SaccadeController Class Reference

#include <Neuro/SaccadeController.H>

Inheritance diagram for SaccadeController:

[legend]Collaboration diagram for SaccadeController:

[legend]List of all members.

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Detailed Description

A base class to implement saccade controllers.

This base class handles the basic queuing of percepts and fixations. Typically, new percepts (e.g., winner-take-all winners over the saliency map) should be passed to the saccade controller using setPercept(). During normal evolution of a simulation, evolve() should be called at every time step, in a manner similar to that of Brain, WTA and SM. In order to obtain coordinates of saccade targets computed by this class, getDecision() should be called. It will return (-1, -1) if no new saccade target is decided (either because it cannot be decided, or because it is the same as the last valid returned one). So, saccading to and fixating a new target will yield one initial valid set of returned coordinates, followed by subsequent returns of (-1, -1) as long as fixation is to be held stationary. Derived classes should overload computeWhenNewPercept(), called each time a new percept has arrived, and computeWhenNewDecision(), called each time a new decision is requested. In addition, derived classes should usually overload doEvolve(), typically called at each time step during a simulation. See SaccadeControllers.H for examples of derived classes which actually implement saccadic control strategies.

Definition at line 72 of file SaccadeController.H.

Public Member Functions
	SaccadeController (OptionManager &mgr, const std::string &descrName, const std::string &tagName, const SaccadeBodyPart bodypart, const int percept_qlen, const int decision_qlen)
	Constructor.
virtual	~SaccadeController ()
	Destructor (virtual to ensure that derived classes correctly destroyed).
void	evolve (SimEventQueue &q)
	evolve one time step (called, e.g., by Brain::evolve())
virtual void	setPercept (const WTAwinner &fix, SimEventQueue &q)
	Receive a new percept (e.g., winner from saliency map).
virtual void	resetPos (const Point2D< int > &p, SimEventQueue &q)
	Reset to an externally-given position.
virtual Point2D< int >	getDecision (SimEventQueue &q, const bool dopoststatus=false)
	Get the fixation decided by the controller.
WTAwinner	getPreviousPercept (const unsigned int index=0) const
	Get a previous percept.
bool	havePercepts () const
	Do we already have any percepts queued up?
int	getPqlen () const
	Returns length of percept queue.
void	resetPqlen (const int len)
	Reset length of percept queue (contents will be lost).
void	killPercepts ()
	Kill all previous percepts (empty the percept queue).
Point2DT	getPreviousDecision (const unsigned int index=0) const
	Get a previous decision.
bool	haveDecisions () const
	Do we already have any decisions queued up?
int	getDqlen () const
	Returns length of decision queue.
void	resetDqlen (const int len)
	Reset length of decision queue (contents will be lost).
void	killDecisions ()
	Kill all previous decisions (empty the decision queue).
SaccadeBodyPart	bodyPart () const
	get our body part
void	dumpQueues () const
	Show contents of the queues, for debugging.
Protected Member Functions
virtual void	reset1 ()
	Reset SaccadeController.
virtual void	doEvolve (SimEventQueue &q)=0
	Called from within evolve().
virtual void	computeWhenNewPercept (SimEventQueue &q)=0
	This method is called each time a new percept has arrived.
virtual void	computeWhenResetPos (SimEventQueue &q)=0
	This method is called each time a reset() occurs.
virtual Point2D< int >	computeWhenNewDecision (SaccadeState &sacstate, bool &blinkstate, SimEventQueue &q)=0
	This method is called each time a new decision is requested.
SaccadeState	getState () const
	Helper for derived classes to get our internal saccade/fix/smooth state.
bool	getBlinkState () const
	Helper for derived classes to get our internal blink state.
Protected Attributes
OModelParam< Point2D< int > >	itsInitialPosition
	start position

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Constructor & Destructor Documentation

SaccadeController::SaccadeController (  OptionManager &  mgr, const std::string &  descrName, const std::string &  tagName, const SaccadeBodyPart  bodypart, const int  percept_qlen, const int  decision_qlen )

Constructor. Parameters: bodypart  should be SaccadeBodyPartEye or SaccadeBodyPartHead percept_qlen  length of the queue of accumulated percepts decision_qlen  length of the queue of generated decisions Definition at line 47 of file SaccadeController.C. References LFATAL.

SaccadeController::~SaccadeController (   )  [virtual]

Destructor (virtual to ensure that derived classes correctly destroyed). Definition at line 69 of file SaccadeController.C.

