The role of functional prototyping in model validation

Summary form only given as follows. A framework to guide the development of an intelligent component and its integration with an existing decision support system is proposed. The framework draws on concepts from the fields of decision support systems, knowledge based systems and intelligent decision support systems. This framework was applied to a problem in the domain of dairy farm management. A prototype intelligent decision support system was developed. The prototype was tested to assess the success of the framework in producing the desired results. The proposed development framework is a useful tool for intelligent decision support systems development from an existing decision support system. Its success is attributed to the integration of methods and techniques drawn from a number of well established methodologies