A modular artificial neural network system for the classification and selection of coatings for a chemical sensor array

An application in the area of chemical and biosensor design has provided the inspiration for research into some of the issues involved with the design and application of modular artificial neural networks (ANNs) for pattern classification tasks. We can divide the development of modular ANNs into two main components: (1) the topological design of the individual modular ANNs and the construction of the assembly of modules; and (2) the analysis of the data sets to be used to train the individual modules. The chemical sensor design task allows us to explore this second component to identify some of the implications for the capture and analysis of data appropriate for the training of modular ANN systems.<>