Expert system and method employing hierarchical knowledge base, and interactive multimedia/hypermedia applications

• US 5,806,056 A
• Filed: 12/27/1996
• Issued: 09/08/1998
• Est. Priority Date: 04/29/1994
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Hekmatpour, Amir
• Primary Examiner(s): Hafiz, Tariq R.
• Application Number:
  US08/774,243
• Time in Patent Office: 620 Days
• Field of Search: 395/10-11, 395/50-54, 395/60-61, 706/11, 706/45, 706/46, 706/50, 706/53, 706/61, 706/48, 706/60
• US Class Current: 706/50
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0481 based on specific properties of the displayed interaction object or a metaphor-based environment, e.g. interaction with desktop elements like windows or icons, or assisted by a cursor's changing behaviour or appearance
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/103 Formatting, i.e. changing of presentation of documents automatic justification G06F40/189; automatic line break hyphenation G06F40/191
• CPC Class Codes: G06N 5/02 Knowledge representation; Symbolic representation
• CPC Class Codes: G06N 5/022 Knowledge engineering; Knowledge acquisition
• CPC Class Codes: G06N 5/04 Inference or reasoning models
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 5/065 Combinations of audio and video presentations, e.g. videotapes, videodiscs, television systems
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 7/04 characterised by modifying the teaching programme in response to a wrong answer, e.g. repeating the question, supplying a further explanation

Abstract

An expert system and processing method employing a three level hierarchical knowledge base that has a plurality of nodes coupled together. An uppermost level comprises a behavioral knowledge level, a middle level comprises a structural knowledge level and a lowermost level is an action level. Inference processing proceeds from the behavioral knowledge level through the structural knowledge level to a leaf node of the action level. One or more non-inferentially assessable utilities may be associated with the inference kernel of the expert system for accessing during inferential processing within the hierarchically structured knowledge base. A knowledge editor implements guidelines that structure received information in the desired hierarchical three level configuration. Further, interactive multimedia/hypermedia systems and methods are presented, which might be expert system based. Training and certification applications of the multimedia/hypermedia system/method are given.

Claims

1. An inferential processing method for an expert system having a knowledge base with a hierarchical decomposition of three levels, an uppermost level comprising a behavioral knowledge level, a middle level comprising a structural knowledge level, and a lowermost level comprising an action level, said processing method comprising the steps of:

(a) inference processing within said behavioral knowledge level based upon entropy values associated with nodes within said behavioral knowledge level;

(b) subsequent to said step (a), inference processing within said structural knowledge level with reference to entropy values associated with nodes within said structural knowledge level; and

(c) subsequent to said step (b), inference processing within said action level using entropy values associated with nodes with said action knowledge level.