Distributed control in Verbmobil
Marcus Kesseler · 1994
Verbmobil differs in one crucial aspect from all previous projects, large and small in Natural Language and Speech Processing (NLSP): the degree of distributedness in the Verbmobil implementation effort is unparalled. The groups implementing the different VM-modules have almost no constraints on their intra-modular design decisions. Interfaces are defined largely by bilateral agreements, which seldom make any references to the control issues arising from their usage. No group in VM is explicitly responsible for the definition of an overall control paradigm for VM. This, as we will see below, raises some serious problems. Nevertheless, we will argue that these constraints can also be perceived as an opportunity to break new ground in the area of control of complex distributed systems. (orig.)