Besides the simple computational layer of Tilden's "Nervous Networks", BEAM has brought a multitude of useful tools to the roboticist's toolbox.
This design philosophy is closely echoed in the classic book "Vehicles: Experiments in Synthetic Psychology".
[4] Through a series of thought experiments, this book explores the development of complex robot behaviours through simple inhibitory and excitory sensor links to the actuators.
Microcontrollers and computer programming are usually not a part of a traditional (aka., "pure" ) BEAM robot due to the very low-level hardware-centric design philosophy.
These "hybrids" fulfill a need for robust control systems with the added flexibility of dynamic programming, like the "horse-and-rider" topology BEAMbots (e.g. the ScoutWalker 3[5]).
[citation needed] Another barrier to widespread application of BEAM technology is the perceived random nature of the 'nervous network', which requires new techniques to be learned by the builder to successfully diagnose and manipulate the characteristics of the circuitry.
A think-tank of international academics[12] meet annually in Telluride, Colorado to address this issue directly, and until recently, Mark Tilden has been part of this effort (he had to withdraw due to his new commercial commitments with Wow-Wee toys).
One of the most advanced BEAM robots in this vein is Bruce Robinson's Hider,[13] which has an impressive degree of capability for a microprocessor-less design.