Asynchronous production systems for real-time expert systems

Abstract

Intelligent Computing Systems for Autonomous Mobile Robots and Process Control applications require an integration of traditional Expert system technologies with real-time response and control capabilities. To address such requirements, we propose an Asynchronous Production System (APS), which is a rule-based inference engine capable of monitoring and processing asynchronous, real-time information. The primary motivation of the proposed APS is to provide a unique and convenient mechanism for development of rule-based expert systems capable of dynamic and rapid interaction with their environments. This paper elaborates on the architectural, operational and implementational ramifications of Asynchronous Production Systems. To facilitate its description an example of an APS-based, distributed expert system is presented to handle the task of autonomous navigation in the presence of unexpected, moving obstacles in a mobile robot. 26 refs., 10 figs.