Automated Generation of Usability Prototypes and Tactical Software

Currently available rapid prototyping tools provide limited support in developing well designed interactive, software. The objective of this proposal is to build a user interface design environment for user interface designers in The Discovery MachineTwith the following features:¿ Link all phases and products of the design process through common representational formalisms,¿ Automate user interface evaluation through the use of design critics,¿ Modify visual and functional aspects of the design quickly and graphically while still creating a functional prototype,¿ Expedite the generation of a user interface satisfying requirements through more efficient and productive design, test, re-design cycles, and,¿ Automate the generation of object models and software interfaces to be accessed by application software components.Here we propose a user interface design environment which involves building on existing knowledge capture and problem solving tool called The Discovery Machine. The Discovery Machine provides design experts with a way to describe an interface that isnatural and does not require detailed knowledge of abstract cognitive concepts or complicated programming syntax. The user interface design environment we propose will establish the framework for end-to-end user interface design without writing code. Themost significant development within the target business sector is the explosion in amount and complexity of data and the subsequent need for computational power to utilize this data. Programmers, SMEs, and Decision Makers all need more effective tools forcommunicating to each other and for leveraging this information. The Discovery Machine provides both a vehicle for developing software for communicating, modeling, and analyzing complex processes and the information and objects flowing through thatprocesses. The commercial market opportunity for more effective utilization of data and the scientists, researchers, and analysts who interpret and use that data is extraordinary, particularly given the explosion in data collection and warehousing and thescarcity of skilled experts who can make use of that data. The key target market for Discovery Machine is data-intensive segments in the defense and systems engineering/design sectors. They have a particular need for more effective formalized softwaredevelopment tools, and this has already been validated by over 50 interviews with potential customers and partners.