An Algorithm for Simultaneous Coalition Structure Generation and Task Assignment
2017 (English)In: PRIMA 2017: Principles and Practice of Multi-Agent Systems 20th International Conference, Nice, France, October 30 – November 3, 2017, Proceedings / [ed] Bo An, Ana Bazzan, João Leite, Serena Villata and Leendert van der Torre, Cham: Springer, 2017, Vol. 10621, p. 514-522Conference paper, Published paper (Refereed)
Abstract [en]
Groups of agents in multi-agent systems may have to cooperate to solve tasks efficiently, and coordinating such groups is an important problem in the field of artificial intelligence. In this paper, we consider the problem of forming disjoint coalitions and assigning them to independent tasks simultaneously, and present an anytime algorithm that efficiently solves the simultaneous coalition structure generation and task assignment problem. This NP-complete combinatorial optimization problem has many real-world applications, including forming cross-functional teams aimed at solving tasks. To evaluate the algorithm's performance, we extend established methods for synthetic problem set generation, and benchmark the algorithm using randomized data sets of varying distribution and complexity. Our results show that the presented algorithm efficiently finds optimal solutions, and generates high quality solutions when interrupted prior to finishing an exhaustive search. Additionally, we apply the algorithm to solve the problem of assigning agents to regions in a commercial computer-based strategy game, and empirically show that our algorithm can significantly improve the coordination and computational efficiency of agents in a real-time multi-agent system.
Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Cham: Springer, 2017. Vol. 10621, p. 514-522
Series
Lecture Notes in Computer Science, ISSN 0302-9743, E-ISSN 1611-3349 ; 10621
Keywords [en]
coalition formation, task allocation, multi-agent system, artificial intelligence, optimal assignment
National Category
Computer Sciences
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:liu:diva-141867DOI: 10.1007/978-3-319-69131-2_34ISBN: 9783319691305 (print)ISBN: 9783319691312 (electronic)OAI: oai:DiVA.org:liu-141867DiVA, id: diva2:1148303
Conference
PRIMA International Conference on Principles and Practice of Multi-Agent Systems, Nice, France, 30 October - 3 November, 2017
2017-10-102017-10-102021-04-19Bibliographically approved