Agent-based soldier behavior in dynamic 3D virtual environments
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Authors
Back, David N.
Subjects
Advisors
Capps, Michael
Date of Issue
2002-03
Date
Publisher
Monterey, California. Naval Postgraduate School
Language
Abstract
Human behavior in virtual environments is commonly implemented as a finite state machine. This programming approach can be effective and challenging against human players, but its ability to realistically simulate the behavior of cooperative groups of soldiers is limited. This thesis covers the development of an agent-based system to control the behavior of infantry in 3D virtual environments. The system design divides the cognitive process into four modules: perception, mental model, goal, decision, and action resolution. Each module attempts to simulate both strengths and weaknesses of human perception and cognition, including instinctive reactions, perceptual error, memory degradation, context-dependent decision-making, and inference. Additionally, the soldiers are influenced by the actions and decisions of the agents around them, enabling cooperation. The resultant agent system was incorporated into a game-like interface and compared to a similar commercial game with standard AI. Overall, 72% of the test subjects thought that the agent behaviors were Mostly Realistic or Totally Realistic, and 81% found them to be equal to or better than those in the commercial game.
Type
Thesis
Description
Series/Report No
Department
Organization
Naval Postgraduate School
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NPS Report Number
Sponsors
Funder
Format
xviii, 75 p. : ill. ;
Citation
Distribution Statement
Rights
This publication is a work of the U.S. Government as defined in Title 17, United States Code, Section 101. Copyright protection is not available for this work in the United States.