jiac.de: Latest News http://jiac.de/ Latest News en jiac.de: Latest News http://jiac.de/fileadmin/jiac-mini-logo.gif http://jiac.de/ 16 16 Latest News TYPO3 - get.content.right http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss Tue, 03 Apr 2012 15:52:00 +0200 ASGARD Release 2.2 http://jiac.de/news/news_details/article/asgard-release-22/ New ASGARD release for monitoring JIAC 5.1.2. RELEASE ASGARD 2.2
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We are happy to announce the release of ASGARD version 2.2. 
ASGARD 2.2 is built for the recent release of JIAC 5.1.2. Most important changes are the extended GUI options for plugins and more ability icons for agents. Furthermore, the JIAC Directory Plugin is now integrated into the release package.
Get the new version from here.
Jakob & Silvan
================== Changes since ASGARD 2.1: New features:
  • Icon for HAI (human agent interface) agents. 
  • Icon for cloud testbed controller agents. 
Fixed Bugs:
  • Automatic camera detachment when entities are removed. 
  • Fixed problem of ctrl key sticking when losing and regaining window focus. 
  • Fixed possible NPE in communication channel management. 
  • Fixed possible NPE when reading directory contents from certain node configurations. 
  • Plugin Tabs get removed when the attached entity disconnects. 
  • Fixed problem of node labels flickering between one and two line version when moving attached camera. 
  • Better management of agent connections to avoid duplicate agent visuals. 
Changes:
  • File chooser dialog for plugins uses current work directory instead of user home. 
  • Added property asgard.suppress.jme.log to disable JME log output when debugging. 
  • Using AWT multiclick property as double click threshold instead of own constant. 
  • Plugins can now have tabs by implementing the TabPaneProvider interface. 
  • Plug-In compatibility is re-checked when Agentbeans of an agent change. 

]]> Tue, 03 Apr 2012 15:52:00 +0200 JIAC 5.1.2 Released http://jiac.de/news/news_details/article/jiac-512-released/ New release available here. As usual, JIAC 5.1.2 is available for maven integration from our dai-open maven repositories. Enjoy working with agents! The JIAC Developer team]]> Mon, 02 Apr 2012 15:10:00 +0200 SeMa² - a Hybrid Semantic Service Matching Approach http://jiac.de/news/news_details/article/sema2-a-hybrid-semantic-service-matching-approach/ Book Chapter Release Announcement The book chapter "SeMa² - a Hybrid Semantic Service Matching Approach" will be released within the book "Semantic Web Services - Advancement through Evaluation" in May 2012 by Springer (http://www.springer.com/978-3-642-28734-3). The chapter presents SeMa², a service matching component that is able to compare and rank OWL-S service descriptions to a variety of attributes, such as input/output parameters, preconditions and effects. Authors: Nils Masuch, Benjamin Hirsch, Michael Burkhardt, Axel Heßler and Sahin Albayrak  Abstract: The SeMa² software module is a hybrid semantic service matchmaker based on OWL-S service descriptions and SWRL rules that participated in the S3 Contests 2008 to 2010. It provides syntactical as well as semantical matching techniques. Besides classifying input and output parameters it offers an approach to precondition and effect rule matching and reasoning. In this chapter we describe the architecture and the workflow of our approach and the results that have been evaluated during the last S3 Contest and with experimental test runs. Finally, we discuss the benefits and drawbacks of our implementation and propose future steps on our work.]]> Sat, 18 Feb 2012 13:08:00 +0100 Distributed Optimization of Energy Costs in Manufacturing using Multi-Agent System Technology http://jiac.de/news/news_details/article/distributed-optimization-of-energy-costs-in-manufacturing-using-multi-agent-system-technology-1/ Upcoming Talk - 2nd Intl. Conference on Smart Grids, Green Communications and IT Energy-aware... Late this march we will present our paper "Distributed Optimization of Energy Costs in Manufacturing using Multi-Agent System Technology" at the Second International Conference on Smart Grids, Green Communications and IT Energy-aware Technologies (Energy 2012). The Energy 2012 belongs to InfoSys 2012, a joint conference, consisting of ICNS, INTENSIVE, ICAS, LMPCNA. The conference is being held between the 25.03. and the 30.03. in St. Maarten. In our presentation we will present our so far experiences in using the JIAC V framework to solve problems from the energy domain.   Paper Authors: Tobias Küster, Marco Lützenberger, Daniel Freund, and Sahin Albayrak  Abstract: While widely endorsed, the increased provision of electricity from renewable sources comes with the concern that energy supply will not be as reliable in the future as it is today, due to variations in the availability of wind and solar power. However, fluctuations in energy supply also give rise to volatility of the price for short-term energy procurement, and therefore bear the opportunity to save costs through shifting energy consumption to periods of low market prices. In a previous work, we presented an evolution-strategy-based optimization of production schedules with respect to day-ahead energy price predictions, yielding good results, but ­ being a stochastic optimization ­ not always arriving at the best solution. In this paper, we extend our framework by agent-based mechanisms for distribution and parallelization of the optimization, to increase scalability and reliability of the approach.]]