# VP-Expert

VP-Expert is an artificial intelligence development tool that gained popularity in the 1980s and 1990s. Published by Paperback Software, VP-Expert was designed to facilitate the creation of rule-based expert systems, primarily for applications in business and industry. VP-Expert was created by Brian Sawyer.
VP-Expert quickly gained market share in the expert system development tool sector, particularly in academic and small to medium-sized business environments. By 1990, it had become the best-selling expert system shell, with 120,000 copies sold worldwide and site licenses at DuPont, Kodak, and the Wharton School of Business.

## Background

VP-Expert emerged during a period of significant activity surrounding artificial intelligence, particularly expert systems. Expert systems aimed to capture and replicate human expertise in specific domains, enabling computers to solve problems, make decisions, and provide advice in a manner similar to human experts. This period saw the development of various expert system shells, software tools designed to facilitate the creation of expert systems without requiring extensive programming knowledge.
The appeal of VP-Expert lay in its relative ease of use and affordability. It offered a user-friendly interface and a rule-based approach that was intuitive for many users, particularly those with a background in business or logic.

## Features

VP-Expert incorporated several features that supported the development and deployment of expert systems:
* Rule-Based Reasoning: VP-Expert utilized a rule-based inference engine to process knowledge represented as IF-THEN rules.
* Backward Chaining: The system primarily employed backward chaining, a goal-driven reasoning strategy, to deduce conclusions or solutions based on the given facts and rules.
* User Interface: VP-Expert offered a user-friendly interface for knowledge acquisition, simplifying the process of defining rules, facts, and goals.
* Explanation Facility: The system was capable of providing explanations for its reasoning, enhancing user understanding of how conclusions were reached.

## Applications

VP-Expert found applications across various domains, including:
Engineering and Aviation:
* Environmental Analysis: Researchers used VP-Expert to develop a knowledge-based system for analyzing the impact of particulate matter air pollution on human health.
* Engineering Design: VP-Expert was utilized in the creation of a prototype expert system to assist in fishway design.
* Aviation Management: The tool was employed to develop an expert system aimed at maximizing airport capacity while adhering to noise-mitigation plans.
Business and Finance:
* Loan Approval: Banks and financial institutions utilized VP-Expert to build expert systems for evaluating loan applications. These systems assessed creditworthiness, analyzed financial statements, and determined loan eligibility based on predefined rules and risk factors, streamlining the loan approval process.
* Investment Portfolio Management: VP-Expert was used to develop systems that provided investment advice based on market trends, economic indicators, and investor preferences. These systems helped users make informed investment decisions and manage their portfolios effectively.
* Fraud Detection: VP-Expert was employed in the financial sector to develop systems for detecting fraudulent activities like credit card fraud and insurance claims fraud. These systems analyzed transaction patterns and identified anomalies, helping prevent financial losses.
Healthcare:
* Medical Diagnosis: Although not as widely used as specialized medical expert systems, VP-Expert was explored for developing diagnostic support tools. These systems could analyze patient symptoms, medical history, and test results to assist physicians in identifying potential illnesses and recommending treatment options.
* Nursing Care: VP-Expert was used to create systems that provided guidance to nurses on patient care, such as determining appropriate medication dosages, managing wound care, and monitoring vital signs. These systems helped standardize care and improve patient outcomes.
Knowledge-Based Applications Developed with VP-Expert :
| Application | Creator / Published At | Link |
| Database Design Advisor | IEEE | Database Design Aid |
| Voltage and VAr Control in Power Transmission | IEEE | Voltage and VAr Control |
| DISPO Advisor for Psychiatric Disposition | PubMed | DISPO Advisor |
| Submarine Shipboard Maintenance | Wikimedia Commons | Shipboard Maintenance |
| Expert Systems and the Arts | IEEE | Expert Systems and the Arts |
| Nursing Diagnosis Expert System | E-HIR | Nursing Diagnosis |
| Nephrolithiasis Medical Expert System | Semantic Scholar | Nephrolithiasis Diagnosis |
| Water Quality Expert System | EPA | Water Quality |
| Fishway Design Expert System | Springer | Fishway Design |
| Soil Moisture Irrigation Control | AGRIS | Soil Moisture Control |
| Airport Capacity Expert System | Transportation Research Board | Airport Capacity |
| Feng Shui Knowledge for Design | Newcastle University | Feng Shui Design |
| Metal Powder Selection | ResearchGate | Metal Powder Selection |
| Asthma Diagnosis | GitHub | Asthma Diagnosis |
| Particulate Matter Analysis | ResearchGate | Particulate Matter Analysis |
| Diabetes in Dogs | GitHub | Diabetes in Dogs |
| Water Quality Modeling | ScienceDirect | Water Quality Modeling |
| PCB Plant Design | ScienceDirect | PCB Plant Design |
| Transfer Pricing Expert System | ScienceDirect | Transfer Pricing |
| Energy Demand Forecasting | ScienceDirect | Energy Forecasting |
| Industrial Roof Design Optimization | ScienceDirect | Roof Design Optimization |
| Flow Measurement Method Selection | ScienceDirect | Flow Measurement |
| Gravity Seawalls Design | ScienceDirect | Seawalls Design |
| Chromatographic Retention Prediction | ScienceDirect | Chromatographic Retention |
| Emergency Alarm Analysis in Nuclear Reactors | ScienceDirect | Emergency Alarm Analysis |
| River Flow Routing | ScienceDirect | River Flow Routing |
| NASA Fault Isolation | ScienceDirect | NASA Fault Isolation |
| Ball Bearing Design | ScienceDirect | Ball Bearing Design |
| Federal Sentencing Analysis | Santa Clara Law | Federal Sentencing Analysis |
| Document Delivery Expert System | Taylor & Francis | Document Delivery |
| Aviation Squadron Scheduling | CORE | Squadron Scheduling |
| Injection Molding Expert System | NJIT | Injection Molding |
| Nuclear Safety Expert System | IAEA | Nuclear Safety |
| Microcytic Anemia Diagnosis | PubMed | Microcytic Anemia Diagnosis |
| Gastrointestinal Disease Diagnosis | ResearchGate | GI Disease Diagnosis |
| Blood Cancer Treatment Suggestion | Iranian JHA | Blood Cancer Treatment |
| Navy Stock Points Management | Naval Postgraduate School | Navy Stock Points Management |
| Neural network and genetic algorithm for the design optimization of industrial roofs | ScienceDirect | Design of Industrial Roofs |
| Dessert Topping Selection | ScienceDirect | Dessert Topping Selection |
| Legal Decision Making | Elsevier | Legal Decision Making |
| Predicting the Performance of Concrete Structures | Springer | Evaluation Performance of Concrete Structures |
| Labor Progress Evaluation | NJIT | Labor Progress |

## Limitations

While VP-Expert offered certain advantages, it also had limitations:
* Scalability: Its rule-based approach could become challenging to manage for large and complex knowledge bases.
* Knowledge Acquisition Bottleneck: The process of eliciting and encoding knowledge from experts could be time-consuming and difficult.