Development of Methods and Algorithms Based on Object-Oriented Logic Programming for Video Monitoring of Laboratory Rodents

The problem of video monitoring of laboratory rodents by the means of object-oriented logic programming is considered. The videos are produced in neurophysiological experiments on the study of convulsive electrical activity of the brain cortex. Videos of behaviour of laboratory rats were recorded simultaneously with electroencephalograms (EEG) in the animals. A comparison of EEG data with the behaviour of the animals is necessary because sharp motions of the animals can result in EEG signals that are very similar to the epileptic discharges. Thus, the first task of the video monitoring is recognition of the sharp motions of the animals and using this information for proper interpretation of the results of the experiments. The second task of the video monitoring is analysis of behaviour of animals in cognitive testing. Essential feature of the video records is in that the experiments are conducted in the same cage where the animal lives, that is, the background of the cage is sawdust. The colour of the animals is about the same as the colour of the sawdust; thus the detection of the animals is not a simple task. In the paper, development of low-level algorithms for video analysis as well as logical methods for the analysis of the animal behaviour is discussed. The methods and algorithms are implemented in the Actor Prolog object-oriented logic language.