Foundations of multimodal representations: a taxonomy of representational modalities

Advances in information technologies are producing a very large number of possible interface modality combinations which are potentially useful for the expression and exchange of information in humancomputer interaction. However, a principled basis for analysing arbitrary input/output modality types and combinations as to their capabilities of information representation and exchange is still lacking. The paper presents a generative approach to the analysis of output modality types and their combinations and takes some steps towards its implementation, departing from a taxonomy of generic unimodal modalities of representation. A small number of key properties appear sufficient for creating a taxonomy of generic output modalities which is relatively simple, robust, intuitively plausible and reasonably complete. These (orthogonal) properties are: analogue and non-analogue representations; arbitrary and non-arbitrary representations; static and dynamic representations; linguistic and non-linguistic representations; different media of representation; and modality structure. The work presented is part of the larger research agenda of modality theory.     

Knowledge acquisition for expert systems in accounting and financial problem domains

Since the mid-1980s, expert systems have been developed for a variety of problems in accounting and finance. The most commonly cited problems in developing these systems are the unavailability of the experts and knowledge engineers and difficulties with the rule extraction process. Within the field of artificial intelligence, this has been called the ‘knowledge acquisition’ (KA) problem and has been identified as a major bottleneck in the expert system development process. Recent empirical research reveals that certain KA techniques are significantly more efficient than others in helping to extract certain types of knowledge within specific problem domains. This paper presents a mapping between these empirical studies and a generic taxonomy of expert system problem domains. To accomplish this, we first examine the range of problem domains and suggest a mapping of accounting and finance tasks to a generic problem domain taxonomy. We then identify and describe the most prominent KA techniques employed in developing expert systems in accounting and finance. After examining and summarizing the existing empirical KA work, we conclude by showing how the empirical KA research in the various problem domains can be used to provide guidance to developers of expert systems in the fields of accounting and finance.     

The constituents of business interaction––generic layered patterns

In order to perform business modelling as apart of information systems development, there is a need for frameworks and methods. The paper proposes a framework for business interaction based on a language/action perspective. The framework is an architecture of five generic layers. The first layer concept is ‘business act’, which functions as the basic unit of analysis. The following four layer concepts are ‘action pair’, ‘exchange’, ‘business transaction’, and ‘transaction group’. The framework is inspired by a similar framework constructed by Weigand et al. The paper makes a critical examination of this framework as a basis for the proposed framework.     

Experiences with EDO: An evolutionary database optimizer

In this paper we introduce the database design tool EDO: an Evolutionary Database Optimizer. The term ‘evolutionary’ refers to a basic feature of the tool. After generating an initial pool of preliminary internal representations for a given conceptual data model, EDO allows a database designer to activate evolution strategies, modifying the preliminary internal representations into more desirable ones.

The quality of the internal representations found as yet is used to perform a guided walk through the solution space of alternative internal representations for the conceptual model under consideration. This quality (called fitness) takes into account the expected storage space and the expected average response time of a candidate internal representation.     

Design of ‘softer’ robust nonlinear control laws

We show that the Lyapunov function used in backstepping feedback designs for uncertain nonlinear systems leads to unnecessarily ‘hard’ control laws having undesirable high-gain properties. We present a new Lyapunov function and use it to design ‘softer’ control laws which exhibit the high-gain properties to a much lesser extent. We show that the ‘soft’ designs eliminate the chattering exhibited by the ‘hard’ designs and achieve the same or better performance with less control effort.     

Functional integration in CAD systems

This paper examines the issue of integration in CAD systems and argues that for integration to be effective, it must address the functional aspects of a CAD system. It discusses the need for integrated systems and, within a structural engineering context, identifies several facets of integration that should be targeted. These include 2-D drafting and 3-D modelling, graphical and nongraphical design information, the CAD data structure and its user interface, as well as integration of the drafting function with other engineering applications. Means of achieving these levels of integration are briefly discussed and a prognosis for the future development of integrated systems explored. Particular attention is paid to the emergence (and potential role) of ‘product models’ which seek to encapsulate the full range of data elements required to define completely an engineering artefact.     

