SUPPORTING INTUITIVE DECISION IN COMPLEX MULTI-ATTRIBUTIVE DOMAINS USING FUZZY, HIERARCHICAL EXPERT

A database evaluation system provides for intuitive end user analysis and exploration of large databases of information through real time fuzzy logic evaluation of utility preferences and nearest neighbor exploration. The system provides for domain modeling of various types of information domains using attribute mappings to database fields, and utility value weightings, allowing multiple different domain models to be coupled with a same database of information. User interaction with the evaluation system is through an interactive key generator interface providing immediate, iterative visual feedback as to which candidate items in the database match the user's partial query. A proximity searcher user interface provides for nearest neighbor navigation and allows the user to determine which items in the database are closest to a given item along each independent attribute of the items, and selectively navigate through such nearest neighbors. A fractal proximity searcher simultaneously displays multiple levels of nearest neighbors for user selected attributes.