Implementing an integrative negotiation mechanism: challenges and results

This article illustrates an experiment in formalization, using programming language, of purchasing decision and collaborative negotiation processes, by multiattribute worth functions and Howard Raiffas ideas exposed in his book The Art & Science of Negotiation, published in 1982. From a case study, it was possible to point out some difficulties in implementation, as well as presenting some solutions and ways to achieve formal generalization of these processes. With the popularization of multiagents systems, formalization of the knowledge involved in decision and negotiation are indispensable for a more secure and, perhaps, a more efficient delegation of these tasks to computer programs.