System and method for authoring an expert system
First Claim
1. A system for authoring an expert system, comprising:
- a computer with a storage system for storing data and programs;
a computer display for displaying one or more grids containing a plurality of grid cells; and
an interactive authoring program running on the computer at an authoring time that allows an author to allocate one or more grid cells as a knowledge base cell, the knowledge base cells comprising assertion cells and interaction cells, each assertion cell recording an assertion value that may be updated by an expert system user at a run time, each interaction cell having one or more interaction formats, each interaction format specifying an interaction to be conducted with the expert system user when the interaction cell is invoked at the run time, and each interaction format also specifying one assertion cell for each assertion that the expert system user can make when the interaction cell is invoked at the run time, each interaction cell also having an enabling condition provided by the author to enable the invocation of the interaction cell at the run time, and each enabling condition being a formula that contains zero or more references to assertion cells, each interaction cell also having a tag for storing a recalculation number during the run time that identifies a time since which the interaction cell has been continuously enabled at the run time, the tag being used at the run time to identify a most recently enabled interaction cell, the most recently enabled interaction cell being invoked ahead of other enabled interaction cell at the run time,whereby the set of knowledge base cells allocated by the author at the authoring time comprise the knowledge base of the expert system.
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Abstract
An authoring system and method create a knowledge base for an expert system that comprises communication cells for storing external data, assertion cells for storing data acquired from a user in the course of a user dialog, and interaction cells that specify (multimedia) interactions with the user, which are carried out as the cells are invoked by the run-time program. Each interaction cell has an enabling condition that must be satisfied before it can be invoked. At authoring time, the knowledge base is constructed by an expert system author who allocates the knowledge base cells on a rectangular grid similar to a spreadsheet. The author can try out various what-if scenarios by setting the values of assertion and communication cells and recalculating the knowledge base or simulating the created expert system. The grid is only an authoring tool, which is not visible or present at run time. A preferred application of the system is to create a health care expert system that will exchange information with a health care provider.
116 Citations
14 Claims
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1. A system for authoring an expert system, comprising:
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a computer with a storage system for storing data and programs; a computer display for displaying one or more grids containing a plurality of grid cells; and an interactive authoring program running on the computer at an authoring time that allows an author to allocate one or more grid cells as a knowledge base cell, the knowledge base cells comprising assertion cells and interaction cells, each assertion cell recording an assertion value that may be updated by an expert system user at a run time, each interaction cell having one or more interaction formats, each interaction format specifying an interaction to be conducted with the expert system user when the interaction cell is invoked at the run time, and each interaction format also specifying one assertion cell for each assertion that the expert system user can make when the interaction cell is invoked at the run time, each interaction cell also having an enabling condition provided by the author to enable the invocation of the interaction cell at the run time, and each enabling condition being a formula that contains zero or more references to assertion cells, each interaction cell also having a tag for storing a recalculation number during the run time that identifies a time since which the interaction cell has been continuously enabled at the run time, the tag being used at the run time to identify a most recently enabled interaction cell, the most recently enabled interaction cell being invoked ahead of other enabled interaction cell at the run time, whereby the set of knowledge base cells allocated by the author at the authoring time comprise the knowledge base of the expert system. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14)
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Specification