STOTTLER HENKE INTRODUCES JAVA TECHNOLOGY-BASED SOFTWARE FOR VISUALLY SPECIFYING ‘SMART’ BEHAVIOR IN GAMES, SIMULATIONS, AND ADVISORY SYSTEMS

SimBionic for Java allows programmers and non-programmers to quickly produce
artificial intelligence (AI) for all Java technology-based systems

SAN MATEO, California, Feb. 5, 2004 – Stottler Henke Associates, Inc. The first Java technology-based software tool kit that lets programmers and non-programmers collaborate to easily define intelligent, real-time monitoring and decision-making logic in Java technology applets and client-side or web server-based games and applications was introduced today by Stottler Henke Associates, Inc., a software development and consulting firm based here. SimBionic(TM) for Java, which is available immediately from Stottler Henke (www.stottlerhenke.com), enables rapid authoring of intelligent behaviors that enhance characters in computer games, emulate people and systems in training simulations, assess student performance in intelligent tutoring systems, and improve the effectiveness of customer assistance and decision-support systems.

“Artificial intelligence (AI) in the Java technology environment has taken a giant step forward with this new version of SimBionic,” said Chris Melissinos, Chief Gaming Officer at Sun Microsystems. “Now designers and content experts working on Java technology-based projects have an easy means of adding intelligent behaviors to their systems.”

SimBionic for Java is the second entry in Stottler Henke’s SimBionic product line; the company launched a C++ version of the software in December 2002. The new Java technology edition, which has a small footprint, extends the reach of SimBionic to mobile applications, where Java is a popular platform.

SimBionic overview

SimBionic is a visual authoring tool and runtime engine for creating complex behaviors and state machines, through the use of AI. It enables training simulation and game developers to speed their development time, while empowering designers and end users to directly incorporate their knowledge and expertise into the systems. Speeding the simulation development process can accelerate time-to-market for games, and can produce smarter simulations for training systems. And employing a graphical interface for specifying behaviors, so that non-programmer “subject matter experts” can create them, reduces the risk of simulation errors related to miscommunication of content between an expert and a programmer. The Java technology version supports browser and applet-based games, and encourages re-use of AI across games, which represents an important efficiency for game developers.

SimBionic for Java supports a number of advanced authoring concepts, such as hierarchical behaviors, which let any behavior invoke any other behavior, allowing users to construct sophisticated behaviors from simpler ones and efficiently reuse their work; and polymorphic behaviors, which allow the game engine to dynamically select the appropriate behavior to perform based on the current state of the entity that is running it. It also contains a full-featured visual debugger that allows users to execute behaviors step by step to help uncover and fix any subtle mistakes in its logic.

SimBionic’s components

SimBionic consists of two major components: a visual authoring tool, and a runtime engine. The SimBionic authoring tool is a standard Windows application. Because SimBionic presents its logic graphically, it can communicate more information to more people compared to textual methods. Visual representations can be understood by experts and by software programmers alike, so they can speak the same language, resulting in superior collaborative development. The SimBionic runtime engine takes the behavior description, and makes it operational within a game or training simulation. The engine is efficient, highly scalable, and provides a Java technology or C++ application programming interface, so software developers can easily interface it with simulations and games. The SimBionic authoring tool runs on Microsoft Windows 98, Windows NT, Windows 2000, and Windows XP operating systems. The SimBionic runtime engine runs on these operating systems, as well as Linux.

SimBionic price and availability

SimBionic for Java is available immediately from Stottler Henke. Pricing is on a per-seat basis, and varies based on the size of the installation. Development of SimBionic was supported in large part by R&D funding provided by the U.S. Department of Defense.

Founded in 1988, Stottler Henke Associates, Inc. applies artificial intelligence and other advanced software technologies to solve problems that defy solution using traditional approaches. The company delivers intelligent software solutions for education and training, planning and scheduling, knowledge management and discovery, decision support, and software development. Stottler Henke’s clients include manufacturers, retailers, educational media companies and government agencies. Stottler Henke was named one of the “top 100” companies making a significant impact on the military training industry in 2003 by Military Training Technology magazine. Web: https://www.stottlerhenke.com.