The KRAFT architecture for knowledge fusion and transformation

An approach for semantic integration of heterogeneous data sources

Integrating data from multiple heterogeneous data sources entails dealing with data distributed among heterogeneous information sources, which can be structured, semi-structured or unstructured, and providing the user with a unified view of these data. Thus, in general, gathering information is challenging, and one of the main reasons is that data sources are designed to support specific applications. Very often their structure is unknown to the large part of users. Moreover, the stored data is often redundant, mixed with information only needed to support enterprise processes, and incomplete with respect to the business domain. Collecting, integrating, reconciling and efficiently extracting information from heterogeneous and autonomous data sources is regarded as a major challenge. In this paper, we present an approach for the semantic integration of heterogeneous data sources, DIF (Data Integration Framework), and a software prototype to support all aspects of a complex data integration process. The proposed approach is an ontology-based generalization of both Global-as-View and Local-as-View approaches. In particular, to overcome problems due to semantic heterogeneity and to support interoperability with external systems, ontologies are used as a conceptual schema to represent both data sources to be integrated and the global view.

A HYBRID MODEL FOR SHARING INFORMATION BETWEEN FUZZY, UNCERTAIN AND DEFAULT REASONING MODELS IN MULTI-AGENT SYSTEMS

This paper develops a hybrid model which provides a unified framework for the following four kinds of reasoning: 1) Zadeh's fuzzy approximate reasoning; 2) truth-qualification uncertain reasoning with respect to fuzzy propositions; 3) fuzzy default reasoning (proposed, in this paper, as an extension of Reiter's default reasoning); and 4) truth-qualification uncertain default reasoning associated with fuzzy statements (developed in this paper to enrich fuzzy default reasoning with uncertain information). Our hybrid model has the following characteristics: 1) basic uncertainty is estimated in terms of words or phrases in natural language and basic propositions are fuzzy; 2) uncertainty, linguistically expressed, can be handled in default reasoning; and 3) the four kinds of reasoning models mentioned above and their combination models will be the special cases of our hybrid model. Moreover, our model allows the reasoning to be performed in the case in which the information is fuzzy, uncertain and partial. More importantly, the problems of sharing the information among heterogeneous fuzzy, uncertain and default reasoning models can be solved efficiently by using our model. Given this, our framework can be used as a basis for information sharing and exchange in knowledge-based multi-agent systems for practical applications such as automated group negotiations. Actually, to build such a foundation is the motivation of this paper.