Generating domain knowledge for requirement analysis based on acquisition ontology

An acquisition ontology is proposed for the knowledge engineer to acquire d omain knowledge for requirement analysis. It includes an acquisition librar y, which contains basic acquisition components, and acquisition support ent ities, which contain construction and acquisition instructors. The construc tion instructors work with the acquisition library, with the help of method ical knowledge, to construct domain-specific acquisition structures. The ac quisition instructors then interpret the acquisition structures to extract domain knowledge. This approach allows the user to easily acquire specific domain knowledge for requirement analysis. It relieves burdens of the knowl edge engineer to select different KA tools for and applying them to differe nt domains. Moreover, the generated domain knowledge can be coupled with ap propriate methodical knowledge to form a domain-specific RA tool to ease th e work of requirement analysis. Finally, the ontology can be enhanced readi ly, since it is designed as an open architecture, which helps us to evolve it by assimilating new knowledge acquisition techniques. (C) 2000 John Wile y & Sons, Inc.