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Computing Explanations and Implications in Preference-Based Configurators

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Recent Advances in Constraints (CologNet 2002)

Part of the book series: Lecture Notes in Computer Science ((LNAI,volume 2627))

Abstract

We consider configuration problems with preferences rather than just hard constraints, and we analyze and discuss the features that such configurators should have. In particular, these configurators should provide explanations for the current state, implications of a future choice, and also information about the quality of future solutions, all with the aim of guiding the user in the process of making the right choices to obtain a good solution.

We then describe our implemented system, which, by taking the soft n-queens problem as an example, shows that it is indeed possible, even in this very general context of preference-based configurators, to automatically compute all the information needed for the desired features. This is done by keeping track of the inferences that are made during the constraint propagation enforcing phases.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Cork Constraint Computation Centre, Department of Computer Science, University College Cork, Cork, Ireland

    Eugene C. Freuder, Chavalit Likitvivatanavong & Richard J. Wallace

  2. Department of Pure and Applied Mathematics, University of Padova, Italy

    Manuela Moretti & Francesca Rossi

Authors
  1. Eugene C. Freuder
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  2. Chavalit Likitvivatanavong
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  3. Manuela Moretti
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  4. Francesca Rossi
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  5. Richard J. Wallace
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Computer Science, University College Cork, Ireland

    Barry O’Sullivan

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© 2003 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg

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Freuder, E.C., Likitvivatanavong, C., Moretti, M., Rossi, F., Wallace, R.J. (2003). Computing Explanations and Implications in Preference-Based Configurators. In: O’Sullivan, B. (eds) Recent Advances in Constraints. CologNet 2002. Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol 2627. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/3-540-36607-5_6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/3-540-36607-5_6

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-540-00986-3

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-540-36607-2

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

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