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Member Function Documentation

SaccadeBodyPart SaccadeController::bodyPart (   )  const

get our body part Definition at line 276 of file SaccadeController.C.

virtual Point2D<int> SaccadeController::computeWhenNewDecision (  SaccadeState &  sacstate, bool &  blinkstate, SimEventQueue &  q )  [protected, pure virtual]

This method is called each time a new decision is requested. The latest percept is at the front of the percept queue, and the latest previous decision at the front of the decision queue. The method should return the decision to be taken given the time passed as argument. This method should return the current decision for fixation, as well as current saccade and blink states. The wrapping getDecision() call will take care of eliminating decisions that are the same as the previous ones. Derived classes must provide some implementation for this method, as it is called from within getDecision(). Implemented in StubSaccadeController, TrivialSaccadeController, FixedSaccadeController, FrictionSaccadeController, ThresholdSaccadeController, ThresholdFrictionSaccadeController, and MonkeySaccadeController. Referenced by getDecision().

virtual void SaccadeController::computeWhenNewPercept (  SimEventQueue &  q  )  [protected, pure virtual]

This method is called each time a new percept has arrived. The latest percept is at the front of the percept queue. Derived classes must provide some implementation for this method, as it is called from within setPercept(). Implemented in StubSaccadeController, TrivialSaccadeController, FixedSaccadeController, FrictionSaccadeController, ThresholdSaccadeController, ThresholdFrictionSaccadeController, and MonkeySaccadeController. Referenced by setPercept().

virtual void SaccadeController::computeWhenResetPos (  SimEventQueue &  q  )  [protected, pure virtual]

This method is called each time a reset() occurs. The reset location/time is at the front of the percept queue. Derived classes must provide some implementation for this method, as it is called from within resetPos(). NOTE: a resetPos(), even if it is to a location far away from the current one, should not create a saccade, because it is a way to break a simulation and reset it, not a way to drive saccades externally. Saccades should arise internally in computeWhenNewDecision(). You should not change the state here as resetPos() itself will change if to fixation or unknown anyway. Implemented in StubSaccadeController, TrivialSaccadeController, FixedSaccadeController, FrictionSaccadeController, ThresholdSaccadeController, ThresholdFrictionSaccadeController, and MonkeySaccadeController. Referenced by resetPos().

virtual void SaccadeController::doEvolve (  SimEventQueue &  q  )  [protected, pure virtual]

Called from within evolve(). Classes deriving from SaccadeController should implement this. Implemented in StubSaccadeController, TrivialSaccadeController, FixedSaccadeController, FrictionSaccadeController, ThresholdSaccadeController, ThresholdFrictionSaccadeController, and MonkeySaccadeController. Referenced by evolve().

void SaccadeController::dumpQueues (   )  const

Show contents of the queues, for debugging. Definition at line 211 of file SaccadeController.C. References CLINFO, Point2D< T >::i, i, Point2D< T >::j, SimTime::msecs(), Point2DT::p, WTAwinner::p, sformat(), WTAwinner::sv, Point2DT::t, WTAwinner::t, and win.

void SaccadeController::evolve (  SimEventQueue &  q  )

evolve one time step (called, e.g., by Brain::evolve()) evolve() should be invoked by external callers to allow the internals of the controller to evolve as time passes by but no new percept is available. Derived classes should not override this function, but should instead override doEvolve(), which is called from inside evolve(). Definition at line 280 of file SaccadeController.C. References doEvolve().

bool SaccadeController::getBlinkState (   )  const [protected]

Helper for derived classes to get our internal blink state. Definition at line 295 of file SaccadeController.C.

Point2D< int > SaccadeController::getDecision (  SimEventQueue &  q, const bool  dopoststatus = false )  [virtual]

Get the fixation decided by the controller. Parameters: t  should be the current time (in seconds) and should be greater than or equal to the time of the last percept passed to setPercept(). The coordinates of the decided fixation are returned (or (-1, -1) of no decision has been made). If a decision is made but is the same as the previous one, the behavior here is to return (-1, -1), and the caller has the responsibility of holding fixation until a new, valid decision can be reached. Do not overload this method, overload computeWhenNewDecision() instead if you need to do some computation before returning a fixation. If dopoststatus is true, we will post a SimEventStatus[Eye|Head] with our current status to the SimEventQueue. Definition at line 125 of file SaccadeController.C. References c, SimEventQueue::check(), CLDEBUG, CLFATAL, CLINFO, computeWhenNewDecision(), e, getPreviousDecision(), OModelParam< T >::getVal(), Point2D< T >::i, Point2D< T >::isValid(), itsInitialPosition, Point2D< T >::j, last, SimTime::msecs(), SimEventQueue::now(), p, SimEventQueue::post(), resetPos(), s, saccadeBodyPartName(), saccadeStateName(), SEQ_ANY, and SimTime::ZERO().

int SaccadeController::getDqlen (   )  const

Returns length of decision queue. Note that the queue may not be full to that length yet Definition at line 264 of file SaccadeController.C.

int SaccadeController::getPqlen (   )  const

Returns length of percept queue. Note that the queue may not be full to that length yet Definition at line 240 of file SaccadeController.C.

