An Intelligent Workstation for Electrocenter Design

Using techniques of artificial intelligence, a prototype of an intelligent engineering workstation to be used in the design of Electrocenters specialized buildings that contain equipment for the distribution and control of electrical power is being developed. The research has two primary goals: 1) to provide an engineer with an environment that will enhance his productivity, and 2) to gain insight into, and develop a model of, the creative processes involved in engineering design. The results of this research may be generalized to apply to other ill-structured problem domains that require creative decision-making. The verbalizations of an expert engineer as he worked through the entire task of translating a customer's specifications into a final design proposal were observed and recorded. Analysis of these verbal protocols and subsequent interviews have led to 1) a preliminary model of his decisionmaking and design processes, and 2) a model of an intelligent engineering workstation. The workstation is intended to fill the role of a trained assistant to the engineer. The current state of the research is described, and the proposed architecture of the workstation is discussed. A short review of related research is also presented.