11.3 Engine predicate reference

This section documents the built-in predicates that deal with engines. In addition to these, most predicates dealing with threads and message queue can be used to access engines.

[det]engine_create(+Template, :Goal, ?Engine)

[det]engine_create(+Template, :Goal, -Engine, +Options)

Create a new engine and unify Engine with a handle to it. Template and Goal form a pair similar to findall/3: the instantiation of Template becomes available through engine_next/2 after Goal succeeds. Options is a list of the following options. See thread_create/3 for details.

alias(+Name)

Give the engine a name. Name must be an atom. If this option is provided, Engine is unified with Name. The name space for engines is shared with threads and mutexes.

stack(+Bytes)

Set the stack limit for the engine. The default is inherited from the calling thread.

The Engine argument of engine_create/3 may be instantiated to an atom, creating an engine with the given alias.

[det]engine_destroy(+Engine)

Destroy Engine.

[semidet]engine_next(+Engine, -Term)

Ask the engine Engine to produce a next answer. On this first call on a specific engine, the Goal of the engine is started. If a previous call returned an answer through completion, this causes the engine to backtrack and finally, if the engine produces a previous result using engine_yield/1, execution proceeds after the engine_yield/1 call.

[det]engine_next_reified(+Engine, -Term)

Similar to engine_next/2, but instead of success, failure or or raising an exception, Term is unified with one of terms below. This predicate is provided primarily for compatibility with Lean Prolog.

the(Answer)

Goal succeeded with Template bound to Answer or Goal yielded with a term Answer.

no

Goal failed.

throw(Exception)

Goal raised Exception.

[det]engine_post(+Engine, +Term)

Make Term available to engine_fetch/1 inside the Engine. This call must be followed by a call to engine_next/2 and the engine must call engine_fetch/1.

[det]engine_post(+Engine, +Term, -Reply)

Combines engine_post/2 and engine_next/2.

[det]engine_yield(+Term)

Called from within the engine, causing engine_next/2 in the caller to return with Term. A subsequent call to engine_next/2 causes engine_yield/1 to‘return’. This predicate can only be called if the engine is not involved in a callback from C, i.e., when the engine calls a predicate defined in C that calls back Prolog it is not possible to use this predicate. Trying to do so results in a permission_error exception.

[det]engine_fetch(-Term)

Called from within the engine to fetch the term made available through engine_post/2 or engine_post/3. If no term is available an existence_error exception is raised.

[det]engine_self(-Engine)

Called from within the engine to get access to the handle to the engine itself.

[semidet]is_engine(@Term)

True if Term is a reference to or the alias name of an existing engine.

[nondet]current_engine(-Engine)

True when Engine is an existing engine.