Utility-Function-Based Self-Adaptation in Elevator Group Control System

Utility functions provide a natural and advantageous way for achieving self-adaptation in distributed systems. We implemented in a realistic prototype elevator group control system(EGCS), that demonstrates how utility functions can continually optimize the use of elevators in a dynamic environment. A global manager allocates elevators among the whole system based on throughput obtained from the monitors of the floors. We present empirical data that demonstrate the effectiveness of our utility function scheme in handling realistic, fluctuating workloads running on a test PC .