Product-design knowledge retrieval based on ontology

In order to improve the utilization ratio of knowledge retrieval, a product-design knowledge retrieval approach based on ontology is proposed. A representation model of product-design knowledge is proposed according to its characteristics. Domain ontology of product-design is established and the semantic annotation technology is used to connect the design knowledge and ontology. A new semantic annotation format is developed and semantic information of the design knowledge is enriched by making use of ontology. On that basis a retrieval algorithm is designed for semantic retrieval. Finally, this approach is used in a knowledge management system for military-vehicle design and its effectiveness and feasibility are validated. Results show that the recall ratio and the precision ratio of knowledge retrieval are improved greatly and users' requirements in semantic retrieval are satisfied.