated multi-agent systems, based on a language called ELMS. Here, we present extensions to our approach which provide the means to allow normative information to be distributed in environments shared by multiple agents. Organisational structures for multi-agent systems are usually defined independently of any spatial or temporal structure. Therefore, when the multi-agent system is situated in a spatial environment, there is usually a conceptual gap between the definition of the system's organisational structures and the definition of the environment. Spatially distributing the normative information over the environment is a natural way to simplify the definition of organisational structures and the development of large-scale multi-agent systems. By distributing the normative information in different spatial locations, we allow agents to directly access the relevant information needed in each environmental context. The extensions to our approach for multi-agent environments allow for the definition of spatially distributed normative objects and the means to distribute and handle such objects in a shared environment. © Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2007.