Applied artificial intelligence

What is applied AI?

Applied AI is concerned with producing
software which is “intelligent”
It is intelligent in that it is based on what
we know about human reasoning and
other mental abilities
We are therefore talking about a branch
of advanced computing - computer
technology - rather than social science
 Knowledge engineering

The term “knowledge engineering” is

often used to mean the process of
designing
building
installing
an expert system or other knowledge-
based system.
Some authors use the term to mean just
the knowledge acquisition phase.
 Experts

An expert is an experienced practitioner

in his/her particular field. More than that,
he/she is a highly effective problem-
solver and decision-taker in that field.
Experts have three qualities:
They make good decisions
They make those decisions quickly
They are able to cope with a wide range of
problems.
As a result, they are valuable, highly-
paid, and tend to be overworked.
Experts and expert systems

Note that:
The task that an expert system performs
will generally be regarded as difficult.
An expert system almost always operates
in a rather narrow field of knowledge. The
field of knowledge is called the knowledge
domain of the system.
There are many fields where expert
systems can usefully be built.
There are many fields where they can’t.
Experts and expert systems

Note also that an expert can usually

explain
and
justify
his/her decisions.
Reasons for building an E.S.

One might build an expert system for

any or all of the following reasons:
To archive an expert’s knowledge, to insure
against the day when he/she leaves, or
retires, or dies.
To disseminate his/her knowledge, so that
it is available in more (possibly many more)
places than the location of the expert.
To ensure uniformity of advice/decisions.
As a basis for training other specialists.
Advantages of expert systems

Put another way, E.S. have the following

advantages over human experts:
The knowledge is permanent
The knowledge is easily replicated
The knowledge is represented explicitly,
and can be evaluated
The system is consistent - whereas human
practitioners have bad days, computers
don’t.
Once built, running costs are low
 Disadvantages of expert
systems
Developing an expert system usually
costs a great deal of time & money
Historically, there has been a high
failure rate in E.S. projects
The project may well fail during
development - most likely during the
“knowledge acquisition” phase.
The development may succeed, but the
organisation may fail to accept and use the
finished system.
 Disadvantages of expert
systems
A human expert can update his/her
knowledge in the light of
Common sense
Knowledge derived from other domain
Contacts with other experts.

An expert system can’t.

 Choosing an E.S.project

Because of cost, and the danger of

failure, it is important that E.S. projects
are carefully chosen.
 Choosing an E.S.project

The expense must be justified, in the light

of the possible benefits.
E.S. technology must be appropriate
the right kind of expertise is involved
it isn’t a problem which conventional
programming could do better.
Management, and the participants, must
support the project fully.
 Types of expertise

Mike Greenwell’s classification of types

of expertise, according to identifiable
mental components of the skill (with
examples):
[source: Greenwell (1988)]
 The phone call test

A rather simpler approach to answering

the question which domains are worth
building into an expert system?
“Any problem that can be and frequently
is solved by your in-house expert in a
10-30 minute phone call can be
automated as an expert system.”
Prof.Morris Firebaugh
 Possible expert systems - case
histories

For discussion.
The following seven problem areas
may, or may not, be suitable for
computerisation as expert systems.
 Possible expert systems - case
histories

A certain third world country has a large

population, very few trained doctors, and
insufficient resources to train many more.
It is proposed to provide paramedics, who
can be trained relatively cheaply and
easily, with medical kits and portable PCs,
each PC to be loaded with an expert
system that can advise on the diagnosis
and treatment of a variety of common
diseases.
 Possible expert systems - case
histories

The housing department in a provincial

English town is overworked, although the
staff turnover is quite low. Much of the
work the staff do involves interviewing
clients, and there is a clear pattern of
questioning (which varies to a limited
degree, depending on the circumstances
of the client). It is proposed to build an
expert system, which will direct the
questioning process.
 Possible expert systems - case
histories

A firm of wine importers relies heavily on

its chief wine expert, who is skilled at
selecting wines that are destined to be
popular, on the basis of their taste,
colour, scent etc. She is soon to retire. It
is proposed to build an expert system
that will enable any of several junior
wine specialists to do her job.
 Possible expert systems - case
histories

An education authority has a severe

shortage of primary school teachers. It is
proposed that an expert system should
be built which can do the job of teaching
English and arithmetic to five year old
children.
 Possible expert systems - case
histories

A software company proposes to build

an expert system which can perform
book-keeping for small commercial
concerns.
 Possible expert systems - case
histories

A large manufacturer of diesel electric

locomotives has problems in providing
enough maintenance personnel who are
sufficiently skilled to locate faults in
these (highly complex) locomotives.
They propose to build an expert system
which can perform fault location on such
a machine.
 Possible expert systems - case
histories

A mineral exploitation company wishes

to extend its operations, which involve
searching for hitherto undiscovered
deposits of valuable metal ores. It is
short of trained geologists. It proposes
to build an expert system which can
assess a geological site and come to a
conclusion about how likely it is that
there is a worthwhile mineral deposit
there.
 Project I

Suppose you are assigned the task of adding

intelligence to any of the software systems
below, show how these systems can have
built-in intelligence.
a. Students registration system
b. English vocabulary learning system
c. Sales and marketing management system
d. Hospital management system
 Project II

The objective of this project is to give you

a chance to research a topic from the
following list. You must critically study the
problem domain, formulate interesting
questions, and creatively analyze What
you have studied during this research
phase.
a. Cell phone selector system: This system helps users select the
best possible cell phone to satisfy their needs
b. Animal recognition system: This system assists in the
recognition of an animal based on facts the user provides.
c. Palm reading system: This system supports the analysis of a
person’s hand and making an inference based on such an
analysis.
d. Online test system: This system aids in testing knowledge
learned by a student in a specific course.
e. Farming system: This system helps in the management of
diseases and pests on a farm. (You can select any type, e.g.,
vegetable farm, wheat farm, etc.)