JAVA-Based Agent Platform Evaluation

(资源为论文)The paper presents a comparison of available JAVA-based agent development tools (platforms) with respect to the specific requirements of agent-based manufacturing control solutions. We discuss the use of agents, as high-level decision-making entities, in combination with the low-level real-time control based on IEC 1131-3 or IEC 61499 standards. The need to run agents, written in JAVA language, as well as the agent platform runtime environment inside existing PLC-based automation controllers is stressed. From this viewpoint, we identify particular attributes which the agent platform should fulfill, like FIPA interoperability, small memory footprint, cost, and security. For selected agent platforms – JADE, FIPA-OS, ZEUS and JACK – we present the results of benchmarking aimed at the speed of the message sending among agents, which might be a crucial property in real-time applications.