Robust representation and execution of robot plans

The construction of real-time software for autonomous robot systems that can operate in an uncertain and dynamic environment is considered. Techniques for representing robust robot plans using the RS (robot schema) model are developed which make it possible to separate planned decision-making from error monitoring; they give a modular way to embed error detection, diagnosis, and recovery into plans, and via the formal tools of RS they allow one to analyze plans for error behavior. However, experience in implementing the RS kernel leads to the conclusion that robustness in the plan representation alone is not sufficient. Robustness must also be incorporated in the underlying system software to complement robustness in the plan representation model. Experiences with the initial implementation of the RS execution environment kernel also emphasized the need for operating system constructs that would support the robustness inherent in the model