Abstract The automated planning community has developed a defacto standard planning language called PDDL. Using the PDDL tools, the reliability of PDDL descriptions can only be posterior examined. However, the Event-B method supports a rich refinement technique that is mathematically proven. Indeed, the Event-B method relies on a first-order predicates language and sets (including mathematical functions and relations) to model the data and on a simple action language to model the treatments. A model described in Event-B includes static modeling elements (sets, constants, axioms and theorems) and dynamic modeling elements (variables, invariant properties and events). Moreover, the Event-B method allows the step-by-step correct construction of Event-B models. To specify and solve the planning problems, a development process based on the combination of Event-B and PDDL is proposed. Our development process favors the obtaining of reliable PDDL description from an ultimate Event-B model using our Event-B2PDDL Eclipse plugin. Our process is successfully experimented on the sliding puzzle game.

Automatic planning has a de facto standard language called PDDL for describing planning problems. The dynamic analysis tools associated with this language do not allow sufficient verification and validation of PDDL descriptions. Indeed, these tools, namely planners and validators, allow a posteriori error detection. In this paper, we recommend a formal approach coupling the two languages Event-B and PDDL. Event-B supports a formal development process based on the refinement technique with mathematical proofs. Thus, we propose a refinement strategy for obtaining reliable PDDL descriptions from an ultimate Event-B model that is correct by construction. The correctness is guaranteed via the verification and validation tools supported by Event-B. We have chosen the MICONIC application managing modern elevators to illustrate our approach while recognizing that the MICONIC application is already modeled in PDDL without formal proof of its correctness.