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Unit 2 Ai

In Artificial Intelligence, an agent perceives its environment through sensors and acts via actuators, with characteristics such as perception, action, and autonomy. Various types of agents exist, including simple reflex, model-based, goal-based, and utility-based agents, each suited for different environmental conditions. Problem-solving agents systematically analyze scenarios through goal formulation, problem formulation, search, and execution, utilizing search algorithms to find optimal solutions.

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15 views3 pages

Unit 2 Ai

In Artificial Intelligence, an agent perceives its environment through sensors and acts via actuators, with characteristics such as perception, action, and autonomy. Various types of agents exist, including simple reflex, model-based, goal-based, and utility-based agents, each suited for different environmental conditions. Problem-solving agents systematically analyze scenarios through goal formulation, problem formulation, search, and execution, utilizing search algorithms to find optimal solutions.

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Chapter: Intelligent Agents and Problem Solving

Agents and Environment

In the field of Artificial Intelligence (AI), an agent is an entity that perceives its environment
through sensors and acts upon that environment through actuators. The environment in which
an agent operates provides the context for its actions, influencing the agent’s design and
behavior.

Characteristics of Agents

1. Perception: The agent gathers information from its environment using sensors.
2. Action: The agent influences the environment through its actuators.
3. Autonomy: The agent operates independently, making decisions based on its
perception and goals.

Types of Agents

1. Simple Reflex Agents: Respond to current perceptions without considering history.


2. Model-Based Agents: Maintain an internal model of the world to handle partially
observable environments.
3. Goal-Based Agents: Act to achieve specific goals by considering future outcomes.
4. Utility-Based Agents: Optimize actions to maximize a utility function, which
measures performance.

Nature of Environment and Agents

The environment where agents operate can vary widely and impacts the agent's design.

Environment Types

1. Fully Observable vs. Partially Observable: Determines if the agent has complete
access to the environment’s state.
2. Deterministic vs. Stochastic: Determines if actions lead to predictable outcomes.
3. Episodic vs. Sequential: Defines if actions are independent or interdependent over
time.
4. Static vs. Dynamic: Identifies if the environment changes while the agent is
deliberating.
5. Discrete vs. Continuous: Specifies if the environment’s states and actions are distinct
or continuous.

Problem-Solving Agents

A problem-solving agent is a type of AI that decides what actions to take by systematically


analyzing possible scenarios and outcomes.

Steps in Problem Solving

1. Goal Formulation: Define the desired outcome.


2. Problem Formulation: Define the problem as states, actions, and goals.
3. Search: Explore possible action sequences to find a path to the goal.
4. Execution: Perform the actions to achieve the goal.

Search Problems and Solutions

Search problems are central to problem-solving agents. They involve finding a sequence of
actions that leads to a goal state.

Components of a Search Problem

1. Initial State: The starting point of the agent.


2. Actions: A set of operations available to the agent.
3. Transition Model: Defines the result of performing an action.
4. Goal State: The desired outcome.
5. Path Cost: Measures the total cost of a sequence of actions.

Formulating Problems

Problem formulation involves abstracting the real-world scenario into a representation


suitable for computational analysis.

Key Considerations

1. Abstraction Level: Simplify details while retaining essential features.


2. State Space: Define all possible states the agent can be in.
3. Search Space: Define all paths the agent can take.

Example Problems

1. Pathfinding: Finding the shortest route on a map.


2. Puzzle Solving: Solving games like the 8-puzzle or Sudoku.
3. Resource Allocation: Distributing limited resources efficiently.

Search Algorithms

Search algorithms are used to explore possible solutions systematically.

Uninformed Search Strategies

1. Breadth-First Search (BFS): Explores all nodes at the current depth before going
deeper.
2. Depth-First Search (DFS): Explores as far as possible along each branch before
backtracking.
3. Uniform-Cost Search: Expands the node with the lowest path cost first.

Informed Search Strategies

1. Greedy Best-First Search: Uses a heuristic to estimate the distance to the goal.
2. A* Search:** Combines the actual cost to a node with the estimated cost to the goal.

Conclusion

Understanding intelligent agents and their problem-solving capabilities forms the foundation
of Artificial Intelligence. By exploring the interaction between agents and their environments,
formulating problems, and employing search algorithms, we can design systems capable of
solving complex, real-world challenges effectively.

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