A society of agents in environmental monitoring

The evaluation of pollutant levels is a key aspect on the issu e of keeping a clean environment. Conventional techniques include the utilisation of a fixed setup incorpor ating pollutant sensors. However, these approaches are a very long way from an accurate monitoring. Thus, to impr ove pollutant monitoring on a power plant chimney, the use of robotic agent societies (mobile robots) is suggested. This suggestion is adequate in pollutant monitoring when the environment is hostile and/or the regio n to be sampled has large dimensions. However, the implementation of a system incorporating robo tic agents raises complex technological problems. Before a set of any kind of real robotic agents is implem ented, an accurate evaluation must be performed. What this paper describes is a simulation of an application o f small flying robotic agent societies (helicopter models) monitoring a pollutant cloud. This simulation intends to show that an “intelligent” searc h method works better than a systematic or random procedure. In this kind of environment (dynamic and non-str uctured) and using mobile robotics to meet a goal such as this, a behavioural control architecture seems to me et th performance objectives. The behaviours designed to control the agents are prepared t o implement individual needs (survival and navigation) and social needs (follow or gather group). The a gents as individuals are capable of performing such a mission, however, global results are enhanced by social st rategies. Topic areas: Evaluation of robot/simulation models, Collective and social behavio ur, Autonomous robots. This paper is intended to be a long paper. Supported by JNICT, scholarship no. BM2902 from “Programa d e mobilidade de recursos humanos”.