Distributed Interaction Graph Construction for Dynamic DCOPs in Cooperative Multi-agent Systems

TL;DR

This paper introduces a new distributed algorithm for constructing and maintaining interaction graphs in dynamic multi-agent systems, improving stability and adaptability without prior graph knowledge.

Contribution

It presents a novel distributed interaction graph construction method that does not assume predefined graphs and stabilizes after environmental changes.

Findings

Effectively constructs interaction graphs in dynamic environments

Maintains stable graphs despite environmental disruptions

Enhances existing DCOP algorithms with improved graph management

Abstract

DCOP algorithms usually rely on interaction graphs to operate. In open and dynamic environments, such methods need to address how this interaction graph is generated and maintained among agents. Existing methods require reconstructing the entire graph upon detecting changes in the environment or assuming that new agents know potential neighbors to facilitate connection. We propose a novel distributed interaction graph construction algorithm to address this problem. The proposed method does not assume a predefined constraint graph and stabilizes after disruptive changes in the environment. We evaluate our approach by pairing it with existing DCOP algorithms to solve several generated dynamic problems. The experiment results show that the proposed algorithm effectively constructs and maintains a stable multi-agent interaction graph for open and dynamic environments.