Out of the lab into the field: system design of large expert systems

Traditional software engineering is crucial to the successful development of a large expert system. In this respect, large expert systems are shown to have many similarities with other large software systems. The advanced computing concepts, rapid prototyping approach, and general research and development aspects of expert systems have sometimes led to the neglect of fundamental principles of software engineering. These principles are creating and maintaining interfaces between program modules, the use of specification languages, automatic code generation, long-term maintenance, and the use of commercial products. A large-scale expert system currently in advanced development is used as an example.<>