> Wed, 18 Jan 2012 15:23:00 +0100 Strategic Behavior in a Living Environment http://jiac.de/news/news_details/article/strategic-behavior-in-a-living-environment/ Best Paper Nomination - Winter Simulation Conference (WSC) The Paper "Strategic Behavior in a Living Environment" was selected for the Winter Simulation Conference (WSC) "Best Applied Paper Award". Featuring around 1000 Attendees, the WSC constitutes one of the largest Simulation Conferences there is. Out of over 300 submitted papers, only 22 were nominated for best paper awards. In our paper we propose a novel approach to model human driving decisions. Authors: Marco Lützenberger, Sebastian Ahrndt, Benjamin Hirsch, Nils Masuch, Axel Heßler, and Sahin Albayrak Abstract: When it comes to road traffic, there seems to be no parameter more essential than the driver himself. His internal preferences, his attitude and his perception determine the traffic situation in a crucial way. Yet, as a matter of fact, only a small number of existing traffic simulation frameworks provide a model for the driver¹s behavior. These existing models usually focus on tactical aspects, and neglect decisions with a strategic touch. Recently, we have introduced a driver model which is able to incorporate strategic decisions. While this model already takes infrastructural installations into account, we refine our so far presented work in this paper and extend it to account for additional criteria, the so called Regional Conditions.]]> Wed, 18 Jan 2012 15:19:00 +0100 Integrating Process Modelling Into Multi-Agent System Engineering http://jiac.de/news/news_details/article/integrating-process-modelling-into-multi-agent-system-engineering/ Article released - MAGS Journal The Article "Integrating Process Modelling Into Multi-Agent System Engineering" was released in the latest issue of Multiagent and Grid Systems (MAGS). The MAGS Journal aims to provide a timely and leading forum for researchers and practitioners in the thematic areas of Multiagent Systems, Cloud Computing, Service-Oriented Computing, Pervasive Systems and their intersections. It publishes peer-refereed research and application papers of high technical quality and scientific Standard. Authors: Tobias Küster, Marco Lützenberger, Axel Heßler, Benjamin Hirsch Abstract: While today's agent oriented software engineering facilitates the development of complex, distributed systems, fundamental problems remain. One of the problems is that the developer sees only part of the system, or one side of the business, but not the whole context. The Business Process Modeling Notation (BPMN) is considered a remedy here, but while suitable for modelling some aspects of agenthood, there are others for which BPMN does not go very well. While well-suited for modelling behaviours and especially interactions at a high level of abstraction, BPMN is too cumbersome for modelling every detail of a process and too rigid for modelling dynamic behaviours. Therefore, BPMN has to be embedded into the agent engineering process such that its strengths can be exploited while avoiding its weaknesses. In this paper, BPMN is used mainly for modelling the agents' high-level behaviour and communication, leaving other aspects to established agent programming techniques. The approach is applied for the JIAC multi-agent framework, for which a respective mapping of concepts is given. Finally, the prospects of such an approach are discussed, especially regarding the usage of BPMN for modelling dynamic aspects in agent systems. [Download from IOS Press]]]> Wed, 18 Jan 2012 15:15:00 +0100 W2V2G Algorithms for sustainable EV Energy Management Systems http://jiac.de/news/news_details/article/w2v2g-algorithms-for-sustainable-ev-energy-management-systems/ Paper accepted - IEEE International Electric Vehicle Conference The paper "W2V2G Algorithms for sustainable EV Energy Management Systems" has been accepted for presentation at the first IEEE International Electric Vehicle Conferencer (http://electricvehicle.ieee.org/). The first IEEE International Electric Vehicle Conference (IEVC) will facilitate the exchange of information on new global trends in technology, engineering, standards and deployment aspects among academic and industrial thought leaders of the fast-growing electric mobility ecosystem via a unique cross-organizational platform. The paper discusses the appliance of JIAC V software agents within the domain of electric vehicles. Authors: Nils Masuch, Jan Keiser, Marco Lützenberger, Sahin Albayrak Abstract: The paper is currently under revision. An abstract will be provided shortly.]]