Point2DT SaccadeController::getPreviousDecision (  const unsigned int  index = 0  )  const

Get a previous decision. This method allows one to access a previous valid decision. It will not attempt to determine whether a new decision can be made now, like getDecision() does. It will simply return the result of what was previously decided (or (-1, -1) if no valid previous decision exists). Parameters: index  indicates which previous decision; a value of zero will return the last decision that was made and returned by getDecision(), and increasing values will return increasingly older decisions. if index is more than the queue length, (-1, -1) will be returned. Definition at line 252 of file SaccadeController.C. References SimTime::ZERO(). Referenced by MonkeySaccadeController::computeWhenNewDecision(), ThresholdFrictionSaccadeController::computeWhenNewDecision(), ThresholdSaccadeController::computeWhenNewDecision(), TrivialSaccadeController::computeWhenNewDecision(), and getDecision().

WTAwinner SaccadeController::getPreviousPercept (  const unsigned int  index = 0  )  const

Get a previous percept. This method allows one to access a previous percept passed through setPercept(), or (-1, -1) if no valid previous percept exists. Parameters: index  indicates which previous percept; a value of zero will return the last percept that was passed to setPercept(), and increasing values will return increasingly older percepts. If index is more than the queue length, (-1, -1) will be returned. Definition at line 228 of file SaccadeController.C. References WTAwinner::NONE(). Referenced by ThresholdSaccadeController::checkPercepts(), TrivialSaccadeController::computeWhenNewDecision(), MonkeySaccadeController::computeWhenNewPercept(), ThresholdFrictionSaccadeController::computeWhenNewPercept(), FrictionSaccadeController::computeWhenNewPercept(), MonkeySaccadeController::computeWhenResetPos(), ThresholdFrictionSaccadeController::computeWhenResetPos(), ThresholdSaccadeController::computeWhenResetPos(), FrictionSaccadeController::computeWhenResetPos(), FixedSaccadeController::computeWhenResetPos(), and FrictionSaccadeController::doEvolve().

SaccadeState SaccadeController::getState (   )  const [protected]

Helper for derived classes to get our internal saccade/fix/smooth state. Definition at line 291 of file SaccadeController.C.

bool SaccadeController::haveDecisions (   )  const

Do we already have any decisions queued up? Definition at line 260 of file SaccadeController.C. Referenced by ThresholdFrictionSaccadeController::computeWhenNewDecision(), and ThresholdSaccadeController::computeWhenNewDecision().

bool SaccadeController::havePercepts (   )  const

Do we already have any percepts queued up? Definition at line 236 of file SaccadeController.C. Referenced by ThresholdSaccadeController::computeWhenNewDecision(), FrictionSaccadeController::computeWhenNewDecision(), and FrictionSaccadeController::doEvolve().

void SaccadeController::killDecisions (   )

Kill all previous decisions (empty the decision queue). Definition at line 272 of file SaccadeController.C.

void SaccadeController::killPercepts (   )

Kill all previous percepts (empty the percept queue). Definition at line 248 of file SaccadeController.C.

void SaccadeController::reset1 (   )  [protected, virtual]

Reset SaccadeController. Reimplemented from ModelComponent. Reimplemented in ThresholdSaccadeController. Definition at line 73 of file SaccadeController.C. References ModelComponent::reset1(), and SACSTATE_UNK. Referenced by ThresholdSaccadeController::reset1().

void SaccadeController::resetDqlen (  const int  len  )

Reset length of decision queue (contents will be lost). Definition at line 268 of file SaccadeController.C.

void SaccadeController::resetPos (  const Point2D< int > &  p, SimEventQueue &  q )  [virtual]

Reset to an externally-given position. This will force the current position to the position given as argument, disregarding any internal physical model. So this may be used to externally drive the SaccadeController to given locations. A percept will be queued up, which will be built from the passed position/time plus default values for the WTAwinner fields. Do not overload this method, overload computeWhenReset() instead. NOTE: this will abort any current blink and will reset our internal state to fixation (if p is valid) or unknown (if p is invalid). Definition at line 98 of file SaccadeController.C. References CLDEBUG, computeWhenResetPos(), Point2D< T >::i, Point2D< T >::isValid(), Point2D< T >::j, SimTime::msecs(), SimEventQueue::now(), saccadeStateName(), SACSTATE_FIX, SACSTATE_UNK, and win. Referenced by getDecision().

void SaccadeController::resetPqlen (  const int  len  )

Reset length of percept queue (contents will be lost). Definition at line 244 of file SaccadeController.C. Referenced by ThresholdSaccadeController::start1().

void SaccadeController::setPercept (  const WTAwinner &  fix, SimEventQueue &  q )  [virtual]

Receive a new percept (e.g., winner from saliency map). This method should be invoked by external callers each time a new percept is available. Do not overload this method, overload computeWhenNewPercept() instead if you need to perform some computation for each new percept. Definition at line 85 of file SaccadeController.C. References computeWhenNewPercept().

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Member Data Documentation

OModelParam<Point2D<int> > SaccadeController::itsInitialPosition [protected]

start position Definition at line 187 of file SaccadeController.H. Referenced by getDecision().

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The documentation for this class was generated from the following files:

• src/Neuro/SaccadeController.H
• src/Neuro/SaccadeController.C

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