INTELLIGENT TUTORING SYSTEM FRAMEWORK FOR OPERATOR TRAINING FOR DIAGNOSTIC PROBLEM-SOLVING

Diagnostic problem solving forms a major part of the operator's activi ty in complex chemical processes. It cannot be overemphasized that tra ining operators on fault diagnosis and developing appropriate correcti ve strategies will help minimize process upsets, and thereby improve t he reliability and safety of the plant. An intelligent operator traini ng framework has been proposed and implemented to improve training eff ectiveness for diagnostic problem solving. A dynamic simulator coupled with an intelligent computer-based tutor constitutes the intelligent training system (ITS). It helps operators to organize system knowledge and operational information including symptom-cause relationship, and may enhance their performance. Our learning environment is composed o f an interactive, real-time simulation of a chemical process plant, a computer model of expert operators, components that allow for automati c evaluation and coaching of the trainees in order to improve their di agnostic skills, and graphical user interfaces. To make our intelligen t training system more effective, the process-related information/expl anations including digraph-based symptom-cause relation are supplied t hrough intelligent hypermedia interface. This system can also be used as an on-line assistant of process operators and for the training of r emedial actions, and they are part of further enhancements being plann ed.