Expert Systems in Process Control and Optimization A Perspective

Recently the topic of expert systems in process applications has received a great deal of attention. The use of symbolic programming techniques to codify levels of human expertise has great potential in process control. Such systems can provide expert assistance, explanation, diagnosis, and a certain level of automated programming. There are, however, recognized limitations of this technology which should be a focus of research in artificial intelligence. This paper attempts to point out some of the strengths and weaknesses of expert system technologies with some emphasis on what we recognize as the potential and the problems associated with the use of these systems in real-time, process control applications.