Author:
Hazra Tanmoy,Kumar C.R.S.,Nene Manisha
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to propose a model for a two-agent multi-target-searching scenario in a two-dimensional region, where some places of the region have limited resource capacity in terms of the number of agents that can simultaneously pass through those places and few places of the region are unreachable that expand with time. The proposed cooperative search model and Petri net model facilitate the search operation considering the constraints mentioned in the paper. The Petri net model graphically illustrates different scenarios and helps the agents to validate the strategies.
Design/methodology/approach
In this paper, the authors have applied an optimization approach to determine the optimal locations of base stations, a cooperative search model, inclusion–exclusion principle, Cartesian product to optimize the search operation and a Petri net model to validate the search technique.
Findings
The proposed approach finds the optimal locations of the base stations in the region. The proposed cooperative search model allows various constraints such as resource capacity, time-dependent unreachable places/obstacles, fuel capacities of the agents, two types of targets assigned to two agents and limited sortie lengths. On the other hand, a Petri net model graphically represents whether collisions/deadlocks between the two agents are possible or not for a particular combination of paths as well as effect of time-dependent unreachable places for different combination of paths are also illustrated.
Practical implications
The problem addressed in this paper is similar to various real-time problems such as rescue operations during/after flood, landslide, earthquake, accident, patrolling in urban areas, international borders, forests, etc. Thus, the proposed model can benefit various organizations and departments such as rescue operation authorities, defense organizations, police departments, etc.
Originality/value
To the best of the authors’ knowledge, the problem addressed in this paper has not been completely explored, and the proposed cooperative search model to conduct the search operation considering the above-mentioned constraints is new. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, no paper has modeled time-dependent unreachable places with the help of Petri net.
Reference33 articles.
1. Randomized pursuit-evasion in graphs;29th International Colloquium on Automata, Languages and Programming,2002
2. Pursuit-evasion strategies for teams of multiple agents with incomplete information,2003
3. A new multi-target, multi-agent search-and-rescue path planning approach;International Journal of Computer, Electrical, Automation, Control and Information Engineering,2014
4. Multi-agent probabilistic search in a sequential decision-theoretic framework,2008
5. An efficient algorithm for multi-agent plan coordination;International Joint Conference on Autonomous Agents and MultiAgent Systems,2005