> Mon, 16 Jan 2012 13:41:00 +0100 An Agent-based Augmented Reality Demonstrator in the Domestic Energy Domain http://jiac.de/news/news_details/article/an-agent-based-augmented-reality-demonstrator-in-the-domestic-energy-domain/ Paper Accepted ­- PAAMS 2012 The demonstration paper "An Agent-based Augmented Reality Demonstrator in the Domestic Energy Domain" has been accepted for presentation at the 10th International Conference on Practical Applications of Agents and Multi-Agent Systems (PAAMS) (http://www.paams.net/). PAAMS provides an international forum to present and discuss the latest scientific developments and their effective applications, to assess the impact of the approach, and to facilitate technology transfer. The demonstration paper describes how the JIAC V framework can be used for a comfortable and accelerated development of user interfaces for software agents.  Authors: Sebastian Ahrndt, Johannes Fähndrich, Marco Luetzenberger, Andreas Rieger, and Sahin Albayrak Abstract: In this work we propose an approach for comfortable and accelerated development of user interfaces for software agents. We apply model-based techniques and emphasise the capability of this technique by describing two user interfaces which are different in nature, but have been developed with the same model. We present the applicability of both user interfaces by means of an agent-based application in the domestic energy domain. As opposed to similar approaches we retain all degrees of freedom for the applied multi-agent framework.]]> Thu, 12 Jan 2012 16:21:00 +0100 Applying Model-based Techniques to the Development of UIs for Agent Systems http://jiac.de/news/news_details/article/applying-model-based-techniques-to-the-development-of-uis-for-agent-systems/ Paper Accepted - AAAL 2012 The paper "Applying Model-based Techniques to the Development of UIs for Agent Systems" has been accepted for oral presentation at the PAAMS Workshop on Agents for Ambient Assisted Living (http://www.paams.net/AAAL12/) (AAAL). AAAL aims at bringing together leading researchers from both academia and industry to present and discuss applications of agent-based systems for Ambient Assisted Living (AAL). The paper discusses agent technology as a way to to facilitate and accelerate model based user interface development (MBUID). Authors: Sebastian Ahrndt, Dirk Roscher, Marco Luetzenberger, Andreas Rieger, and Sahin Albayrak Abstract: To counter difficulties of user interface (UI) development, model based techniques became firmly established over the last years. The basic idea of model based user interface development (MBUID) is to formally specify a UIs appearance and behaviour by means of several models. Especially for distributed multi-agent systems, the appliance of MBUID can be most promising. Agent applications involve many different execution platforms and heterogeneous devices and perfectly fit for Ambient Assisted Living landscapes due to their innate characteristics of distribution and autonomy. When it comes to agent systems, one always has to consider the fact that humans have to communicate with agents in the end. It is our opinion that most approaches neglect this fact and thus cut the dynamics and the capabilities of distributed multi-agent systems. Hence in this work, we present an approach for the development of UIs for software agents which applies model based techniques and also retains all degrees of freedom for the underlying multi-agent system.]]> Thu, 12 Jan 2012 16:14:00 +0100 Distributed Optimization of Energy Costs in Manufacturing using Multi-Agent System Technology http://jiac.de/news/news_details/article/distributed-optimization-of-energy-costs-in-manufacturing-using-multi-agent-system-technology/ Paper Accepted ­at Energy 2012 The paper "Distributed Optimization of Energy Costs in Manufacturing using Multi-Agent System Technology" has been accepted for oral presentation at the 2nd International Conference on Smart Grids, Green Communications and IT Energy-aware Technologies (http://www.iaria.org/conferences2012/ENERGY12.html). The paper describes how JIAC V can be used for distributed problem solving in the energy domain.  Authors: Tobias Küster, Marco Lützenberger, Daniel Freund, and Sahin Albayrak Abstract: While widely endorsed, the increased provision of electricity from renewable sources comes with the concern that energy supply will not be as reliable in the future as it is today, due to variations in the availability of wind and solar power. However, fluctuations in energy supply also give rise to volatility of the price for short-term energy procurement, and therefore bear the opportunity to save costs through shifting energy consumption to periods of low market prices. In a previous work, we presented an evolution-strategy-based optimization of production schedules with respect to day-ahead energy price predictions, yielding good results, but ­ being a stochastic optimization ­ not always arriving at the best solution. In this paper, we extend our framework by agent-based mechanisms for distribution and parallelization of the optimization, to increase scalability and reliability of the approach.]]> Thu, 12 Jan 2012 16:05:00 +0100