A domain-specific visual language for modeling metacognition in intelligent systems

Metacognition has been used in artificial intelligence to increase the level of autonomy of intelligent systems. However the design of systems with metacognitive capabilities is a difficult task due to the number and complexity of processes involved. This paper presents a domain-specific visual language specifically developed for modeling metacognition in intelligent systems called M++. In M++ the specifications of the cognitive level (object-level) and metacognitive level (meta-level) are supported in a metamodel configured according to the standard Meta-Object Facility (MOF) of Model-Driven Architecture (MDA) methodology. M++ allows the generation of metacognitive diagrams in a visual editor named MetaThink. A validation process was conducted to ensure the reliability of M++ in terms of quality of the notation and consistency of generated models. The validation was performed using two techniques: (i) empirical study and (ii) model tracing. The results given in the experimental study demonstrate that M++ is a useful notation for the process of modeling metacognitive components in intelligent systems. Metacognitive models generated from the validation process using the Tracing technique were consistent with the MOF-based metamodel. M++ contribute to cognitive architecture research adding precision to metacognitive concepts and enabling cognitive architecture researchers to do fast and exploratory prototyping of metacognitive systems using MetaThink tool.