Intelligent Systems Laboratory

Intelligent Systems Laboratory (ISL)

ISL researchers have continuously demonstrated their high standard research outcomes in recent publications. This year we have five papers accepted by the prestigous AI conferences IJCAI 2011 (2 papers) and AAAI 2011 (3 papers).

Congratulations to Dengji Zhao, Heng Zhang, Yi Zhou, Maonian, Dongmo Zhang and Yan Zhang.

Current research projects include:

Arc Discovery Projects

Model Update with Localization, Constraints and Abstraction
Key people: Prof Yan Zhang
ARC Discovery Project

Summary: With a significant increase in the complexity of various hardware and software systems, computer aided system modification - an important extension of existing computer aided system verification - has become crucial to ensure the correctness in complex system development. This project exploits theoretical foundations and implementations of computer aided system modification based on the innovative concept of model update with an integration of model localization, domain constraints and abstraction. The outcome of this project will provide a new methodology and technology for advanced computer aided system modification, which will significantly enhance the correctness and effectiveness of complex hardware and software development.

The goals of this project are:

• To develop a general framework for local model update that can perform automated modifications on a local (partial) system model.
• To integrate the proposed update framework with domain dependent constraint automata and counterexample-guided local model abstraction refinement.
• To analyze the computational complexity of the proposed local model update with constraints and abstraction and to design efficient optimization.
• To implement a model update system prototype and evaluate its performance through extensive case studies.

Logical Foundation and Implementation Technology for Automated Negotiation
Key people: Dr Dongmo Zhang, Prof Yan Zhang
ARC Discovery Project

Summary: Electronic trading systems implicitly rely on multilateral, multi-issue negotiation models. The existing systems, underpinned by classical game theory, are mostly single-issue, numerically based. Qualitative judgments and logical reasoning are missing. We propose to remedy these glaring deficiencies by providing a theory of bargaining with unified tools of qualitative and quantitative analysis, and use it to enhance the power and intelligibility of current systems. An extended Game Description Language, a mediation-based negotiation system and an e-trading system for testing bargaining strategies will be implemented. As a bonus, a novel branch of bargaining theory to complement traditional game-theoretic bargaining will emerge.

The goals of this project are:

• To propose an axiomatic model and strategic model.
• To extend the Game Description Language (GDL) to specify bargaining games.
• To develop a mediation-based negotiation system.
• To address the issue of strategic trading agent design.
• To implement TAC e-marketplace and trading agents.

Arc Linkage Projects 

Developing Sophisticated e-Business Automation
Key people: Prof Yan Zhang and Dr Dongmo Zhang
ARC Linkage Project

Summary: A significant increase in internet based commercial applications, e-business automation has led to a rapidly expanding area in Computing and IT applications. This project aims to develop new methodologies and technologies for e-business automation. Outcomes of the project include an expressive formal language for complex market environment specifications, a framework for market mechanism verification, an e-marketplace system prototype and an automatic trading system for a specific commercial application. These outcomes will overcome the major obstacles in existing approaches for e-business automation and merge the frontier technologies from answer set programming, automated negotiation, and intelligent agent.

The goals of this project are:

• To develop an expressive formal language for market mechanism specification;
• To develop a framework for market mechanism verification.
• To develop efficient algorithms for supporting complex market specification and negotiation.
• To develop a prototype of e-marketplace platform for creating markets with user specified market mechanisms.
• To test the prototype by building an automated trading system for a specific commercial application.