Abstract
In this paper, we present an automated multi-agent multi-issue negotiation solution to solve a resource allocation problem. We use a multilateral negotiation model, by which three agents bid sequentially in consecutive rounds till some deadline. Two issues are bundled and negotiated concurrently, so win-win opportunities can be generated as trade-offs exist between issues. We develop negotiation strategies of the agents under an incomplete information setting. The strategies are composed of a Pareto-optimal-search method and concession strategies. An important technical contribution of this paper lies in the development of the Pareto-optimal-search method for three-agent multilateral negotiation. Moreover, we present the identification of agreements and Pareto-optimal outcomes achieved by our methods in mathematical proof. We show through computer experiments that using the tractable heuristic of Pareto-optimal-search combined with well-designed concession strategies by agents results in (near) Pareto-optimal outcomes.
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Wu, M., de Weerdt, M., La Poutré, H. (2009). Efficient Methods for Multi-agent Multi-issue Negotiation: Allocating Resources. In: Yang, JJ., Yokoo, M., Ito, T., Jin, Z., Scerri, P. (eds) Principles of Practice in Multi-Agent Systems. PRIMA 2009. Lecture Notes in Computer Science(), vol 5925. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-11161-7_7
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-11161-7_7
Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg
Print ISBN: 978-3-642-11160-0
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