Method for problem formulation and for obtaining solutions from a database

• US 7,536,368 B2
• Filed: 11/26/2003
• Issued: 05/19/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 11/26/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Allium US Holding LLC
• Original Assignee: Invention Machine Corporation (S&P Global Inc.)
• Inventors: Todhunter, James
• Primary Examiner(s): Hirl; Joseph P
• Application Number:
  US10/723,633
• Publication Number:
  US 20050114282A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,001 Days
• Field of Search: 706/47, 706/55, 706/45, 707/4
• US Class Current: 706/45
• CPC Class Codes: G06N 5/04 Inference or reasoning models

Abstract

Problem analysis tool automatically reformulates a problem statement into a natural language or Boolean query that is automatically submitted via a knowledge search tool to a database, and responses to this query from the database are automatically provided.

Claims

1. A system for obtaining solution suggestions for problems, the system comprising:

at least one processor and at least one storage medium including an electronic model of a system or process, wherein the electronic model includes components of the system or process and relationships between the components;

a problem analysis tool that analyzes the components and the relationships between the components of the electronic model to identify a problem to be solved, generates a problem statement representing the problem, and generates a machine representation of a problem statement;

a query formatter that reformulates the machine representation into a natural language query or Boolean query and automatically submits the query to at least one knowledge base; and

the at least one knowledge base comprising at least one database comprising problem solutions and returning a set of solution suggestions responsive to the query.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the query formatter translates functional relationships in the machine representation of the problem statement into semantic relationships.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the query formatter reformulates the problem statement into a natural language query.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the at least one knowledge base includes a semantic analysis knowledge base.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the at least one knowledge base is resident on a storage medium co-located with the computer.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the at least one knowledge base is resident on a corporate server.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the at least one knowledge base is remotely accessed.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the at least one knowledge base is a patent collection that is remotely accessed.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein at least one knowledge base includes a knowledge search tool that accesses a plurality of databases selected from a group including:

at least one database resident on a storage medium co-located with the computer;

at least one database on a corporate server; and

at least one database accessible via an internet link.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the at least one knowledge base includes a semantic analysis knowledge base.

11. The system of claim 1, wherein the at least one knowledge base includes a knowledge search tool that uses the query to automatically search the at least one database.

12. The system of claim 1, wherein:

the problem analysis tool determines functional relationships between key components of the electronic model; and

the query formatter translates the functional relationships into the natural language query.

13. The system of claim 1, wherein:

the problem analysis tool performs a root cause analysis of the electronic model to generate a directed graph having one or more nodes, wherein each node represents a problem statement and has a node edge that represents a cause-effect relationship; and

the query formatter translates the one or more nodes into the natural language query.

14. A computer program product stored on at least one storage medium for execution by one or more processors to perform a method of obtaining solution suggestions for problems, using a database including an electronic model of a system or process, wherein the electronic model includes components of the system or process and relationships between the components, said method comprising:

analyzing the components and the relationships between the components of the electronic model to identify a problem to be solved;

automatically generating a machine representation of the problem;

reformulating the machine representation into a natural language or Boolean query;

submitting the query to at least one knowledge base having problem solutions stored therein, and

returning a set of solution suggestions responsive to the query from the at least one knowledge base.

15. The computer program product of claim 14, wherein reformulating the machine representation into a natural language or Boolean query includes translating functional relationships in the machine representation into semantic relationships.

16. The computer program product of claim 14, wherein one or more of the at least one knowledge base is a semantic analysis knowledge base.

17. The computer program product of claim 14, wherein the at least one knowledge base is resident on a storage medium co-located with at least one of the one or more processors.

18. The computer program product of claim 14, wherein the at least one knowledge base is resident on a corporate server.

19. The computer program product of claim 14, wherein the at least one knowledge base is remotely accessible.

20. The computer program product of claim 14, wherein the at least one knowledge base is a patent collection that is remotely accessible.

21. The computer program product of claim 14, wherein accessing at least one knowledge base includes using a knowledge search tool to access a plurality of databases comprising two or more of:

at least one database resident on a storage medium co-located with at least one of the one or more processors;

at least one database on a corporate server; and

at least one database accessible by an internet link.

22. The computer program product of claim 21 wherein at least one of said knowledge bases is a semantic analysis knowledge base.

23. The computer program product of claim 14, wherein the method includes submitting the query to the at least one knowledge base without intervention by a user.

24. The computer program product of claim 14, wherein:

identifying the problem to be solved includes determining functional relationships between key components of the electronic model; and

reformulating the machine representation into the natural language query includes translating the functional relationships into the natural language query.

25. The computer program product of claim 14, wherein:

identifying the problem to be solved includes performing a root cause analysis of the electronic model to generate a directed graph having one or more nodes, wherein each node represents a problem statement and has a node edge that represents a cause-effect relationship; and

reformulating the machine representation into the natural language query includes translating the nodes into the natural language query.

26. A computer-based method of obtaining solution suggestions for problems, using an electronic model of a system or process, wherein the electronic model includes components of the system or process and relationships between the components, said method comprising the following computer executed steps:

analyzing the components and the relationships between the components of the electronic model, including identifying a problem to be solved;

generating a machine representation of the problem;

reformulating the machine representation into a natural language or Boolean query;

automatically submitting the query to at least one knowledge base having solutions stored therein; and

returning a set of solution suggestions responsive to the query from the at least one knowledge base.

27. The method of claim 26, further comprising presenting the set of solution suggestions via an output device.

28. A system for obtaining solution suggestions for problems, said system comprising:

at least one processor and at least one storage medium including an electronic model of a system or process, wherein the electronic model includes components of the system or process and relationships between the components;

a problem analysis tool that analyzes the components and the relationships between the components of the electronic model to identify a problem to be solved and generates a machine representation of the problem;

a query formatter that reformulates the machine representation into a natural language or Boolean query and automatically submits the query to at least one knowledge base; and

the at least one knowledge base comprising;

at least one database comprising problem solutions; and

a knowledge search tool that automatically returns a set of solution suggestions responsive to the query from the at least one database.