An Architecture for Performing Complex Evaluations

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Many difficult problems require the analysis of a large number of subproblems and the subsequent combining of the results to form an overall solution. The quality of the solution depends both on how well and how fast this analysis is done. A fast and effective method for performing such analyses in the domain of chess has been described and a prototype implemented in the Hitech chess machine. Hitech, which has surpassed all previous efforts in computer chess by more than 150 rating points, has demonstrated the power of this method in a limited problem domain. However, there remains the open question about the applicability of this evaluation method to other problem areas. The focus of this research is to better understand the power and generality of this architecture with respect to other problems in Artificial Intelligence and on its development of the tools with which new instances of this hardware can be built for other problems. The first goal is being pursued by performing case studies in a number of promising problem areas and proposing solutions based on this architecture. At the same time a general evaluation chip is being designed and implemented that will be targeted for Hitech, but will include the features common to any evaluation chip. The second phase of the research is taking a solution proposed in one of the case studies and constructing a prototype using the tools developed during the design of the first evaluation chip. The project focuses on generalizing a problem solution approach found effective in one problem area to a broader class of problems and evaluating its effectiveness in these new areas. The approach combines this powerful solution approach with modern VLSI technology to produce a unique problem solution capability.