Abstract: |
The need to build modular, scalable, and complex technologycapable of adaptation, self-assembly, and self-repair hasfuelled renewed interest in using approaches inspired by developmentalbiology. To meet this need, a new eld, calledComputational Development (CD), has emerged. Its focus ison adapting processes and mechanisms from developmentalbiology so as to help us build scalable, complex technology.Due to the embryonic nature of the eld, however, researchinvestigating the potential of such approaches for di erentproblem domains is crucial to its success. In this paper, theplausibility of applying a developmental biology-inspired approachto the demanding problem domain of reactive robotcontrol is explored. Using developmental genetics as a sourceof inspiration, a model of genetic regulatory networks is usedin conjunction with a spatially distributed evolutionary algorithmto evolve real-time robot controllers for tasks suchas general purpose obstacle avoidance. |
