Multi-agent systems: a Petri net with objects based approach

Most of time, an agent theory is expressed by modal logic which is a good specification tool since it eases the description of intentional agents. However, this formalism cannot be easily refined into implementation even if some counter-examples exist. This work proposes another type of formalism called cooperative objects which are based on Petri nets and objects. We show how it may be used with benefits to model multi-agent systems. More precisely, we argue that the presented formalism can bridge the gap between the world of formal theory and the world of system development. We illustrate our study with the well known prey/predators game.