Representation and Typological Refinement in a Case-base

The subject of the paper is the possibilities and limitations of domain knowledge in design computing, as experienced in the development of a case-base of school buildings. In case-based design domain knowledge is used not only in the documentation and analysis of the cases but also in the structure of the case-base. The cases were documented and analysed using a geometric and topological representation. With respect to typological classification the highest abstraction level was occupied by three established types, the corridor, hall and pavilion type, which represent practically all school buildings in our case-base. Progressive abstraction of the geometric and topological representation returned the components of each type at various levels of specificity that correspond to different levels of design thinking and decision taking. The resulting typological / case-base structure provides a transparent description of both parts and global arrangements and has led to the identification of subtypes, variations and hybrids.