Building a cheaper artificial brain

This paper presents a methodology for building artificial brains that is much cheaper than the first author´s earlier attempt. What initially cost $500,000, now costs about $3000. The much cheaper approach uses a Celoxica(.com) programmable board containing a Xilinx Virtex II FPGA chip with 3 million programmable logic gates, to evolve neural networks at electronic speeds. The genetic algorithm (GA) and the neural network model are programmed using a high level language called Handel-C, whose code is (silicon) compiled into the chip. The elite circuit is downloaded from the board into the memory of a PC. This process occurs up to several 10,000 s of times, once for each neural net circuit module having a unique function. Special software in the PC is used to specify the connections between the modules, according to the designs of human BAs (brain architects). The PC is then used to execute the neural signaling of the artificial brain (A-brain) in real time, defined to be 25 Hz per neuron. At this speed, the PC can handle several 10,000 s of modules. We would use our A-brain to control the behaviors of a small, four wheeled radio controlled robot with a CCD camera and gripper. The robot´s task is to detect and collect unexploded cluster bomblets and deposit them in some central place. The total price of the PC, Celoxica board, and robot is less than $3000, making it affordable to virtually any research group interested in building artificial brains.