What can a self-transition in a state machine indicate?

A self-transition in a state machine indicates that the state is reverting back to itself. This means that while the state machine is in a particular state, an event occurs that causes the transition to happen but does not lead to a change in the state itself. This is often used to model situations where an event can occur while still remaining in the same state. For example, it can signify that certain conditions are checked or certain actions are performed while the system stays in its current state, effectively allowing for internal processing or re-evaluation of conditions without moving to a completely different state. This is particularly useful in scenarios where the nature of the state allows for repetitive actions or conditions that might cause a re-evaluation of the current state without necessitating a transition to another state.