Externalization of tacit knowledge within expert; Case study of the construction of topographic and geological evolution models

Niizato, Tadafumi  ; Doke, Ryosuke; Yasue, Kenichi; Nakayasu, Akio

To support both the implementer and the relevant regulatory organization, the knowledge used in a geoscientific investigation related to the geological disposal has to be externalized in a useful form. In this study, decision processes and technical know-how on a construction of topographic and geological evolution models have been clarified by the application of a knowledge engineering approach. Investigations and analyses for the estimation of uplift rate are classified into 4 units of "task". A sequence of the task from "setting up time frame" to "construction of numerical model" has been illustrated as a "task flow". The decision processes in each task have been illustrated as a "flow diagram of decision process". The diagram shows input for a decision, decision point, and task and output resulting from the decision-making. This externalized tacit knowledge will be integrated into the IT-based expert system through the construction of an IF-THEN rule-base.