A Scenario-Based Service-Oriented Rapid Multi-Agent Distributed Modeling and Simulation Framework for SoS/SOA and Its Applications

The paper presents a scenario-driven multi-agent framework for rapid simulation generation and verification. Specifically, this framework has the following features: 1. Formal scenario model: This framework uses a formalized scenario model, and in this model each scenario is specified according to the ACDATE (Actors, Conditions, Data, Actions, Timing, and Events) model. Once a scenario is specified using this model, it can be analyzed by various static analyses including completeness and consistency analysis. 2. Automatic code generation: Once system scenarios are specified, the framework can generate its corresponding code. The code can then be used for simulation or implementation. 3. Hierarchical model: This framework can model complex systems by providing a hierarchical modeling scenario model. 4. Multi-agent simulation: This framework can simulate autonomous agents, and each agent behavior is specified using the hierarchical scenario model. 5. Formal policy specification and verification: This framework also supports formal policy specification, and once policies are specified, they can be enforced during simulation to perform dynamic verification. The policy speciation language is also based on the scenario model. 6. Distributed service-oriented simulation: The simulation is performed by distributed agents implemented as web services running on a network. 7. Verification and Validation: This framework has a variety of verification and validation techniques such as Verification Patterns (VPs) and completeness and consistency checking (C&C). The VPs allow test scripts to be generated rapidly from the scenario specification with automated pattern recognition. An early version of this framework has been developed and used to simulate a large real-time distributed C2 (Command and Control) application and discovered numerous faults in the specification. 1 This research is partially supported by NSF and USF/NISTP

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