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From: baker@csl.dl.nec.com (Larry Baker)
Newsgroups: comp.realtime,comp.ai,comp.lang.lisp,comp.lang.c++,comp.robotics
Subject: Re: ..."AI" in realtime embedded systems.
Keywords: realtime, ai, c++, lisp, embedded
Message-ID: <1991Apr16.175901.21879@csl.dl.nec.com>
Date: 16 Apr 91 17:59:01 GMT
References: <1991Mar26.163917.14641@unhd.unh.edu> <4471@skye.ed.ac.uk> <1234@telesoft.com>
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I don't remember if I posted this previously, or what, but I'm posting
it again, since the train of postings seems to warrant it.

You *can* embed "AI" (or Knowledge-Based Systems, really) in a "hard"
real-time application.  Take a look at the following article:

"Real-Time Data Acquisition at Mission Control," Muratore, Heindel, Murphy,
Rasmussen and McFarland, CACM December 1990, v33, no. 12, p. 19.

I don't want to start a religious war about KBS vs. AI.  Their technique
is applicable to either domain.  It's worth pointing out, though, that
the KBS/AI application is, in their approach, a "soft" real-time application,
with a predicted latency varying between 1-3 seconds. The data-collection
and conditioning subsystem is the "hard" application, with a required latency
of no more than 1/4 second to clear telemetry data buffers.

The point is that if you can dissect your system into "hard" and
"soft" real-time subsystems, and keep the AI in the "soft" part of the
system, then you're OK; if you have hard real-time requirements that cannot
fit within the latency predictions for the AI environment, then you're sunk.

At least until next generation of embedable hardware is available ;-).
--
Larry Baker
NEC America C&C Software Laboratories, Irving (near Dallas), TX
baker@texas.csl.dl.nec.com  cs.utexas.edu!necssd!baker