Knowledge based architecture to integrate heterogeneous distributed information systems

A knowledge-based architecture designed to connect and correlate autonomous disparate information sources is presented. The information sources being integrated come equipped with logical front-ends that build up only those parts of a virtual global schema which are needed to process local or global requests. The schema building and translation processes are driven by respective knowledge bases. The core of the architecture is a connecting tissue in the form of a distributed knowledge modeling platform, also referred to as distributed cooperative object management. The proposed architecture is intended for a broad spectrum of use, ranging from heterogeneous business applications to sophisticated design systems. It is expected that the architecture can be implemented on top of open distributed processing environments