PROTEGE-II: computer support for development of intelligent systems from libraries of components

PROTEGE-II is a suite of tools that facilitates the development of intelligent systems. A tool called MAiTRE allows system builders to create and refine abstract models (ontologies) of application domains. A tool called DASH takes as input a modified domain ontology and generates automatically a knowledge-acquisition tool that application specialists can use to enter the detailed content knowledge required to define particular applications. The domain-dependent knowledge entered into the knowledge-acquisition tool is used by assemblies of domain-independent problem-solving methods that provide the computational strategies required to solve particular application tasks. The result is an architecture that offers a divide-and-conquer approach that separates system-building tasks that require skill in domain analysis and modeling from those that require simple entry of content knowledge. At the same time, applications can be constructed from libraries of component--of both domain ontologies and domain-independent problem-solving methods--allowing the reuse of knowledge and facilitating ongoing system maintenance. We have used PROTEGE-II to construct a number of knowledge-based systems, including the reasoning components of T-Helper, which assists physicians in the protocol-based care of patients who have HIV infection.