On the Design of Agent-Based Systems using UML and Extensions

TL;DR

This paper proposes an extended UML-based methodology for designing agent-based systems, integrating UML stereotypes to model agents within the standard software development process, demonstrated through a case study.

Contribution

It introduces a novel approach to model agent-based systems using UML extensions within the USDP framework, enabling practical application with existing CASE tools.

Findings

Extended UML can effectively model agent-based systems.

The methodology supports all phases of the software development process.

A case study validates the approach in a real-world scenario.

Abstract

The Unified Software Development Process (USDP) and UML have been now generally accepted as the standard methodology and modeling language for developing Object-Oriented Systems. Although Agent-based Systems introduces new issues, we consider that USDP and UML can be used in an extended manner for modeling Agent-based Systems. The paper presents a methodology for designing agent-based systems and the specific models expressed in an UML-based notation corresponding to each phase of the software development process. UML was extended using the provided mechanism: stereotypes. Therefore, this approach can be managed with any CASE tool supporting UML. A Case Study, the development of a specific agent-based Student Evaluation System (SAS), is presented.