Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item:
http://bura.brunel.ac.uk/handle/2438/5789
Title: | The modifiability of rule-based expert systems |
Authors: | Bottaci, Leonardo |
Advisors: | Johnson, L |
Issue Date: | 1985 |
Publisher: | Brunel University School of Engineering and Design PhD Theses |
Abstract: | This thesis examines the claim that rule representations of knowledge are conveniently modified. The thesis falls into two parts and in the first, a precise notion of a convenient modification, called an extension, is developed and it is shown that extensible knowledge-bases are very convenient to modify and develop. We show that- rule representations of knowledge are extensible only if they incorporate a suitable organisation of knowledge. Furthermore, we show that non-rule representations with a suitable organisation of knowledge are also extensible. We therefore conclude that rule representations of knowledge are no more or less extensible than non-rule representations. In the second part, we consider the more pragmatic aspects of knowledge-base modifiability. In each of two detailed case studies, we compare the modifiability of a rule-based expert system with its "second generation” counterpart which incorporates non-rule representations of knowledge. We conclude that in practice the modifiability of extensible knowledge-bases can be compromised if the organisation of knowledge is represented obscurely. Above all, the thesis emphasizes the importance of the organisation of knowledge in an expert system. |
Description: | This thesis was submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy and awarded by Brunel University. |
URI: | http://bura.brunel.ac.uk/handle/2438/5789 |
Appears in Collections: | Electronic and Electrical Engineering Dept of Electronic and Electrical Engineering Theses |
Files in This Item:
File | Description | Size | Format | |
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FulltextThesis.pdf | 12.91 MB | Adobe PDF | View/Open |
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