A Light Non-Monotonic Knowledge-Base for Service Robots

A Non-Monotonic Knowledge-Base (KB) for practical applications in service robots is presented. The KB is defined as a conceptual hierarchy with inheritance that supports the expression of defaults and exceptions. All classes and individuals, with their properties and relations, can be updated dynamically and the KB-System supports non-monotonic behavior. Non-monotonicity is handled on the basis of a specificity criteria, such that more specific properties and relations have precedence over more general ones. The system supports the expression of conceptual (or terminological) and factual (or assertional) knowledge, which are used in inference in a coherent and consistent way. The KB-System is embedded within the Interaction-Oriented Cognitive Architecture, where knowledge about how to communicate and interact with the world, and also knowledge of the particular interpretation situation, are represented. The cognitive architecture is structured around a main communication cycle, and queries and conceptual inferences are performed on demand during the interaction of the robot with other agents or the world.

We illustrate the KB system with a case study of a robot store clerk where a practical non-monotonic KB is required.

Videos

Restaurant Test

Code

• Knowledge-base system (.zip)
• Dialogue model of the robot store clerk (.zip)