Object-oriented databases and frame-based systems: comparison

Research into knowledge representation within the artificial intelligence (AI) community has led to the development of AI tools that use frames to structure knowledge. Concurrent research in databases has led to the development of semantic data models and object-oriented databases. These two types of system seem to have much in common - they are structurally object-oriented, support inheritance, and store programs with the objects to which they relate. What then are the differences between frame systems and object-oriented databases? The paper compares a frame system called CRL with an object-oriented database called ADAM to identify common ground and differences between the systems and the philosophies underlying them. What emerges from the comparison is that while the systems have many superficial similarities, the different rationales that led to their development have resulted in significant practical differences in certain fundamental constructs. © 1991.