We introduce a generalization of the spreadsheet paradigm, called Knowledgesheet, for solving a class of constraint satisfaction problems. The traditional spreadsheet paradigm is based on attaching arithmetic expressions to individual
cells and then evaluating them; our Knowledgesheet interface instead allows finite domain constraints to be attached to individual cells that are then solved to obtain a solution. This extension provides an easy-to-use interface
for solving a large class of constraint satisfaction problems—those whose specification and solution conforms to a 2-dimensional
structure, e.g., scheduling problems, timetabling problems, etc. A prototype for the Knowledgesheet has been developed and
applied to solve many different types of problems.
The authors have been partially supported by NSF grants CDA 97-29848, CDA 98-02251, CCR 99-00320, CCR 99-04063.