An evidential approach to problem solving when a large number of knowledge systems is available

Many problems deal with knowledge and information itself and can be generalized beyond the specialized areas of expertise from which they originate. A powerful method in artificial intelligence is to look at certain features of a problem and to combine the evidence so obtained in order to perceive a general pattern. This article describes a paradigm in which the Dempster‐Shafer method of combining evidence from independent sources is used for two distinct, but closely related purposes. the first of these is to obtain the answer to a specific query, while the second is to define a dynamic policy for parallel accessing of relevant knowledge systems. the access policy is determined by a sequence of goals which are themselves subdivided into control characteristics of potential knowledge systems. This article concentrates on the general approach and fundamental mathematics involved in this procedure. Specific applications will be dealt with in future research.