* * * R E M I N D E R * * *




		      UNIVERSITY OF HERTFORDSHIRE
		 COMPUTER SCIENCE RESEARCH COLLOQUIUM

			      presents

	 "Pattern Formation in Homogeneous and Heterogeneous Swarms:
	    Differences Between Versatile and Specialized Agents"


			      Sven Magg
		      (School of Computer Science,
		      University of Hertfordshire)


			7 February 2007 (Wednesday)

			  Lecture Theatre E350
		       Hatfield, College Lane Campus
			       3 - 4 pm

	       Coffee/tea and biscuits will be available.
			  [Catering Permitting]

		    Everyone is Welcome to Attend
			  [Space Permitting]



Abstract:

In collective robotics, researchers are successfully using models derived
from swarm insect behavior to solve problems like coordination or task
allocation. It is often assumed that in a homogeneous group of
agents, every agent has to become more complicated when the complexity of
the task increases, which decreases simplicity of design and robustness.
Role diversification and therefore task specialization within a group may
help counter the need for more complex agents.	Because experiments on
self-organization and dynamic task allocation in robot populations have
focused mainly on homogeneous groups so far, the relation between these
models and pre-specified role diversification remains mainly unknown.
In this work the interchangeability of homogeneous and heterogeneous
agent populations is investigated. It is shown that in a simple
simulated environment, a mixed population of specialized agents can not
be easily substituted for by a homogeneous group of multi-tasking agents.
Results lead to the conclusion that the ability of dynamic task switching,
i.e. adaptive task allocation in respect to changes in the environment,
has strong effects on the behavior on a population level.  In this talk
I will present two sets of experiments on heterogeneous robot populations
which led to these results.

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Hertfordshire Computer Science Research Colloquium
http://homepages.feis.herts.ac.uk/~nehaniv/colloq