Rationale-based perceptual monitors

In this paper, we introduce a new technique for managing change in a dynamic world. We focus on the relationships between perception, interpretation, and planning. Our approach is to make perception sensitive to relevant changes in the environment that can affect plans and goals. For this purpose, we apply a rationale-based monitor technique to a hierarchical planner and a perceptual interpretation system. The planner generates plan monitors that interact with the perceptual system and react only to those environmental changes that are relevant to the rationale for planning decisions. Similarly, interpretation creates goal monitors that react to changes that are relevant to goal choices. Thus, when either monitor type detects such changes, they execute specific plan and goal modifications as needed. We present empirical results within a cognitive architecture using the monitors to focus perception, adapt plans, and drop goals. Experiments in two standard planning domains demonstrate the effectiveness of our approach.