Charles Forgy
Encyclopedia
Dr Charles L. Forgy is a computer scientist
, known for developing the Rete algorithm
used in his OPS5
and other production system
languages used to build expert systems.
, or UTA) graduating with a degree in Mathematics
in 1972. From there he went to Carnegie Institute of Technology
(later Carnegie Mellon University
) at Pittsburgh, a renowned center for study of Artificial intelligence. While studying at Carnegie he met his future wife, Diana, whom he married in 1977.
, he received his Ph.D. in 1979 based on the Rete algorithm
. Even though Forgy did not work directly on the DEC XCON AI problem of configuring computers for DEC in the late 70's and early 80's, the Rete algorithm was later incorporated into the system for more speed. The XCON used the early versions of OPS (Official Production System) that migrated to OPS2 and later OPS5.
DEC reported that XCON saved at least $1M USD per year. XCON, a project headed up by John McDermott and later shifted over to DEC programmers, was eventually composed of over 10K rules. The Rete (Latin for "network") algorithm allowed systems to run as much as 3,000 times faster in those days. The original Rete algorithm was developed under a DOD grant and, as such, is public domain.
; in 1983 he formed a company called Production Systems Technologies to develop and sell rule-based software, where he developed "Rete II", a more efficient successor to Rete. Rete 2 enabled rulebased programs to run between 50 and 100 times faster than the original Rete algorithm, depending on the complexity of the rules and objects. (The more complex, the faster the comparative results.) Rete 2 is incorporated in CLIPS/R2 and OPSJ among others.
Dr Forgy was a founder and Chief Scientist for Rules Power, a Work Flow Management company founded in 2002 and based in Boston
. During that time, Forgy incorporated Rete 2 with Relational Logic Technology, which became named "Rete III". The performance of Rete 2 and Rete III are virtually the same but Rete III has some extensions that allow it to work more efficiently with RLT.
Dr Forgy retained the intellectual property rights to Rete 2 and his personal company, Production Systems Technology, still sells OPSJ and other systems that incorporate the Rete 2 algorithm. KnowledgeBased Systems Corporation, an independent consulting company in Texas, maintains an extensive set of benchmarks for most BRMS and rulebased systems that demonstrate the effectiveness of the Rete and Rete 2 algorithms. Dr Forgy has often described PST as a research-oriented company rather than a vendor of BRMS tools, but he does sell various rulebased tools via PST.
Computer scientist
A computer scientist is a scientist who has acquired knowledge of computer science, the study of the theoretical foundations of information and computation and their application in computer systems....
, known for developing the Rete algorithm
Rete algorithm
The Rete algorithm is an efficient pattern matching algorithm for implementing production rule systems. The Rete algorithm was designed by Dr Charles L. Forgy of Carnegie Mellon University, first published in a working paper in 1974, and later elaborated in his 1979 Ph.D. thesis and a 1982 paper...
used in his OPS5
OPS5
OPS5 is a rule-based or production system computer language, notable as the first such language to be used in a successful expert system, the R1/XCON system used to configure VAX computers....
and other production system
Production system
A production system is a computer program typically used to provide some form of artificial intelligence, which consists primarily of a set of rules about behavior. These rules, termed productions, are a basic representation found useful in automated planning, expert systems and action selection...
languages used to build expert systems.
Early Life
Dr. Forgy attended Woodrow Wilson High School in Dallas, Texas, and then advanced to Arlington State College (now University of Texas at ArlingtonUniversity of Texas at Arlington
The University of Texas at Arlington is a public research university located in Arlington, Texas, United States. The campus is situated southwest of downtown Arlington, and is located in the Dallas–Fort Worth metropolitan area. The university was founded in 1895 and served primarily a military...
, or UTA) graduating with a degree in Mathematics
Mathematics
Mathematics is the study of quantity, space, structure, and change. Mathematicians seek out patterns and formulate new conjectures. Mathematicians resolve the truth or falsity of conjectures by mathematical proofs, which are arguments sufficient to convince other mathematicians of their validity...
in 1972. From there he went to Carnegie Institute of Technology
Carnegie Institute of Technology
The Carnegie Institute of Technology , is the name for Carnegie Mellon University’s College of Engineering. It was first called the Carnegie Technical Schools, or Carnegie Tech, when it was founded in 1900 by Andrew Carnegie who intended to build a “first class technical school” in Pittsburgh,...
(later Carnegie Mellon University
Carnegie Mellon University
Carnegie Mellon University is a private research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States....
) at Pittsburgh, a renowned center for study of Artificial intelligence. While studying at Carnegie he met his future wife, Diana, whom he married in 1977.
Rete
As a student of Allen NewellAllen Newell
Allen Newell was a researcher in computer science and cognitive psychology at the RAND corporation and at Carnegie Mellon University’s School of Computer Science, Tepper School of Business, and Department of Psychology...
, he received his Ph.D. in 1979 based on the Rete algorithm
Rete algorithm
The Rete algorithm is an efficient pattern matching algorithm for implementing production rule systems. The Rete algorithm was designed by Dr Charles L. Forgy of Carnegie Mellon University, first published in a working paper in 1974, and later elaborated in his 1979 Ph.D. thesis and a 1982 paper...
. Even though Forgy did not work directly on the DEC XCON AI problem of configuring computers for DEC in the late 70's and early 80's, the Rete algorithm was later incorporated into the system for more speed. The XCON used the early versions of OPS (Official Production System) that migrated to OPS2 and later OPS5.
DEC reported that XCON saved at least $1M USD per year. XCON, a project headed up by John McDermott and later shifted over to DEC programmers, was eventually composed of over 10K rules. The Rete (Latin for "network") algorithm allowed systems to run as much as 3,000 times faster in those days. The original Rete algorithm was developed under a DOD grant and, as such, is public domain.
Rete II and III
Forgy remained at Carnegie Mellon post-graduation and worked on further improvements to OPS5OPS5
OPS5 is a rule-based or production system computer language, notable as the first such language to be used in a successful expert system, the R1/XCON system used to configure VAX computers....
; in 1983 he formed a company called Production Systems Technologies to develop and sell rule-based software, where he developed "Rete II", a more efficient successor to Rete. Rete 2 enabled rulebased programs to run between 50 and 100 times faster than the original Rete algorithm, depending on the complexity of the rules and objects. (The more complex, the faster the comparative results.) Rete 2 is incorporated in CLIPS/R2 and OPSJ among others.
Dr Forgy was a founder and Chief Scientist for Rules Power, a Work Flow Management company founded in 2002 and based in Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
. During that time, Forgy incorporated Rete 2 with Relational Logic Technology, which became named "Rete III". The performance of Rete 2 and Rete III are virtually the same but Rete III has some extensions that allow it to work more efficiently with RLT.
Present Times
In 2005, RulesPower was acquired by Fair Isaac Corporation, who obtained a license to integrate Rete III into Blaze Advisor, their own business rules product.Dr Forgy retained the intellectual property rights to Rete 2 and his personal company, Production Systems Technology, still sells OPSJ and other systems that incorporate the Rete 2 algorithm. KnowledgeBased Systems Corporation, an independent consulting company in Texas, maintains an extensive set of benchmarks for most BRMS and rulebased systems that demonstrate the effectiveness of the Rete and Rete 2 algorithms. Dr Forgy has often described PST as a research-oriented company rather than a vendor of BRMS tools, but he does sell various rulebased tools via PST.