ICARUS

• Homogeneous knowledge representation

  All knowledge in Icarus is represented as probabilistic concepts arranged in a hierarchacal structure. Each node in the hiearchy contains a specific probability for membership in that class given certain key attributes. Knowledge encoded in this manner includes objects, places, and stored plans.

• High efficiency knowledge access

  Efficient memory access is an important property for ICARUS. The hierarchacal structure serves to make retrieval more efficient, but in cases where the higher nodes aquire many features and relations, sorting a concept through the hierarchy can still be very expensive.

• Asychronous operation

  The three modules, Argus, Daedalus, and Maeander, in Icarus operate asynchronously. They interface through the memory module, Labyrinth, taking the information they need when they need it, and placing their results back into long-term memory. The three modules have no direct contact with each other.

• Grounding of represented concepts

  While the upper levels of the hierarchy may represent general classes of object, places, or plans, all concepts are ultimately grounded in observable attributes. For example, physical objects have specific values for characteristics such as height, weight, etc.