Abstract
Knowledge-based tools assisting the designer in engineering represent further improvement of expert systems. The present paper shows how such software can be developed in the particular domain of floor layout design for buildings. The recently developed paradigm of hierarchical graphs is taken as the knowledge representation scheme. The user of the system is encouraged to undertake the search for rational solution at two levels. First, an analysis of functionality requirements for the designed object is performed. This results in a graph capturing main functions and relations between them. Further, this graph is mapped onto another graph depicting the floor layout in terms of areas and rooms. Both graphs produced by the user are checked against the constraints resulting from the requirements of the relevant code of practice. The final result is converted into the format accepted by a commercial CAD-tool in order to proceed with the detailed design.
Highlights
Following up the popularity of MYCIN numerous expert systems were developed in the area of engineering design [1]
It is commonly agreed nowadays that knowledgebased design assistants who replaced expert systems should stimulate search for innovative solutions. This can be achieved by encouraging the designer to perform thorough conceptual analysis of the design task before plunging into details as well as by relieving him/her from the tedious check of the code of practice compliance of the project
The aim of the present paper is to demonstrate that both goals can be achieved within the frame of graphoriented knowledge representation
Summary
Following up the popularity of MYCIN numerous expert systems were developed in the area of engineering design [1]. Their acceptance by practitioners was very low. The main cause of that was too stiff nature of the first generation expert systems They forced the designer to follow a fixed path preventing him/ her from coming up with innovative solutions. It is commonly agreed nowadays that knowledgebased design assistants who replaced expert systems should stimulate search for innovative solutions This can be achieved by encouraging the designer to perform thorough conceptual analysis of the design task before plunging into details as well as by relieving him/her from the tedious check of the code of practice compliance of the project. The previous steps in developing the present system were reported in [ 13]
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