Can AI Planners Solve Practical Problems?

Abstract

While there has been recent interest in research on planning and reasoning about actions, nearly all research results have been theoretical. We know of no previous examples of a planning system that has made a significant impact on a problem of practical importance. One of the primary goals during the development of the SIPE-2 planning system has been the balancing of efficiency with expressiveness and flexibility. With a major new extension, SIPE-2 has begun to address practical problems. This paper describes this new extension and the new applications of the planner. One of these applications is the problem of producing products from raw materials on process lines under production and resource constraints. This is a problem of commercial importance and SIPE-2’s application to it is described in some detail.