Prototype-Based Reasoning: An Integrated Approach to Solving Large Novel Problems

Abstract

Two important computational approaches to problem solving are model-based reasoning (MBR) and case-based reasoning (CBR). MBR, since it reasons from first principles, is especially suited for solving novel problems. CBR, since it reasons from previous experience, is especially suited for solving frequently encountered prob-lems. However, large novel problems pose difficul-ties for both approaches-MBR rapidly grows in-tractable and CBR fails to find a relevant previous case. In this paper we describe an approach called prototype- based reasoning that integrates both ap-proaches to solve such problems. Prototype-based reasoning treats a large novel problem as a novel combination of several familiar subproblems. It uses CBR to find and solve the subproblems, for-mulates a new problem by combining these indi-vidual solutions, and uses MBR to solve this new problem. We demonstrate the effectiveness of this method on several examples involving the causal simulation of complex electronic circuits.