Abstract

This paper presents a research attempt to develop and evaluate a Web-based tele-diagnosis system for fish diseases. Fish disease diagnosis is a complicated process and requires high level of expertise. A tele-diagnosis system T-VET is being developed and tested in China. T-VET is the key sub system of a Web-based expert system for fish disease diagnosis. This paper looks at why a tele-diagnosis system is needed and what are the advantages and difficulties in developing and using such a system. The system's architecture and components are described. A user-centered approach was adopted throughout the development process to ensure the system would meet users' needs and will be accepted. As a result, the system functions were emerged and improved by users' requirements. The experience and feedback from testing and evaluating the system with potential users are discussed. Some valuable insights into the use of the Internet as a tele-diagnosis tool in aquaculture are highlighted.

Author Keywords: Tele-diagnosis; Fish disease; Aquaculture; Web-based expert systems; Peoples' Republic of China

Article Outline

1. Introduction

2. Users' need for a tele-diagnosis system

3. System architecture

4. System components and the diagnosing process

4.1. Web-based expert system (WES)

4.2. Synchronous diagnosis subsystem

4.3. Asynchronous diagnosis subsystem

5. Testing and evaluation

6. Conclusions

Acknowledgements

References

Corresponding author. Tel.: +86-10-62336717; fax: +86-10-6233889