Experimental analysis of contract net protocol in multi-robot task allocation

Abstract - This paper focuses on the experimental analysts of Contract NET protocol for Multi-Robot task allocation. The problem domain consists of multiple vacuum cleaning robots that need to cooperate for cleaning an area that is beyond the capabilities of a single robot. A robot simulator has been used to experiment with various area and robot locations, and the summary of the effort required to process the tasks has been recorded. Experimental results show that using Contract NET protocol alone is not sufficient to achieve optimal results in task allocation. A more advanced strategy with or without involving the Contract NET protocol is required. Possible strategies are outlined and their analysis is the subject of the future work.

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