2D navigator GP

This is a recording of the behavior of a GP-controlled 2D navigator part-way through a run of evolution.

It has been placed in an obstacle-filled environment with 20 target objects and one depot. It's goal is to collect target objects one at a time and bring them to the depot. This particular individual does this well at first and them becomes apathetic in the latter half of its evaluation time.

At all times one of the targets is designated as the "current target". Two of the navigator's sensors report on the location of that target (relative direction and distance). The current target also moves on its own while the others move only under the influence of external forces like being pushed by the navigator, other targets, or bumping into walls.

A target is picked up immediately when touched, causing the navigator to turn black as a visible indication. One of the navigator's sensors reports this as well. Only one target can be picked up at a time. When the navigator, carrying a target, touches the depot, the target is deemed to have been successfully collected and the navigator is meant to head off and find another.

The placement of the 20 targets in the environment, clustered together below the depot, combined with the ability to pick up any target and not just the current target, seem to have allowed solutions to evolve that ignore the current target and simply take advantage of the target placement to attain high fitness. By repeatedly weaving through the same region of the environment, the navigator has learned that it can still collect plenty of targets even without being able to sense them.

The system uses genetic programming to evolve the control system, and uses the Chipmunk 2D physics engine.
http://wiki.slembcke.net/main/published/Chipmunk

Category:

Science & Technology

Tags:

• genetic
• programming
• 2D
• navigation
• control
• system

[kjlg74]

My thesis is all about "exaptation" in evolutionary computing. 3DVCE and this 2D navigator are just two of the systems I'm experimenting with.

[TheReasonWhyGuy]

Ah...

Thesis? for what?

Yeah I read your page description and thought maybe something had changed.

Good luck with that.

[kjlg74]

There have been a bunch more from 3DVCE, actually. I've got a list of creature waiting to be recorded and posted. I'm just too busy with the thesis to spend time on them, although they will eventually get posted. I did this one because I want to be able to refer to it in my document. Hopefully sometime in the next couple weeks I'll get a chance to dig into the list of 3DVCE creatures and post a bunch more videos all at once :)

[TheReasonWhyGuy]

Wow

Thats pretty fast, have there been no more creatures evolved by 3dvce?

Or have the videos just not been made?