Laddering Technique

The field of Artificial Intelligence may not have produced fully intelligent machines but one of its major achievements is the development of a range of ways of representing knowledge. A thorough understanding of different knowledge representations is a vital part (arguably the vital part) of Artificial Intelligence, since the ease of solving a problem is almost completely determined by the way the problem is conceptualised and represented. The same is true for the task of communicating knowledge. A well-chosen analogy or diagram can make all the difference when trying to communicate a difficult idea to someone, especially a non-expert in the field.

Knowledge engineers make use of a number of ways of representing knowledge when acquiring knowledge from experts. These are usually referred to as knowledge models.

Three important types of knowledge models are:

Ladders: Ladders are hierarchical (tree-like) diagrams. Some important types of ladders are concept ladder, composition ladder, decision ladder and attribute ladder. Ladders can be created and edited using the Ladder Tool in PCPACK.
Network Diagrams: Network diagrams show nodes connected by arrows. Depending on the type of network diagram, the nodes might represent any type of concept, attribute, value or task, and the arrows between the nodes any type of relationship. Examples of network diagrams include concept maps, process maps and state transition networks. Network diagrams can be created and edited using the Diagram Tool in PCPACK.
Tool
Tables and Grids: Tabular representations make use of tables or grids. Three important types are forms, frames, timelines and matrices/grids. Matrices can be created and edited using the Matrix Tool in PCPACK.
Descriptions and examples of the important types of knowledge models are shown below.

Quoted from http://www.epistemics.co.uk/Notes/90-0-0.htm

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