AIERO: An Algorithm for Identifying Engineering Relationships in Ontologies

This paper introduces the development and application of semantic relatedness techniques towards improved knowledge management in product development processes through ontologies. As part of this work, several different semantic relatedness techniques are reviewed, including a meronomic technique recently introduced by the authors. An aggregate semantic relatedness measure, dubbed AIERO, is introduced to quantify underlying relationships between aspects of the product development process. To assess its applicability and accuracy, AIERO is tested using three separate, independently developed ontologies. The results indicate AIERO is capable of identifying and measuring relationships across a knowledge framework and can consistently produce results one would intuitively expect. Finally, a case study is presented to evaluate AIERO’s effectiveness in exposing underlying causal relationships across a product development platform. The results of this case study suggest that AIERO can uniquely quantify semantic relatedness between concepts, effectively enabling design engineers to systematically narrow the scope where causal relationships may exist between various domain concepts in the product development processes.