Intelligent database design diagnosis: Performance assessment with the provision of domain knowledge

Techniques for representing and exploiting domain knowledge (such as the dictionary, thesaurus and knowledge reconciliation techniques) have long been used by intelligent database design tools when performing the task of design synthesis. However, the capacity of these techniques to enhance the diagnostic capabilities of intelligent database design tools has yet to be explored and evaluated. This paper presents such an evaluation, focusing upon the aforementioned techniques of dictionary, thesaurus and knowledge reconciliation. Results obtained from this investigation suggest that use of these techniques has the potential to increase the diagnostic capabilities of intelligent database design tools by facilitating detection and resolution of design inconsistencies that would remain undiscovered in situations where such system-held domain knowledge was not available.