Theory and Practice of Logic Programming

Table of Contents - January 2012 - Volume 12, Special Issue 1-2 (Prolog Systems)  

Regular Papers

The BinProlog experience: Architecture and implementation choices for continuation passing Prolog and first-class logic engines

PAUL TARAUa1

a1 Department of Computer Science and Engineering, University of North Texas, Denton, Texas 76203-6886, USA (e-mail: tarau@cs.unt.edu)

Abstract

We describe the BinProlog system's compilation technology, runtime system and its extensions supporting first-class Logic Engines while providing a short history of its development, details of some of its newer re-implementations as well as an overview of the most important architectural choices involved in their design. With focus on its differences with conventional Warren Abstract Machine (WAM) implementations, we explain key details of BinProlog's compilation technique, which replaces the WAM with a simplified continuation passing runtime system (the “BinWAM”), based on a mapping of full Prolog to binary logic programs. This is followed by a description of a term compression technique using a “tag-on-data” representation. Later derivatives, the Java-based Jinni Prolog compiler and the recently developed Lean Prolog system refine the BinProlog architecture with first-class Logic Engines, made generic through the use of an Interactor interface. An overview of their applications with focus on the ability to express at source level a wide variety of Prolog built-ins and extensions covers these newer developments.

(Received October 10 2009)

(Revised February 28 2010)

(Accepted February 02 2011)

(Online publication September 12 2011)

KEYWORDS:

  • Prolog;
  • logic programming system;
  • continuation passing style compilation;
  • implementation of Prolog;
  • first-class logic engines;
  • data-representations for Prolog runtime systems