An Expert-System Shell Using Structured Knowledge: An Object-Oriented Approach

Abstract

An architecture for an expert-system shell that mixes declarative nd procedural knowledge, overcoming a major problem of conventional shells, is presented. The prototype shell uses structured knowledge representations and its built-in database interface not only allows automatic extraction of data from a database management system but also provides a fuzzy database query facility. The shell's object-oriented approach to knowledge representation supports data and knowledge acquisition and management. Another feature is encapsulation which prevents object manipulation except by defined operations. A comparison of representation methods and two case studies showing System X-I's power and flexibility are included.