import java.util.Set;

import java.lang.Integer;


/**
 * <p>
 * Interface for Communication round scheduling.
 * This determines the order in which various robots will iterate through
 * the broadcast, recieve, update cycle.  The first classes to implement
 * this interface will merely use it to wrap a synchronized communication 
 * schedule, but asynchronous communication is also possible.
 * </p>
 * @author     Michael Schuresko
 * @version    %I%, %G%
 * @since      1.0
*/

public interface ICommunicationScheduler
{
    /**
     * Gets the time of the next communication round.
     * Useful for the differential equation solver,
     * as these communication times are usually discontinuities
     * @param lfCurrTime absolute current time
     * @return absolute time of next communication round (not "time till next
     * round").
     */
    public double getNextRoundTime(double lfCurrTime);

    /**
     * Gets the time of the next communication round,
     * populates setActiveAgents 
     * with the indices of those agents which are active on this round.
     * @param lfCurrTime current time
     * @param nTotalAgents agents are index 0 through nTotalAgents-1
     * @param setActiveAgents initially empty, then populated with
     * indices (of type Integer) of agents to fire next round.
     * @return absolute time of next communication round
     */
    public double getNextRoundAndFiringSchedule(double lfCurrTime, 
						int nTotalAgents,
						Set<Integer> setActiveAgents);
}