Declarative Language: Prolog

For example, Prolog does memory management automatically, freeing the programmer from this error-prone task. Instead of low-level pointers, in Prolog you always work with expressive names. Search, pattern matching, and generation of alternative solutions are built into Prolog and provide basic but powerful problem solving mechanisms. IF/Prolog does even more: Efficient data structures like binary trees and hash tables are generated automatically. Thus, IF/Prolog preserves the easy -to-understand and productive linear view to the programmer while achieving high execution performance and scalability.

As a result, Prolog programs follow more closely the problem solving process of the domain specialist. Your programs become more concise, easier to maintain, and have shorter idea-to-market cycles.

The outstanding ease-of-use of Prolog allows to get partial solutions up and running on the computer in a short time frame. Prolog encourages what is called "incremental prototyping" where code is gradually fleshed out in a clean top-down manner over a period of time. Rather than throwing away a prototype and re-writing the final program from scratch, incremental prototyping saves development time and allows continuous user feedback, an indispensable quality for innovative applications.

In short, Prolog is a programming language of choice that gives you the flexibility and precision of a full fledged programming language, while shielding you from low level machine concepts and mundane coding and optimization tasks. IF/Prolog combines outstanding programmer productivity with excellent execution performance.

IF/Prolog for Industrial Applications

For example IF Computer Japan, under contract with TODA Construction Co. Ltd., developed a centralized process control system for below sea-level tunnelling in Tokyo. This system identifies problems of the on-going drilling and potential dangers and calculates reaction options in real-time.

In Germany, the Postal, Telegraph and Telephone Department contracted InterFace Computer GmbH to develop a knowledge-based system for configu- ration and sales support of telephones in the nation wide PTT outlets. this system enables customers to evaluate, among many combinations and optional functions, a selection which best suits the customer.

Some other examples of IF/Prolog based systems:

Railway Station Dynamic Scheduling
Oil Exploration Process Monitoring
Turbine Vibration Diagnosis
Cold Forging
Construction Robot Path Planning
Airport Environment Control
Polymer Design
Spectacle Design
ASIC Design Verification
Solid Modelling CAD Data Conversion
COBOL Program Maintenance
Software Customer Support
Life Insurance Risk Analysis
Stock Trading

Wide Spectrum of Supported Platforms

IF/Prolog allows you to select the best possible machine for your application purpose, and to move to a better platform as soon as it becomes available in the market. If you have to plan with an extended product life cycle with several different execution environments, the savings in porting cost alone may justify the selection of IF/Prolog, since compatibility is already built into IF/Prolog.

Processors:  Alpha, HPPA, MIPS, 80x86, Pentium, 
               Power, SPARC, 68K, 88K, others 
Operating Systems: 
              all major UNIX, Windows

Compliance with Standards

IF/Prolog is implemented in a highly portable subset of C. Quality control complies with ISO 9000.

SNI and IF Computer work together with other leading Prolog vendors in the Prolog Management Group (PMG).

Constraint Technology Package(Option)

The combination of Prolog and Constraint Technology allows to address more complex operations research problems which are difficult for a pure Prolog problem solver. As constraint handling limits the search space, the search for the solution becomes much more efficient. On the other hand, constraint programming benefits from programming in Prolog with all its well understood advantages over less well- established special purpose languages.

The IF/Prolog Constraint Technology Package handles big integers and rationals, coroutines, numeric constraints, finite domains and boolean constraints.

For details, please see "IF/Prolog V5.0 Constraint Technology Package".

High Level Interface to GUI Tools (Option)

First, using this interface, you can do your development work itself in a friendly window based environment, complete with on line help, extensive programming aids, and visual control.

Second, you can write the graphical user interface for your application directly in Prolog. The comfort and benefit of Prologs incremental development, automatic memory management, names instead of pointers comes fully to bear when you work with the fairly complex dynamic data structures of sophisticated user interfaces.

Graphical development in Prolog is considerably easier than in C or C++; windowing events can be synchronized by using the interactive windows -based debugger. Furthermore, the GUI code need not be relinked, saving a considerable amount of time for each test cycle, as source files may be simply reconsulted.

