ca.nengo.model
Interface Ensemble

All Superinterfaces:
java.lang.Cloneable, Node, Resettable, java.io.Serializable, SimulationMode.ModeConfigurable, VisiblyMutable
All Known Subinterfaces:
DecodableEnsemble, NEFEnsemble, PlasticEnsemble
All Known Implementing Classes:
AbstractEnsemble, DecodableEnsembleImpl, EnsembleImpl, NEFEnsembleImpl, PlasticEnsembleImpl

public interface Ensemble
extends Node

A group of Nodes with largely overlapping inputs and outputs.

There are no strict rules for how to group Nodes into Ensembles, but here are some things to consider:

The membership of an Ensemble is fixed once the Ensemble is created. This means that the Ensemble model doesn't deal explicitly with growth and death of components during simulation (although you can set input/output weights to zero to mimic this). It also means that an Ensemble isn't a good model of a functional "assembly".

Author:
Bryan Tripp

Nested Class Summary
 
Nested classes/interfaces inherited from interface ca.nengo.util.VisiblyMutable
VisiblyMutable.Event, VisiblyMutable.Listener, VisiblyMutable.NameChangeEvent, VisiblyMutable.NodeRemovedEvent
 
Method Summary
 void collectSpikes(boolean collect)
           
 Node[] getNodes()
           
 SpikePattern getSpikePattern()
          This method provides a means of efficiently storing the output of an Ensemble if the component Nodes have Origins that produce SpikeOutput.
 boolean isCollectingSpikes()
           
 void redefineNodes(Node[] nodes)
          Replaces the set of nodes inside the Ensemble
 
Methods inherited from interface ca.nengo.model.Node
clone, getDocumentation, getName, getOrigin, getOrigins, getTermination, getTerminations, run, setDocumentation, setName
 
Methods inherited from interface ca.nengo.model.Resettable
reset
 
Methods inherited from interface ca.nengo.model.SimulationMode.ModeConfigurable
getMode, setMode
 
Methods inherited from interface ca.nengo.util.VisiblyMutable
addChangeListener, removeChangeListener
 

Method Detail

getNodes

Node[] getNodes()
Returns:
Nodes that make up the Ensemble

getSpikePattern

SpikePattern getSpikePattern()
This method provides a means of efficiently storing the output of an Ensemble if the component Nodes have Origins that produce SpikeOutput.

Returns:
A SpikePattern containing a record of spikes, provided collectSpikes(boolean) has been set to true

collectSpikes

void collectSpikes(boolean collect)
Parameters:
collect - If true, the spike pattern is recorded in subsequent runs and is available through getSpikePattern() (defaults to false)

isCollectingSpikes

boolean isCollectingSpikes()
Returns:
true if the spike pattern will be recorded in subsequent runs

redefineNodes

void redefineNodes(Node[] nodes)
Replaces the set of nodes inside the Ensemble