Semantic Components for Timetabling

Abstract. Automated timetabling is a research domain that has occupied many researchers over the last 50 years. Several algorithms have proven to be applicable to timetabling but they are nearly all designed to address specific problems. The framework presented in this paper is a step towards a generic semi-automatic timetabling tool. The basis of the framework is an ontology for timetabling that we designed after research on different types of timetabling problems. We developed a calculation component that can deal with the search space based on problem characteristics passed on by the semantic components. A first step towards solving general problems consists of mapping their data representation to the ontology. In the second step, the tool assists in determining the constraints and objectives of the problem. The semantic components have three sources of information: meta data about the database, domain knowledge about timetabling problems and external, non-domain specific knowle...

• Type: Conference
• Year: 2004
• Where: PATAT
• Authors: Nele Custers, Patrick De Causmaecker, Peter Demeester, Greet Vanden Berghe
• Keywords: Education, Generic Semi-automatic Timetabling, PATAT 2004, Semantic Components, Specific Problems