The client-centred approach: expert system development

Abstract: This paper describes a project that is studying an expert system (ES) development method tailored to meet the requirements of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). It is posited that many such organisations cannot use ES technology because of its high entry price and because the available tools and methods were developed for and by large organisations. Within this context our development method encompasses the entire life cycle of an ES from initial conception to implementation through to maintenance and updating. The central premise is that the method should be 'client-centred', emphasising what the client can see, rather than being 'technology-centred', emphasising how the knowledge engineers work. Discussion includes how this methodology addresses many criticisms of current ES development methods, including rapid prototyping and KADS.     

基于Oracle HTML DB的在线订单管理系统敏捷开发

结合某在线订单管理系统,介绍敏捷软件开发的一般方法和迭代过程以及使用Oracle HTML DB进行系统开发的工程实践.该项目的成功实施为企业提供1个简捷、可靠的电子商务解决方案,证明敏捷开发技术特别适用于中小型软件工程.     

Using hybrid expert system approaches for engineering applications

In this paper, the use of hybrid expert system shells and hybrid (i.e., algorithmic and heuristic) approaches for solving engineering problems is reported. Aspects of various engineering problem domains are reviewed for a numer of examples with specific applications made to recently developed prototype expert systems. Based on this prototyping experience, critical evaluations of and comparisons between commercially available tools, and some research tools, in the United States and Australia, and their underlying problem-solving paradigms are made. Characteristics of the implementation tool and the engineering domain are compared and practical software engineering issues are discussed with respect to hybrid tools and approaches. Finally, guidelines are offered with the hope that expert system development will be less time consuming, more effective, and more cost-effective than it has been in the past.This paper is an attempt to provide some guidelines to expert system development based on limited experience with a handful of tools. It is not the intent of this paper to recommend or endorse the software, manufacturers, or organizations named within, nor to slight others not mentioned. We would appreciate feedback on omissions or oversights, so that more objective information about specific tools can be made public.Work performed while Aerospace Engineer, Artificial Intelligence Section, Mission Planning and Analysis Division, NASA/Johnson Space Center, Houston, TX.     

Using a multi-method approach to understand Agile software product lines

ContextSoftware product lines (SPLs) and Agile are approaches that share similar objectives. The main difference is the way in which these objectives are met. Typically evidence on what activities of Agile and SPL can be combined and how they can be integrated stems from different research methods performed separately. The generalizability of this evidence is low, as the research topic is still relatively new and previous studies have been conducted using only one research method.ObjectiveThis study aims to increase understanding of Agile SPL and improve the generalizability of the identified evidence through the use of a multi-method approach.MethodOur multi-method research combines three complementary methods (Mapping Study, Case Study and Expert Opinion) to consolidate the evidence.ResultsThis combination results in 23 findings that provide evidence on how Agile and SPL could be combined.ConclusionAlthough multi-method research is time consuming and requires a high degree of effort to plan, design, and perform, it helps to increase the understanding on Agile SPL and leads to more generalizable evidence. The findings confirm a synergy between Agile and SPL and serve to improve the body of evidence in Agile SPL. When researchers and practitioners develop new Agile SPL approaches, it will be important to consider these synergies.     

专家系统发展综述

为了概括专家系统近期的发展,按照发展次序,将专家系统划分为基于规则、基于框架、基于案例、基于模型和基于网络的5 个阶段。对每个阶段分析了对应的专家系统的思想,给出典型算法,并通过若干示例进行详述。然后总结了专家系统的发展规律,将其分为原理突破与技术突破两大类,原理突破服从“否定之否定”的发展规律,技术突破本质上是与其他学科的交叉。文末预测了进一步的研究方向。     

Involving users in expert system development

Abstract: The ultimate criterion of success for interactive expert systems is that they will be used, and used to effect, by individuals other than the system developers. A key ingredient of success in most systems is involving users in the specification and development of systems as they are being built. However, until recently, system designers have paid little attention to ascertaining user needs and to developing systems with corresponding functionality and appropriate interfaces to match those requirements. Although the situation is beginning to change, many developers do not know how to go about involving users, or else tackle the problem in an inadequate way. This paper discusses the need for user involvement and considers why many developers are still not involving users in an optimal way. It looks at the different ways in which users can be involved in the development process and describes how to select appropriate techniques and methods for studying users. Finally, it discusses some of the problems inherent in involving users in expert system development, and recommends an approach which incorporates both ethnographic analysis and formal user testing.     

An expert system approach to quality control

This paper describes the basic actions proposed for quality inspection. These actions involve structuring a Decision Supporting Expert System (DSES) to help with those decisions related to the preliminary activities for inspection development—most of them relating to determining of the need or convenience of carrying out the inspection itself. Once the opportunity to carry it out is defined, the expert system helps the user to select the type of inspection to adopt from amongst: (1) automatic or sensorial inspection; (2) inspection by samples or complete; (3) acceptance or rectifying and, in the most relevant module, (4) inspection by attributes or by variables. The complementary documentation of the DSES contains the directions to operate it, the rules and qualifiers that make up the system, as well as the results achieved through its experimental implementation.     

An expert system development tool for non AI experts

From their first applications until now, expert systems have provided solutions to multiple problems in companies of all types. With the advent of the Internet and its evolution, web-based expert systems have become very important. Moreover, the arrival of new mobile devices that can connect to the Internet has made it easy to access information from any place at any time, creating new requirements for web systems. The creation of an expert system normally requires certain technical knowledge and concepts of artificial intelligence (AI). If the need to make it accessible through the Internet is added, the degree of technical knowledge necessary for its development is greater, entailing an unaffordable cost for small and medium-sized companies. In this article, we present a tool for the development of web-based expert systems which permits the expert to define the knowledge without having to know anything about AI. The proposed inference engine is integrated in a web server through which it can be accessed from any device with an Internet connection. Finally, the article presents examples of developments achieved via the proposed framework.     