The ergonomics of information presentation

This article is restricted to the human aspects of information presentation. Clearly any practical problem of display design must be solved in the context of current instrumentation and the final choice may well be dominated by relative availability and cost. It could be argued that ergonomics as a technology distinct from the human sciences must incorporate these wider factors but it seems justifiable, for the present purpose, to use the term ergonomics to signify an approach to information presentation based entirely on the limitations and advantages of the human operator.

This article is based on a keynote address to the IEE Conference on ‘Display’ at Loughborough University, 7–10 September 1971.     

Locating systems at work: implications for the development of active badge applications

The paper reports findings from a sociological examination of the use of ‘active badge’ location information systems in two research laboratories. The use, distribution and control of location information is examined in reference to the social roles individuals have in what will be called the ‘moral order’ of workplaces. Suggestions for subsequent versions of location systems are made, and the use of sociological methods in design remarked.     

HCI ‘Intraface Model’ for System Design

We outline an alternative model of the interface in HCI, the ‘intraface’, in response to design issues arising from navigational and learning problems in hypertext domains. Ours is a model of general application to computer systems. It is composed of four key elements, identifiable within a dynamic interconnected context. These are the user; his/her interests; the tools employed and the ‘ensemble’ of representations brought to bear. In this paper we sketch the present shortcomings of HCI design before outlining the background for the model which draws upon two themes in contemporary psychology, conversational analysis and ‘affordance’ realist theories in perception. This framework allows for the development of principles of cooperation, user engagement and learning in HCI environments.     

Implementation of meronymic (part-whole) inheritance for semantic networks

Studies in the field of cognitive science have demonstrated the existence of a taxonomy of meronymic (part-whole) relations, each of which corresponds to a meaning of the English phrase ‘part of’. It is proposed here that equivocations between meronymic and other types of semantic relations can be a source of ambiguity during knowledge elicitation, and are, in some part, responsible for the confusing plethora of types of is_a link to be found in current knowledge-based system environments. Based on the taxonomy of part-whole relations, a general-purpose implementation, and applications of meronymic inheritance for a Rule Based Frame System, are presented.     

Comparison of several discrete arithmetic schemes for simulating a constrained jet and a lab-scale tangential fired furnace

For tangential fired furnace, the false diffusion will occur when the flow is oblique to the grid lines. It is a major factor to cause serious errors to the prediction of tangential fired furnace. In order to decrease this false diffusion, this study has considered several alternative to the widely used upwind-differencing scheme with the aim of identifying which could be regarded as the most suitable in a general-purpose solving procedure for tangential furnace. The representations adopted are ‘hybrid’, ‘quick’ and ‘27-point’ treatments. Here, ‘27-point’ is a new discrete arithmetic scheme developed by the authors. All these schemes are used to simulate a constrained jet and a lab-scale tangential furnace and to compare solutions with the datum. Overall, the ‘27-point’ approximation emerged as the most satisfactory for simulating tangential furnace.     

Real-time integrated model for visual perception and fuzzy control

Current state-of-the-art security systems incorporate ‘passive’ and/or ‘human’ elements, the effectiveness of which can only be measured by their ability to ‘deter’ intruders. However, rapidly changing economic and cultural conditions have weakened the strengths associated with such systems. In the not too distant future, the need for an ‘active’ security system will become necessary in order to reduce the onslaught of crime.

This paper presents a conceptual basis for the incorporation of artificial intelligence concepts in the design and implementation of ‘active’ security systems. Specifically, the paper discusses issues pertaining to a real-time model for visual perception and tracking of possible intruders.     

Knowledge-based systems in computer-assisted production — a review

With the development of ‘expert’ or ‘knowledgeåsed’ systems, the efforts of artificial intelligence research have attained commercial application. While there have been to date, only a few investigations concerning the extent of this transfer, assessment of the extent of manufacturing applications has been mostly the result of speculation. By means of a comprehensive survey of documented systems in the USA, UK and FRG, the state-of-the-art of production applications of knowledge-based systems is described. Detailed discussion i is made of reasons leading to computer assistance and integrated solutions. Computer-assisted technological s systems are reviewed under their specific task areas — that is, construction and design, production planning, production control, production of parts, quality assurance, assembly, maintenance and customer service. Solutions for the connection of islands of automation are dealt with under the heading of Computer Integrated Manufacturing.     