IF/Prolog offers optionally:

Interface to OSF/Motif

Direct Access to Databases

for UNIX: SQL Relational Database (Oracle, Informix, Ingres, etc) for Windows : MS Access, etc through DDEML interface, COM interface or ADO

Interfaces to SQL Relational Database are provided as options. Interfaces to DDEML, COM and ADO are included in the Windows versions.

Java Interfaces (only for version 5.3)

Flexible C Language Interfaces

• Full interaction with the operating system the operating system (OS) is easily accessible from both C and Prolog. Prolog may then be used to control command parameters, pipes, files and other OS-- or user-- defined stream types.
• A two level C-> Prolog interface enables the programmer to either pass Prolog goals as C--strings which are then parsed, or to efficiently build up, in the systems internal representation, structures using a pre--defined set of macros.
• Prolog ->C interface allows deterministic or resatisfiable predicates to be defined as C routines. These predicates can be as efficient as IF/Prologs own built--in predicates.
• C and Prolog together: Prolog and C code may be freely inter--mixed and used both recursively and in generate--test combinations.
• C predicates in modules: C routines may be assigned to modules which can then be incorporated as freely into large applications as modules written in Prolog.
• No limits: There are no size restrictions placed on data which can be exchanged between C and Prolog as garbage collection and memory expansion may take place transparently, even during the execution of C routines.

Socket Support

Internet Sockets - IF/Prolog can be embedded into applications which interact with the internet. Internet socket support allows the programmer to develop intelligent services for the internet market.

Client Server Applications - The comprehensive socket support also enables the easier development of more traditional client-server applications. Builtin predicates support the polling of multiple streams, which may be overlayed across socket connections enabling transactions and requests to be passed efficiently between client and server.

Easy-to-use IF/Prolog Engine

• Incremental Optimizing Compiler -- the compiler allows incremental compilation, decompilation and loading of compiled code while implementing full argument indexing and shallow backtracking for all predicates. Further source--to--source and low level optimizations are applied to compiled non--modifiable static predicates.
• Compiler/Interpreter -- as the IF/Prolog Compiler compiles in units of files, it is as easy to use as an interpreter. Compile time for the preparation of final programs is remarkably short.
• Efficient and Flexible Memory Management -- all data areas are fully garbage collected and re--sized transparent to the user application. This is on an individual and combined basis that maximizes the applications--time of the execution, as is an essential requirement for real time systems.
• As of version 5.0, garbage collection also operates during the execution of C--defined, user predicates, removing many of the size limitations on atoms and structures.
• Predicate Based Module Concept -- new for version 5.0 the module concept has been redesigned to support data hiding and meta--programming in a modular way. Foreign language predicates may also be incorporated into specific modules and imported / exported.

Full Asian Language Support

Thus, programs, knowledge bases and data can be written in Asian languages such as Japanese, Korean and Chinese.

Edinburgh syntax

Other Features

• Friendly Debugger -- The IF/Prolog Debugger permits programmers to follow the exact step-by-step execution of the program at variable levels of depth. Breakpoints can also be placed at arbitary points in the code.
• Application Profiling -- The new profiler determines how much time is spent in each predicate during your programs execution. The profiler can be used to profile both entire applications and individual goals.
• Signal handling - IF/Prolog can react to operate upon signals from the operating system and fully interact as a system process.

Customer oriented licencing

• Single CPU Licence -- IF/Prolog is licensed to a single computer, without user limitation.
• Runtime Licence -- Program components programmed in IF/Prolog can be "canned" into applications. The customer and/or user of the application may not need to know that IF/Prolog is used inside. IF/Prolog contains the tools to create stand-alone applications, and a low-cost runtime licensing scheme is available to software developpers for in-house deployment and resale.

User Support

Educational and volume discounts are available.

Individualized Training and Consulting Services

IF Computer designs and realizes expert systems and other advanced custom made software solutions in cooperation with client companies: IF/Projects.

Developed by Siemens

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