Towards modelling a multi-agent knowledge system in engineering design

Engineering design projects represent a class of complex synthesis problem. It is characterised by a large solution space and a sequence of decision-making steps at each state in the solution space. An effective solution for such problems depends upon cooperative participation of a number of specialist teams. AI research has been focused in understanding cooperative knowledge systems. The question centre around the complexity of separate knowledge sources in terms of heterarchical and hierarchical organization structure and convergence of design cycle. In this paper, we discuss an approach that employs a set of cooperative knowledge sources involved in design process at various stages of VLSI design, interacting through a common blackboard architecture. A conceptual model based on blackboard architecture is introduced to manage knowledge associated with VLSI design. A case study on the design of VLSI floorplan is considered. The framework enables one to generate, evaluate and come out with alternative design decisions