Addition and removal of information for a knowledge base with incomplete information

A knowledge base containing incomplete information in the form of disjunctions and negative information shows difficulties regarding the update operators. In this paper simple and straightforward definitions are given for an ‘adding’ operator (‘+’) and a ‘removing’ operator (‘−’) using Hebrand models.     

Justifying reliability claims for a fault-detecting parallel architecture

This paper describes ‘Goal Structuring Notation’ (GSN), a graphical notation that can be used to structure and present an argument justifying some aspect of system performance. The design of a fault-detecting processor pair is examined to determine the extent to which it is indeed ‘fault-detecting’. It is argued that for complex systems, difficulties with assessment arise not so much from a lack of analysis techniques, but from the need to integrate the results from many diverse analyses into a coherent and compelling argument. It is suggested that GSN provides a framework in which such an argument can be made.     

Designing for operations: Towards a sociotechnical systems and cognitive engineering approach to concurrent engineering

In the practice of concurrent engineering, the factors that are considered early in the product design process include manufacturability, assembly, and cost. A set of issues that are not typically considered revolve around the operational requirements for human workers in the manufacturing system. What tasks will human workers accomplish? How will these tasks be organized and coordinated? What information and resources need to be shared? Will the workers have a coherent set of job responsibilities? How should the manufacturing environment be designed to support effective work practices? How can a manufacturing process be designed that also informs organizational structure and takes into account the quality of working life?

The field of sociotechnical systems theory (STS) focuses on exactly these kinds of issues. Rather than subscribing to the usual view of technological determinism — that a complex human-machine system is designed solely with respect to optimization of technical criteria — the goal of STS is to jointly optimize both human and technological considerations in system design and operation. The spirit of STS has much in common with recent work in cognitive systems engineering that advocates the design of joint cognitive systems in which machines serve as flexible, context-sensitive resources for human problem solving. Furthermore, a focus on design teams necessitates the study of the relationship between group work and technology as studied in the field of computer-supported cooperative work (CSCW). This paper briefly reviews current research in sociotechnical systems theory, computer-supported cooperative work, and cognitive systems engineering and proposes a framework for integrating operational concerns into the concurrent engineering process. Relevance to industry

To be competitive, organizations need to effectively manage human and technological resources. A key issue is the nature of the information and technological infrastructure that both enables and supports ‘best practice’ across the enterprise. This paper describes such an approach in the context of the ‘operational enterprise’ and provides both a philosophical stance as well as specific examples of software support.     

Topological models for boundary representation: a comparison with n-dimensional generalized maps

In boundary representation, a geometric object is represented by the union of a ‘topological’ model, which describes the topology of the modelled object, and an ‘embedding’ model, which describes the embedding of the object, for instance in three-dimensional Euclidean space. In recent years, numerous topological models have been developed for boundary representation, and there have been important developments with respect to dimension and orientability. In the main, two types of topological models can be distinguished. ‘Incidence graphs’ are graphs or hypergraphs, where the nodes generally represent the cells of the modelled subdivision (vertex, edge, face, etc.), and the edges represent the adjacency and incidence relations between these cells. ‘Ordered’ models use a single type of basic element (more or less explicitly defined), on which ‘element functions’ act; the cells of the modelled subdivision are implicitly defined in this type of model. In this paper some of the most representative ordered topological models are compared using the concepts of the n-dimensional generalized map and the n-dimensional map. The main result is that ordered topological models are (roughly speaking) equivalent with respect to the class of objects which can be modelled (i.e. with respect to dimension and orientability).     

The need for style systems in ODA

Many advanced document systems provide a formatting mechanism called ‘style sheets’ Style sheets provide a great deal of flexibility in describing a document's format, and allow easy maintenance of different house styles for a collection of documents. In this paper, we describe the basics of general style sheet systems, argue that successful document interchange must include the exchange of style sheet information, and evaluate ODA's style mechanism against this requirement.