Agent-Oriented Software Engineering: The State of the Art

Michael J. Wooldridge, Paolo Ciancarini

Abstract: Software engineers continually strive to develop tools and techniques to manage the complexity that is inherent in software systems. In this article, we argue that intelligent agents and multi-agent systems are just such tools. We begin by reviewing what is meant by the term “agent”, and contrast agents with objects.We then go on to examine a number of prototype techniques proposed for engineering agent systems, including methodologies for agent-oriented analysis and design, formal specification and verification methods for agent systems, and techniques for implementing agent specifications.