Autonomous robots need structured decision frameworks that document causal chains from sensors to actions, not just post-hoc explanations, to meet regulatory requirements and enable real incident investigation.
TRACE is a decision framework for autonomous robots that makes every action traceable back to sensor data through documented causal chains. It organizes robot decision-making into four auditable layers—perception, belief reasoning, action planning, and execution verification—enabling investigators to reconstruct why a robot made specific decisions after incidents occur.