NSF Award
9860316
9860316l<br/> Material and process specifications are vital for any organization involved in complex manufacturing. Specifications (specs) are often comprehensive and voluminous, covering hundreds of characteristics such as the material properties, testing parameters, and processing requirements. The methods used to review and analyze specs, however, are labor-intensive, time consuming, and all too often produce results that have a negative impact on quality. This Small Business Innovation Research Phase I project from Renaissance Engineering, Inc. seeks to create a conceptual design for tools which provide computer-assistance in the interpretation of spec requirements based on the theories of Information Extraction. The project bases the analysis of specification content on an emerging meta-specification created as a result of previous NSF support. This meta-specification provides ontology for capturing and re-using the semantic knowledge contained in the body of specs. The tools created as a result of this research would be used to convert existing test-based specs into the computer-sensible ontology.<br/> Tools that access specifications in an intelligent, computerized format such as those proffered by Renaissance Engineering are of importance to the many organizations that have their processing, inspecting, and testing controlled by specifications including the Federal Government, and suppliers and prime contractors for many industries, particularly aerospace, automotive, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, and electronics.
