Image Processing for Cognitive Models in Dynamic Gaming Environments

Abstract

Cognitive models have typically dealt with environments that are either artificial or real but too simplistic. This stems from the fact that the process of describing the environment to the cognitive model is a complex vision problem. In order to realize the full potential of cognitive models, it is imperative that they be able to operate in natural domains. We attempt to overcome this limitation by providing a perceptual component to a cognitive model that interacts with more realistic environments. This perceptual component is an image processing substrate that has been customized for two different gaming environments. The substrate formerly worked only for the static environments we associate with conventional graphical user interfaces; the work we describe here extends its functionality to a more general class of interfaces, as represented by the driving game and Mars rover game. A cognitive model built on the ACT-R cognitive architecture has been developed that demonstrates the use of the image processing substrate in performing the driving task.