EXPLAIN EXPERT SYSTEM IN DETAIL

An expert system is a computer program that is designed to solve complex problems and to
provide decision-making ability like a human expert. It performs this by extracting
knowledge from its knowledge base using the reasoning and inference rules according to
the user queries.

• Expert system = knowledge + problem-solving methods

• A knowledge base that captures the domain-specific knowledge and an inference

engine that consists of algorithms for manipulating the knowledge represented in
the knowledge base to solve a problem presented to the system.

The expert system is a part of AI, and the first ES was developed in the year 1970, which was
the first successful approach of artificial intelligence.

It solves the most complex issue as an expert by extracting the knowledge stored in its
knowledge base. The system helps in decision making for compsex problems using both
facts and heuristics like a human expert. It is called so because it contains the expert
knowledge of a specific domain and can solve any complex problem of that particular
domain. These systems are designed for a specific domain, such as medicine, science, etc.

The performance of an expert system is based on the expert's knowledge stored in its
knowledge base. The more knowledge stored in the KB, the more that system improves its
performance. One of the common examples of an ES is a suggestion of spelling errors while
typing in the Google search box.

Characteristics of Expert System

o High Performance: The expert system provides high performance for solving
any type of complex problem of a specific domain with high efficiency and
accuracy.
o Understandable: It responds in a way that can be easily understandable by the
user. It can take input in human language and provides the output in the same
way.
o Reliable: It is much reliable for generating an efficient and accurate output.
o Highly responsive: ES provides the result for any complex query within a very
short period of time.
Components of Expert System
An expert system mainly consists of three components:

o User Interface
o Inference Engine
o Knowledge Base

1. User Interface

With the help of a user interface, the expert system interacts with the user, takes
queries as an input in a readable format, and passes it to the inference engine. After
getting the response from the inference engine, it displays the output to the user. In
other words, it is an interface that helps a non-expert user to communicate with
the expert system to find a solution.
2. Inference Engine(Rules of Engine)
o The inference engine is known as the brain of the expert system as it is the main
processing unit of the system. It applies inference rules to the knowledge base to derive
a conclusion or deduce new information. It helps in deriving an error-free solution of
queries asked by the user.
o With the help of an inference engine, the system extracts the knowledge from the
knowledge base.
o Inference Engine acquires and manipulates the knowledge from the knowledge base
to arrive at a particular solution.

• To recommend a solution, the Inference Engine uses the following strategies

The Inference Engine generally uses two strategies for acquiring knowledge
from the Knowledge Base, namely –
• Forward Chaining
• Backward Chaining
Forward Chaining –
Forward Chaining is a strategic process used by the Expert System to answer
the questions – What will happen next. This strategy is mostly used for
managing tasks like creating a conclusion, result or effect. Example –
prediction or share market movement status.

Backward Chaining –
Backward Chaining is a strategy used by the Expert System to answer the
questions – Why this has happened. This strategy is mostly used to find out
the root cause or reason behind it, considering what has already happened.
Example – diagnosis of stomach pain, blood cancer or dengue, etc.
3. Knowledge Base

It contains domain-specific and high-quality knowledge

o The knowledgebase is a type of storage that stores knowledge acquired from the
different experts of the particular domain. It is considered as big storage of knowledge.
The more the knowledge base, the more precise will be the Expert System.
o It is similar to a database that contains information and rules of a particular domain or
subject.
o One can also view the knowledge base as collections of objects and their attributes.
Such as a Lion is an object and its attributes are it is a mammal, it is not a domestic
animal, etc.

Capabilities of the Expert System

o Provide decision-making capabilities: It provides the capability of decision
making in any domain, such as for making any financial decision, decisions in
medical science, etc.
o Problem-solving: It has problem-solving capabilities.
o Explaining a problem: It is also capable of providing a detailed description of
an input problem.
o Interpreting the input: It is capable of interpreting the input given by the user.
o Predicting results: It can be used for the prediction of a result.
o Diagnosis: An ES designed for the medical field is capable of diagnosing a
disease without using multiple components as it already contains various inbuilt
medical tools.
• Steps in developing the ES include −

– Identify Problem Domain

– Design the System

– Develop the Prototype

– Represent it in the form of If-THEN-ELSE rules.

– Test and Refine the Prototype

– Develop and Complete the ES

– Maintain the ES

• Benefits of Expert Systems

• Availability − They are easily available due to mass production of software.

• Less Production Cost − Production cost is reasonable. This makes them affordable.

• Speed − They offer great speed. They reduce the amount of work an individual puts in.

• Less Error Rate − Error rate is low as compared to human errors.

• Reducing Risk − They can work in the environment dangerous to humans.

• Steady response − They work steadily without getting motional, tensed or fatigued

• Expert Systems Limitations

– Limitations of the technology

– Difficult knowledge acquisition

– ES are difficult to maintain

EXPLAIN COMPONENTS AND TYPES OF PLANNING

In the realm of Artificial Intelligence (AI), planning involves the process of generating
a sequence of actions or steps to achieve a specific goal from an initial state while
considering the available resources, constraints, and the environment. Planning is
crucial for AI systems, particularly in autonomous agents, robotics, and decision-
making scenarios. The process involves several components and can be classified
into various types based on different criteria.

Components of Planning:

1. Initial State:
• This represents the starting configuration or state of the system. It
defines the conditions or variables at the beginning of the planning
process.
2. Goal State:
• The desired outcome or goal that the planner aims to achieve. It
specifies the conditions or objectives that the system intends to reach
through planning.
3. Actions/Operators:
• Actions or operators are the atomic steps or operations that the system
can perform to transition from one state to another. They manipulate
the state of the system.
4. Transition Model:
• Describes how the system moves from one state to another by
applying actions. It defines the effects of actions on the current state,
determining the resulting state after an action is executed.
5. Constraints:
• These are limitations or conditions that restrict the execution of certain
actions or influence the planning process. Constraints can include
resource limitations, temporal constraints, or preconditions for actions.

Types of Planning:

1. Classical Planning:
• Involves deterministic planning in a fully observable environment
without uncertainty. Classical planners generate a sequence of actions
to achieve a goal from an initial state using logical reasoning.
2. Probabilistic Planning:
 • Deals with uncertainty by incorporating probabilistic elements into the
planning process. It considers the likelihood of different actions leading
to various outcomes and selects actions based on their expected utility.
3. Hierarchical Planning:
• Divides the planning problem into multiple levels of abstraction or
hierarchy, allowing for easier and more manageable planning by
breaking down complex tasks into smaller subtasks.
4. Reactive Planning:
• Focuses on real-time decision-making in dynamic and partially
observable environments. Reactive planners make immediate decisions
based on current environmental inputs without extensive future
planning.
5. Temporal Planning:
• Deals with time-sensitive constraints and actions, considering temporal
aspects such as deadlines, durations, and ordering of actions to achieve
goals within specific time frames.
6. Multi-Agent Planning:
• Involves planning in scenarios where multiple autonomous agents
interact and coordinate their actions to achieve individual or collective
goals. It encompasses collaboration and negotiation among agents.

Planning in AI plays a critical role in various applications, including robotics,

automated manufacturing, scheduling, logistics, and intelligent systems, enabling
efficient decision-making and goal achievement in diverse domains.