A Logic-based Multiagent Product Configuration Model

Abstract

Product configuration is an essential task in manufacturing customised products and is becoming more important as companies move to collaborative manufacturing, collaborative procurement, and collaborative inventory, to offer faster and more cost effective services and products. Hence the need for proactive complex distributed systems. Modelling Self-managing Multi Agent Systems (MSMAS) is a software development methodology that facilitates the design and development of complex distributed systems based on the multi agent systems paradigm. In this paper, we propose a model for product configuration systems using the MSMAS methodology. We utilise MSMAS system norms to model a novel negotiation protocol, and model the life cycle of these norms as non-atomic activities. We also formally express them as Event Calculus (EC) theories. In addition, we formally describe how to find both partial and complete solutions for the product configuration problem, and how conflict can be resolved.