Adaptive Autonomous Agent Models for Open Distributed Systems

Currently, there is a lack of tools to build autonomous software systems in a pervasive and distributed context. In this paper, we present a model and a development tool called Agent^phi for building flexible agent architectures from fine-grained components. Reusable components implement non-functional mechanisms such as communication, mobility or adaptation skills. Each agent can dynamically and autonomously change its components to suit its runtime context, improving safety and performances of applications, particularly in open, pervasive or large-scale distributed applications. We also show how to use our agents to build applications from autonomous and adaptable systems.