The process undertaken to develop the expert system and the necessary hardware is illustrated in the system flowchart:
Knowledge acquisition phase - extracting domain knowledge from domain experts and determining the system's requirements
Knowledge representation phase - representing key concepts from the domain, and interrelationships between these concepts, using formal representation methods
Knowledge implementation phase - coding the formalized knowledge into a working prototype
Verification and validation - verifying and validating a working prototype against the system's requirement, and revising it as necessary according to domain experts' feedback
Installation - installing the final prototype in an operating environment, training the users, and developing the documentation/user's manual
Operation/Evaluation/Maintenance - running the system in an operating environment, evaluating its performance and benefits, and maintaining the system