Publication - Asynchronous Partial Overlay: A New Algorithm for Solving Distributed Constraint Satisfaction Problems

Authors: Mailler, Roger; Lesser, Victor
Title: Asynchronous Partial Overlay: A New Algorithm for Solving Distributed Constraint Satisfaction Problems
Abstract: Distributed Constraint Satisfaction (DCSP) has long been considered an important problem in multi-agent systems research. This is because many real-world problems can be represented as constraint satisfaction and these problems often present themselves in a distributed form. In this article, we present a new complete, distributed algorithm called asynchronous partial overlay (APO) for solving DCSPs that is based on a cooperative mediation process. The primary ideas behind this algorithm are that agents, when acting as a mediator, centralize small, relevant portions of the DCSP, that these centralized subproblems overlap, and that agents increase the size of their subproblems along critical paths within the DCSP as the problem solving unfolds. We present empirical evidence that shows that APO outperforms other known, complete DCSP techniques.
Publication: Journal of Artificial Intelligence Research, Vol: 25, pp. 529 - 576
Publisher: AI Access Foundation
Date: April 2006
Sources: PDF: /Documents/mailler_JAIR06.pdf
Reference: Mailler, Roger; Lesser, Victor. Asynchronous Partial Overlay: A New Algorithm for Solving Distributed Constraint Satisfaction Problems. Journal of Artificial Intelligence Research, Volume 25, AI Access Foundation, pp. 529-576. April 2006.
bibtex: 
@article{Mailler-397,
  author    = "Roger Mailler and Victor Lesser",
  title     = "{Asynchronous Partial Overlay: A New Algorithm for
               Solving Distributed Constraint Satisfaction
               Problems}",
  journal   = "Journal of Artificial Intelligence Research",
  volume    = "25",
  publisher = "AI Access Foundation",
  pages     = "529-576",
  month     = "April",
  year      = "2006",
  url       = "http://mas.cs.umass.edu/paper/397",
}