An optimized and enhanced cognitive memory model for mechanical design problems

Abstract

Case-based reasoning (CBR) has been applied to mechanical design to aid designers in storing and later retrieving design cases when solving design problems. The development of an efficient memory model is crucial to the process of applying CBR to mechanical design. In previous work the authors have developed a memory model based on the EMOP (Episodic Memory Organization Packet) structure. While the model has been successfully implemented, it suffers from a space explosion problem. This paper presents how to overcome the limitations and solve the problems of current implementation of the EMOP memory model. The new implementation offers better space optimization and new enhancements. Enhancements include both probabilistic weights to retrieve events and editing features that allow the designer to add or remove indices and events. The new implementation has been done in LISP. The paper presents examples to demonstrate the capabilities of the new model.