ADELFE: A methodology for adaptive multi-agent systems engineering

Abstract

Adaptive software is used in situations where either the environment is unpredictable or the system is open. This paper presents a methodology named ADELFE, which is led by the Rational Unified Process (RUP) but is devoted to software engineering of adaptive multi-agent systems. ADELFE guarantees that the software is developed according to the AMAS theory1. We focus this presentation on the additions of ADELFE regarding the three first core workflows of the RUP. Therefore, during the requirements phase, the environment of the studied system must be defined and characterized. Then, in the analysis phase, the engineer is guided to decide to use adaptive multi-agent technology and to identify the agents through the system and the environment models. Finally, the design workflow of ADELFE must provide the cooperative agents model and helps the developer to define the local agents behavior. We illustrate the methodology by applying it to a case study: a timetable design.