Belief-Desire-Intention software model

The belief-desire-intention (BDI) software model is a software model developed for intelligent programming agents. Superficially characterized by the implementation of an agent's beliefs, desires, and intentions, it uses these concepts to solve a particular problem in agent programming

Superficially characterized by the implementation of an agent's beliefs, desires and intentions, it actually uses these concepts to solve a particular problem in agent programming. In essence, it provides a mechanism for separating the activity of selecting a plan (from a plan library or an external planner application) from the execution of currently active plans. Consequently, BDI agents are able to balance the time spent on deliberating about plans (choosing what to do) and executing those plans (doing it). A third activity, creating the plans in the first place (planning), is not within the scope of the model, and is left to the system designer and programmer.