Causal reasoning Manufacturing processes are an excellent real-world example of the applicability of compositional causal reasoning. A set of components form the process by interacting with one another in well-defined ways to create a long chain from cause to effect. The process, as a system of interacting components, is amenable to computer-assisted study because of the degree to which the behavior can be encapsulated in numbers and rules. Our system, because it so centered around the assembly of composite entities, causal reasoning, and equation-based models of reality, has a lot to offer manufacturers in arranging and managing processes, and in understanding the tradeoffs they are making in their decisions.

Process applications The model-based applications of our technology to manufacturing processes include:

Process design, considering its ability to cope with various occurrences of concern.

Model-based diagnosis of conditions of interest, including multiple simultaneous faults.

Process configuration, and rapid reconfiguration in response to monitoring and diagnosis.

Identification of situations that expose the process' vulnerabilities, and of improvements that reduce their deleterious effects.