Distributed constraint satisfaction algorithm for complex local problems

Abstract

A distributed constraint satisfaction problem can formalize various application problems in MAS, and several algorithms for solving this problem have been developed. One limitation of these algorithms is that they assume each agent has only one local variable. Although simple modifications enable these algorithms to handle multiple local variables, obtained algorithms are neither efficient nor scalable to larger problems. We develop a new algorithm that can handle multiple local variables efficiently, which is based on the asynchronous weak-commitment search algorithm. In this algorithm, a bad local solution can be modified without forcing other agents to exhaustively search local problems. Also, the number of interactions among agents can be decreased since agents communicate only when they find local solutions that satisfy all of the local constraints. Experimental evaluations show that this algorithm is far more efficient than an algorithm that uses the prioritization among agents.