This paper introduces Agent Factory, a cohesive framework supporting a structured approach to the development and deployment of agent-oriented applications. We describe Agent Factory together with an accompanying agent development methodology. We detail the key attributes of Agent Factory, namely: visual design, design reuse, behaviour enactment, migration, and ubiquity. Agent Factory functionality is exercised by way of a case study. We offer cross comparison of our system with exemplar agent prototyping environments.

Agent design has to date concerned itself with the issues pertaining to a single body embedded in a single environment, whether virtual or real. This paper discusses the notion of an agent capable of migrating between information spaces (physical worlds, virtual reality, and digital information spaces). An architecture is presented that facilitates agent migration and mutation within such environments. This will in turn support agent evolution the ultimate in agent adaptivity.

Agent Chameleons investigates the motivation, desire and possibility of agent migration and mutation between real and artificial spaces. The agent must be able to mutate and change its form and function depending upon the environment within which it is situated. The form inextricably dictates or constrains its behaviour and capabilities. This paper introduces the Agent Chameleon Architecture which supports agent migration and mutation.

Agent Chameleons provides virtual agents powered by real intelligence, delivering next generation autonomic entities that can seamlessly migrate, mutate and evolve on their journey between and within physical and digital information spaces.

Multi-agent systems are open and extensible systems that allow for the deployment of autonomous and proactive software components. This paper describes how a multi-agent architecture has been developed to extend a previously implemented bus travel assistant prototype called Bus Catcher [2].