Research on multi-agent system based trust model of partner selection of virtual enterprise

Virtual enterprise is the outcome of fierce competition in the world market. The selection of partners is one of the key factors for the success of virtual enterprises. Multi-agent system is an incompact agent federation composed of many agents, with its characteristics identical to virtual enterprises. It is, therefore, reasonable and effective to apply to the selection of enterprises' partner. The issue of trust is a hot topic in multi-agent system. The present trust model cannot well solve the problem of identifying the initial trust value of applicant agents. Moreover, there is room for improvement as to the calculation of agent trust value. This study puts forward a new trust management model based on multi-agent system. In the model, a fuzzy algorithm is used to calculate the initial value of the agent instead of a static definition. In addition, an independent validation module is used to test information reliability. Therefore, the problems of identifying initial trust value can be solved. Through system simulation, it is noted that based on the trust management model the cooperation rate has been enhanced and individual agent's income has risen by a big margin.