Carles Sierra

Artificial Intelligence Research Institute-CSICCampus UAB(http://www.iiia.csic.es)

www.agreement-technologies.org

Mission

• Mission– To carry out very high quality research in AI keeping a

good balance between basic research and applications, and paying particular attention to training PhD students and to technology transfer.

Research Strategy

• Focus the efforts on subdomains of AI (avoid dispersion)• Favour projects that involve synergistic collaboration among the 3 IIIA

departments and with external groups• Establish strong links with other leading national and foreign groups• Favour projects that involve challenging application domains (medicine,

tourism, music, e-commerce, etc.)• Pay special attention to technology transfer opportunities including

promoting spin-off companies• Favour participation in PhD programmes of local universities

Personnel (as of February 2008)

• Permanent full-time scientists 18• “Ramon y Cajal” contract scientists 3• “Juan de la Cierva” contract scientists 1• Postdocs 1• PhD students 23• Contract R+D engineers (UDT) 4• Administrative staff 5• Technical staff 2

TOTAL 57

# Competitive Research Projects (since 2000)• European Projects: 8 (total) 2 (ongoing)• National Plan (Spain): 21 (total) 7 (ongoing)• CENIT 1 (ongoing)• CONSOLIDER 2 (ongoing) • Regional (Catalan Govt.) 1 (ongoing)• Australian Research Agency: 1 (ongoing)

• Nets of Excellence: 3 (finished) • EUREKA/PROFIT: 1 (finished)• Spain-USA Fulbright programme: 1 (finished)• USA National Bureau of Census: 2 (finished)• UNESCO Intergov. CS Programme: 1 (finished)

A total of 42 (16 international) projects amounting to more than 9 milion €

Technology Transfer and Industrial Contracts (since 2000)

• AI & Music– ROLAND Electronics

• CBR Systems– TECNIUM Eng. (design of chemical absorption plants)– VF Corporation (Market demand prediction) (through UDT*)

• E-business (Multi-Agent System)– AUTEC (Girona), several fish exchange-markets (through UDT*)

• Others (European Projects-related transfer):

– PHILIPS, COGNITECH (Paris), CRI (Copenhaguen), STARLAB (Brussels),

– MAZARS Consulting, OMT (through UDT*)

Technology Transfer and Industrial Contracts (other)

• “spin offs” – ISOCO (QUOTES Decision Support System for e-

procurement)• Aceralia, Gas Natural, Gallina Blanca, Sharp Codorniu,

Leche Pascual, Sumasa (La Caixa), Danone, Damm, Pastas Gallo

• 2005 National Computer Science Prize for innovation

– MusicStrands Inc. (music recommender, music discoverer)

• Unidad de Desarrollo Tecnológico (UDT) – (with partial support of the IT Network of the Generalitat de

Catalunya)

Departments at the IIIA

• Three departments:– Logic, Reasoning and Search– Learning Systems & Case-Based Reasoning– Multi-Agent Systems

Current LRS Research Lines

• Logic, Reasoning and Search

•Fuzzy logic, approximate reasoning and soft computing: logical foundations and applications to: rule-based reasoning, case-based reasoning, autonomous agents, privacy in SDB.

•Automated deduction: algorithmic issues andapplications to reasoning models

•Constraint satisfaction and search: algorithmic issues and applications to: planning, job-shop scheduling.

Current Research Lines at the IIIA• Logic, Reasoning and Search

• Case-Based Reasoning & Learning

•Integrating knowledge modelling, case-based reasoning and inductive methods

(development of Noos representation language)•Inductive Learning•Learning in Multiagent Systems•Learning Graphical Models

(TAN models)•Distributed CBR•Explanations in CBR•Applications to: intrusion detection, e-commerce, medicine,

toxicology prediction, music, robotics, data mining for sales forecast.

InexpressiveInput phrase

Generating Expressive Music (SaxEx Project)

SaxEx

Affective value

Happy

Sad

All of me

Current MAS Research Lines

• Logic, Reasoning and Search

• Learning Systems & CBR

• Multi-Agent Systems

Electronic InstitutionsAuctionsNegotiation/ArgumentationTrustContext Aware Personal AgentsRecommender systems

Applications to: E-Commerce:Fish auctions (MASFIT project)

e-procurement (in coll. with iSOCO) Autonomous Robots Navigation Music recommendation (in coll. with MyStrands)

• Logic, Reasoning and Search

• Learning Systems & CBR

• Autonomous Robots

Research Lines at the IIIA

Landmark-based navigation andmapping for Autonomous Robotsin non-structured environments (CBRand MAS techniques).Applications to exploration

(In collaboration with IRII)

3X

CBR applied to Robocup

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E-markets (MASFIT project)

E-markets (MASFIT project)

Wrap-up

– Premier AI group in Spain with high world-wide recognition• We have published several highly cited papers (over 1400 citations in the last 5

years)• We have been awarded a total of 12 international awards (Best Papers, software

competitions), 7 of them during the last 5 years• Several IIIA scientists are in editorial boards of more than 20 international journals• Several IIIA scientists have been (or are) General Chair or Conference Chair or PC

Chair of the top AI Conferences (IJCAI, ECAI, AAMAS, ECML, UAI, ICCBR, CP, FUZZY-IEEE, ECSQUARU, etc.)

• Several IIIA scientists have been or are members of leading collegiate bodies (IJCAI Boad of Trustees, ECCAI Board, IFMAS, AA, EUMAS, EUSFLAT)

• 4 out of the 6 Spanish ECCAI Fellows are from the IIIA

– High scientific production• We produce approx. the 25% of the Spanish AI publications in top journals and

conferences (we are approx the 7% of the total Spanish manpower in AI)

Additional information in:

http://www.iiia.csic.es

UDT – Projects•iForecast. Sales forecasting. Sales analysis.

•MASFIT. Fish Market with computer agents

•(demo)

•WIM. Web Information Mediator

•TMS. Touring Management System

•MusicStrands. Recommendation system (demo)

•WEBi2 (EIDE). Engineering Intelligent Distributed applications (demo)

•ENP. Electronic Negotiation Platform (e-auctions)

•e-CAS. Combinatorial Auction Solver

•e-CATS. Combinatorial Auction with Transformation Solver (demo)

IIIA

Budget (in K €)

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Ordinary BudgetInvestmentsSalariesProj + cont.TOTAL

Total Budget (2000-2004): 8.27 Milion € (approx $10 M) Total external funding: 3.02 Milion € (approx $3.6 M)Total Salaries: 4.01 Milion € (approx $4.8 M)Total ordinary budget: 0.57 Milion € (approx $0.7 M)Total investments 0.67 Milion € (approx $0.8 M)

Publications

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Journal pub.booksconferencesPhD ThesesTOTAL

-Total (1985-1999) = 539-Total (2000-2004) = 389 (151 in journals)-Average (2000-2004) = 2.59 publications/person x year-7 Awards at international conferences (best papers, software competitions)

Technology Transfer and Industrial Contracts (I)

• MILORD (Expert Systems Shell for diagnosis & classification):– Fuzzy Logik Systeme GmbH (Germany)– DIGITAL EUROPE (France)– SIEMENS (Germany)– Wastewater treatement plant of Manresa (Spain)– IFR S.A. (Spain) (Farm management)– Medical applications based on MILORD

• PNEUMON-IA (Pneumonia diagnosis Expert System):– Hospital “La Alianza Mataronina” (Spain) and Hospital of Vroclaw (Poland).

• RENOIR (Reumathology diagnosis expert system):– General Hospital of Castellón (Spain)

• Improvement of Decision Tree Learning algorithms:– ISOFT (France), INGENIA (France)