IEEE Technology and Society Magazine - March 2015 - 71

of partial identity brokers (so we are sure who we are
transacting with) and the validity of the information (so
that auto-spoofers cannot easily "hack" traffic) can ameliorate privacy and security concerns. A Thing-agent can
serve a real need to revise and design processes so that
they are not so brittle, fragile, or unidirectional.
In [18] we discuss possible approaches for implementing Thing theory in location-aware environments. A
Thing-agent at a minimum is a means to inform agents
(people and car sub-systems) of the information about
processes within a smart environment in pragmatic
terms that make sense to those agents. These conditions promote good decision making (understanding
options and agency), ideally utilizing a high-level interactive interface that adapts to the POV of each agent to
each other to the extent required.
A Thing-agent includes a representation of the pragmatic contexts in which processes are expressed. This
is done such that the Thing-agent facilitates choices by
agents, and makes more choices available to agents,
rather than forcing them into specific choices.
In such a situation there are many complex contingencies that can arise. A Thing-agent might employ
non-monotonic multi-agent simulations incorporating
specifications for each process and that relates sensorbased information to present scenarios of possible ways
processes and users might interact with each other. On
this basis a Thing-agent can indicate available options
to each of the other agents in different contexts, and
provide feedback in terms of what is likely to occur
should an agent make a given choice (and how other
agents are likely to view this choice and respond), thus
a basis for "fine-tuning" how they proceed.
There exist logic and associated software architectures for developing such multi-agent simulations in a
manner to support decision-making. Deontic logic is
a good candidate for a useful semantics that supports
constructing simulations of the type needed [20], [21].
Castro and Maibaum [22] present a deontic logic suitable for representing the interrelations of users with
agency, and Horty [23] discusses at length representing
and reasoning with agency in deontic logic.
A Thing-agent mediated multi-agent simulation can be
useful for designing software to promote cooperation and
knowledge exchange needed to coordinate cars on the
road. Such an exchange could leverage "simulation services" provided by a Thing-agent to support their decisionmaking, and possibly improve the joint understanding
of dynamic production environments. These simulation
services would direct attention once again to outcomes
rather than processes, since all parties could see different possibilities emerging from their actions in interaction
with others. They could then alter course as needed to
improve probabilities of a good outcome dynamically.
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This approach to process control would be far more
adaptive and would favor outcomes over processes
while leaving room for drivers to deploy their individual
skills towards achieving these outcomes. Exploiting a
Thing-agent to ensure that the information that needs
to be shared to support agency in the network of drivers and cars is available to maximize the capacity for
cooperation, and avoid the problems that can arise
from PoSR networks such as missed or misunderstood
messages, or connected individuation [24]. Thing-agents
could be employed within a system of restricted privacy
based on tasks, rather than tracking agent's behavior.
Not everyone in the social environment of the road
fully knows the objectives, roles, and responsibilities of

Mobile technology supports both
asynchronous and synchronous
communication without much of
a noticeable time delay.

what the other is up to, nor should unnecessary information be available for privacy and security reasons.

Trusted Agents May Help Restore "Order"
Highly heterogeneous messaging environments that
enable individuals and their cars, and/or individuals
in cars and their passengers, to connect and communicate with each other and others, can lead to a
complex situation that currently has little overlap for
cooperation [9]. This will be especially challenging as
the hardware form factor migrates to a head-mounted
glasses option, or possibly even "in-head" mounting.
Software development that enlists the use of Agents
for certain processes and tasks may help to restore
"order" in the car.
It has been documented that having connection
in the car (via the CB radio research [4], and as evidenced by the overwhelming usage of mobile phones
and texting while driving [4], [11]) to systems outside
the car, is important and valuable for humans. It is
worth further exploration to determine if social needs
within vehicles remain the same from the CB radio
days, or have changed with the times. Furthermore,
as the car becomes a fully automated form with Artificial Intelligence eventually replacing the human
driver, planning for how it will handle the complex
multiplexed environment of communications that

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