The client-centred approach: expert system maintenance

Abstract: Developing an expert system is a considerable investment in time and money and yet very little attention has focused on keeping expert systems in regular beneficial use. The problems of maintaining expert systems and the lack of research that this area has attracted are major contributing factors to the continued lack of acceptance of these systems. This paper discusses the maintenance of expert systems within the context of the Client Centred Approach. Although there are many similarities between maintaining expert systems and conventional systems maintenance there is one vital difference—knowledge changes. Consequently an expert system requires regular evolutionary maintenance if its performance is not to be impaired.
This paper is intended to promote discussion of maintenance issues within the community. We review some principles and techniques that can assist the maintenance of expert systems and describe some formative work towards a maintenance methodology derived from a case study of maintaining a commercially-available expert system.     

An expert system approach for die and mold making operations

In the modern manufacturing of sophisticated parts with 3D sculptured surfaces, die and mold making operations are the most widely used machining processes to remove unwanted material. To manufacture a die or a mold, many different cutting tools are involved, from deep hole drills to the smallest ball nose end mills. Since the specification of each tool is very different from each other, each mold or die is specific with their complicated shapes and many machining rules exist to consider, a great deal of expertise is needed in planning the machining operations. An expert system (DieEX) developed for this purpose is described in the present work. The geometry and the material of the workpiece, tool material, tool condition and operation type are considered as input values and various recommendations about the tool type, tool specifications, work holding method, type of milling operation, direction of feed and offset values are provided.     

煤矿瓦斯预测专家系统中基于粗集的知识获取方法

针对现有煤矿瓦斯预测专家系统因没有新知识获取措施及知识自更新功能而预测效果不佳的问题,提出了基于粗集的知识获取方法。该方法首先建立瓦斯数据与瓦斯突出强度之间关系的预测样本集;然后运用粗糙集的连续属性离散化、属性约简以及规则提取算法,从大量的预测样本集中自动获取预测知识,并将预测知识存储于专家系统知识库中;最后基于推理机实现煤矿瓦斯突出的实时预测。实例分析验证了该方法在煤矿瓦斯突出预测专家系统知识获取中的有效性和实用性。     

Using an expert system for design diagnosis and design synthesis

Abstract This paper describes the concepts which allow an expert system to be used for both design diagnosis and design synthesis. An example of the implementation of these concepts is presented in the domain of preliminary design of domestic kitchens in the expert system PREDIKT. PREDIKT carries out both design diagnosis and design synthesis using the same knowledge base and utilises an existing expert system shell which has forward- and backward-chaining capabilities. The significance of graphical interaction with expert systems in design domains is demonstrated.     

基于协同计划的敏捷供应链系统

研究某大型汽车零部件公司的供应链业务集成,提出协同计划机制,并在敏捷供应链（Agile Supply Chain,ASC）的整体计划中通过核心企业控制和协调各节点企业的协同计划．采用Java和．NET技术构建基于协同计划的敏捷供应链系统体系及技术架构．     

An expert system framework for a CIM based quality inspection system

With today's competitive marketplace moving toward a goal of lean, error free manufacturing a need for technological change in quality decision making has arisen. One approach to this new “quality” standard involves tying quality analysis to the theory of Computer Integrated Manufacturing (CIM). In this paper a model of such a system is presented including the application of an expert system to enhance dimensional tolerancing and data analysis in quality control. Our expert system will also serve a dual role as a technological link to a CIM environment through the use of IGES computer aided design data.     

Expert system for castability evaluation: Using a fixed-features based design approach

In the metal-processing industry, casting is the most popular means for achieving a desired shape (net shape) in a single step. The purpose of this work is to predict possible casting defects at the design stage in order to minimize repeated trial and error in the casting process. A knowledge-based expert system called EXCAST has been developed to facilitate the design of axisymmetrical casting components and to evaluate the manufacturability of the design at the design stage using a fixed-features based design approach. Axisymmetrical casting parts are modeled into a simplified fixed-feature representation so that we can (i) simplify a complex geometrical shape for manufacturability evaluation, (ii) extract common rules for manufacturability evaluation, and (iii) produce a simple and dynamic database for use in other systems. The manufacturability evaluation is carried out for tolerancing, minimum thickness, draft angle, shrinkage, hot junction, parting line, rounding, boss, and solidification. The EXCAST system was tested for eight flywheels in production and found to predict major casting problems.     

An evaluation of expert system development tools

Abstract: There is a significant amount of interest in expert systems and the software tools that are available for developing these systems. Most tools that are developed at university research labs are described in some detail in books, articles, or technical reports. However, there is a need for objective information on commercial software tools for building expert systems. These tools can be used for research, prototyping and developing end-user applications. Necessarily we must establish a set of criteria which can be used to evaluate these tools. These criteria include an evaluation of the basic features, the development environment, what a tool can be used for, how easy it is to learn and use, how much it costs, and how it is supported. In the first part of this paper, a set of criteria is described for evaluating expert system software tools. In the second part, these criteria are used to evaluate several currently available commercial tools.     

基于构件网格的农业专家系统研究

在农业Web服务器中存在大量的智能化构件资源,常规的服务组织方式不利于这些构件之间的协同服务和分发,基于构件网格提出农业专家系统的模型驱动体系结构,分析了分布式构件问的集成规则,并研究了数据挖掘构件、推理机构件和构件组装的接口问题及专家系统构件组装的实现方案,对构件资源的描述信息采用Web服务技术标准,为Internet上的这些构件资源提供统一的访问和组装方法,以方便挖掘过程中代理对构件的获取应用。