Combining case-based reasoning and analogical reasoning in software design

Designers use several types of knowledge and reasoning mechanisms during the creation of new artefacts. In order to cope with this cognitive characteristic of design, an intelligent design tool able to help a designer must integrate several reasoning mechanisms and knowledge formats. Case-based reasoning and analogical reasoning are usually considered as two distinct mechanisms, though they are also considered to be in the same cognitive axis, case-based reasoning being in one extreme, and analogy in the other. Both are important reasoning mechanisms in the generation of new designs, but they both reflect different ways of exploring the design space. In this paper we present a way of combining both techniques, showing how it was integrated in an intelligent software design tool. Experimental results are presented and discussed, showing the advantages and limitations of this approach.