A First Step Towards an Intelligent Integrated Design System in the Building Field

This article presents the work the Knowledge Base Group is achieving towards the integration of Artificial Intelligence based facilities in the Building design process. After an overview of the current state of the integrated design process, the context and the technical guidelines to realize computer integrated software in the building design field is described. Then some tools are presented to model the knowledge (the HBDS method) and to implement such model in our Mips home-made knowledge modelling software platform (including object-oriented database management facilities, expert system reasoning facilities, hypertext edition facilities, 3D-design and 3D-view modules...). Finally the authors describe the Quakes application devoted to assess detached house anti-seismic capabilities during the design process. A deep conceptual model considers all the semantic entities (columns, resistant panels, openings,...) involved in the anti-seismic expertise. Using both this conceptual model description of a detached house and the 3D design tool, they input the project. Then the seismic expertise is driven in a divide and conquer approach and records the alleged configuration recognized automatically linked to the corresponding section of the building regulatio