A rule-based visual language for small mobile robots

Altaira is a visual language intended for the control of small mobile robots. It is a rule-based language, combining information from sensors, navigation and the current robot state to determine actions to be taken by the robot and changes required in the state. The language, implemented in the Spring of 1997, is proving to be a powerful and flexible language for robot control, and has also been useful for providing an introduction to programming for children.