International Business Machines Corporation

Carnegie Group

Serviceware, Inc.

Rajiv Enand

Jeffrey A Pepper

Christopher A Newlon

Dennis Whalen

Neha Shahani

Al N Kepner

Gary S Kahn

William Richer

The present invention relates to a computer-implemented method, system, and program product for identifying business offerings based on customer needs. In a typical embodiment, the present invention is implemented in conjunction with a spreadsheet computer program such as LOTUS 1-2-3, MICROSOFT EXCEL or the like. In any event, under the present invention, at least one initial analysis/customer detail will be designated. Based on the designation(s), a set of customer needs will be identified from a set of possible customer needs. Thereafter, at least one customer need from the set of customer needs will be designated. Based on this designation and a mapping of customer needs to possible business offerings, a set of prioritized business offerings will be identified from a set of possible business offerings.

Computer-implemented method, system, and program product for identifying business offerings based on customer needs

An object-oriented decision structure usable by different diagnostic software engines defines a knowledge base that includes a problem, a symptom of the problem, a solution, and case in which the solution is the solution to the problem. The data structure includes a question object defining a question, a response object defining an answer, a question node object, a solution node object defining the case, a case master object defining the problem, the solution, and the case, and a symptom object defining the symptom and pointing to the case master object and to the solution node object. The question node object points to the solution node object, the question object, and the response object and correlates the question, the response, and the solution node object, and the solution node object points to the case master object. The data structure is thus capable of use by a case based reasoning system software engine to establish the existence of the case, and thus that the solution is the solution to the problem, by identifying the symptom, matching the symptom to the symptom object, following the symptom object to the solution object, and following the solution object to the case master object. The data structure is also capable of use by a tree-based expert system software engine to establish the existence of the case by selecting the question node object, following the question node object to the question object to pose the question, matching a received answer to the response object, following the question node correlation of the question, the answer, and the solution node object to the solution node object, and following the solution node object to the case master object.

Software structure for data delivery on multiple engines

An application shell provides a domain independent diagnostic problem solver comprised of a knowledge base. The knowledge base includes a plurality of failure mode schemata arranged in a causal hierarchy from observable failure modes to failure modes having a repair procedure; a plurality of rule schemata related to certain of said failure mode schemata; a plurality of datum schemata for gathering data about the system under investigation, the information being used to determine the applicability of said rule schemata; and a plurality of repair procedure schemata each being related to one of the failure mode schemata having a repair procedure. A problem solver is capable of forward chaining through the knowledge base and backward chaining through the failure mode schemata based on the rules, the forward chaining, and the hierarchical arrangement of failure mode schemata so as to change the focus from one failure mode schema to another failure mode schema deeper within the hierarchical arrangement without having to focus upon any intermediate schemata to thereby locate an appropriate repair procedure schema.

Domain independent shell for building a diagnostic expert system

Growing community of inventors

Gibsonia, PA, United States of America

Rajiv Enand