Safety management of civil engineering structures using knowledge-based systems

With regard to the problems of safety of civil engineering structures, the technology of knowledge-based systems can provide new tools to manage the problem complexity and to assist safety experts and operators. The approach of the so called second-generation or deep-knowledge expert systems extends the idea of numerical modelling. It proposes the construction of software systems which implement complex models (with quantitative and qualitative attributes) and functions able to reason about the model structure and behaviour. These models and reasoning functions can support human activities like the fusion of information, diagnosis, explanation and forecasting. The aim of such systems is not to substitute the expert, but to extend the expert's ability to deal quickly and efficiently with complex problems. In this paper, a family of knowledge-based systems is presented, whose members share the same conceptual reference framework to deal with seismic risk evaluation of masonry buildings and safety assessment of concrete dams.