The practice of clausification in automatic theorem proving

Abstract

In the process of resolution based Automatic Theorem Proving, problems expressed in First Order Form (FOF) are transformed by a clausifier to Clause Normal Form (CNF). This research examines and compares clausifiers. The boundaries between clausification, simplification, and solution search are delineated, and common clausification and simplification operations are documented. Four known clausifiers are evaluated, thus providing insight into their relative performance, and also providing baseline data for future evaluation of clausifiers.