From Type Inference to Configuration

A product line is a set of products and features with constraints on which subsets are available. Numerous configurators have been made available by product line vendors on the internet, in which procurers can experiment with the different options, e.g. how the selection of one product or feature entails or precludes the selection of another product or feature. We explore an approach to configuration inspired by type inference technology. The main contributions of the paper are a formalization of the configuration problem that includes aspects related to the interactive dialogue between the user and the system, a result stating that the configuration problem thus formalized has at least exponential complexity, and some techniques for computing approximate solutions more efficiently. While a substantial number of papers precede the present one in formalizing configuration as a constraint satisfaction problem, few address the aspects concerning interactivity between the user and the system.