『資訊檢索技術的新驅勢』研討會
智慧型代理人
Intelligent Agents
許永真
臺灣大學資訊工程研究所
October 22, 1998
Jane Hsu
yjhsu@csie.ntu.edu.tw
Outline
 Agents: An Introduction
 Agent-Oriented Software Design
 Prototype Agents
Email Agent
Personal Information Search Agent
AutoPrint Agents
Bibliography Agent
 Concluding Remarks
Jane Hsu
yjhsu@csie.ntu.edu.tw
The Problem
If agents are the solution.....
.....What is the problem?
People are constantly suffering from
 Too much work
 Too much information
 Too little time
 Almost everything you need is there,
but you simply can’t get it (done)!
Jane Hsu
yjhsu@csie.ntu.edu.tw
Using Computers Today
 Sample task:
Print out the paper attached in a mail
received today.
 Metaphor: computers as tools
Direct manipulation
Passive
 Bloatware: big, fat software
 Graphical, but non-intelligent interface
 Lack of inter-application communications
Jane Hsu
yjhsu@csie.ntu.edu.tw
An Alternative View
“The situation that a computer user
faces today is completely different.
Suddenly the computer is a window into
a world of information, people, and
software… And this world is vast,
unstructured, and completely dynamic.
It’s no longer the case that a person
can be in control of this world and
master it….”
P. Maes (1997)
Jane Hsu
yjhsu@csie.ntu.edu.tw
Software Agents
 Software that is
proactive
personalized, and
adapted
 Software that can actually
act on behalf of people
take initiative, and
make suggestions
 Metaphor: personal assistant
delegation
indirect management
Jane Hsu
yjhsu@csie.ntu.edu.tw
Essential Features of Agents
 Autonomous
 Personalized (user-centered)
 Task/goal-oriented
 Communicative
 Collaborative
 Reactive to environmental changes
 Evolutionary/adaptive
Jane Hsu
yjhsu@csie.ntu.edu.tw
Software Design as Problem Solving
End
User
Domain
Problem
Software
Designer
Jane Hsu
yjhsu@csie.ntu.edu.tw
Software Design Models
Ad hoc software development
Waterfall approach
Structured programming
Object-oriented programming
Distributed/networked programming
Agent-oriented programming
Jane Hsu
yjhsu@csie.ntu.edu.tw
The Soloist Model
programmer
Computer
Jane Hsu
yjhsu@csie.ntu.edu.tw
paper.tar.gz
Host A
Host B
pdf2ps
uncompress
uncompress
gunzip
latex
gunzip
lpr
IBM laser printer
Host C
dvips
pdf2ps
Host D
The Conductor Model
Computer
Computer
programmer
Computer
Jane Hsu
yjhsu@csie.ntu.edu.tw
The Manager Model
Agent
End
User
Interface
Agent
Agent
Agent
Jane Hsu
yjhsu@csie.ntu.edu.tw
Agent-Oriented Design
 Design a collection of agents
 Interface agents
 Task agents
 Service agents
 An agent communication mechanism
 Communication language
 Communication protocol
 Multi-agent framework
 Plug-and-play architecture
Jane Hsu
yjhsu@csie.ntu.edu.tw
Multi-Agent Architecture
Service
Agent
Client
Interface
Agent
Task
Agent
Task
Agent
Task
Agent
Task
Agent
Service
Agent
Service
Agent
Server
Server
Server
Jane Hsu
yjhsu@csie.ntu.edu.tw
Client-Agent-Server Model
 Clients request for
Information
Goal achievements
 Servers provide
Data
Services/Resources
 Agents
Data --> Information --> Knowledge
Services --> Sequence of actions, i.e. Plans
Jane Hsu
yjhsu@csie.ntu.edu.tw
Agent-based Service Framework
 Share resources across the network
 Avoid unnecessary duplications
 Automate task execution
 Avoid tedious/erroneous manual process
 Personalize services
 Personal/group profile management
Jane Hsu
yjhsu@csie.ntu.edu.tw
Email Agent
Key functionality:
 Classification
 Prioritization
 Require minimal
user feedback
 Update user
preferences
Jane Hsu
yjhsu@csie.ntu.edu.tw
Personal Information Search Agent
Functionality:
 Personalized
query refinement
 Online feedback
Architecture:
 Meta search
 Proxy-based
 Authentication
Jane Hsu
yjhsu@csie.ntu.edu.tw
The Myth about Keywords
 Relevant information can be found
using keyword-based methods. e.g.
Search for relevant documents
Filter undesirable information
Extract useful information
 Are keywords sufficient to satisfy most
of our informational needs?
Jane Hsu
yjhsu@csie.ntu.edu.tw
The Information Food Chain
[Etzioni,1997]
 Agent-based intelligent services
 Softbots: personal assistants for
email
white page
shopping
entertainment recommendation etc.
 Search Engines, Indices & Directories
 Spiders & Software Robots
 World Wide Web
Jane Hsu
yjhsu@csie.ntu.edu.tw
AutoPrint Agents
Functionality:
 script generation
 service allocation
 resource sharing
Features:
 Autonomous
 Fault tolerant
 Flexible
PrintAgent
uncompress
UcpopPlanner
print2hp5
R120 R217
agent:SunOs 4
ntucsv:SunOs 5
Ethernet
Ethernet
ntucsn:SunOS 4
Router
super:SunOs 5
dvi2ps
gunzip
pdf2ps
print2hp5
uncompress
dvi2ps
hp5
sparc
IBM laser printer
IBM laser printer
uncompress
gunzip
Jane Hsu
yjhsu@csie.ntu.edu.tw
Bibliography Agents
BibTeX
Agent
User
Interface
Agent
Web
DBLP
Agent
Library
Agent
URL
Agent
BibDB
Libraries
Search
Agent
Yahoo
Alta Vista
Lycos
Agent Request Broker InfraStructure
Jane Hsu
yjhsu@csie.ntu.edu.tw
Concluding Remarks
 Agents will change the way we
 Design and use software
 Utilize shared computational resources
 Essential features of software agents
 Autonomous
 User/task-oriented
 Distributed/collaborative
 IR techniques help build better agents
 Agent technology can support intelligent
& personalized information retrieval
Jane Hsu
yjhsu@csie.ntu.edu.tw