Reasoning with Finite Set Constraints

The language of propositional logic is sometimes not appropriate to model real-world problems. Therefore, finite set constraints are introduced. A variable of a finite set constraint takes exactly one value out of a given set of values whereas a propositional variable is either true or false. Although the class of real-world problems which can be described using the language of propositional logic is not enlarged, the language of finite set constraints often allows a shorter and more structured description. This additional structure can be exploited when methods of propositional logic are generalized to finite set constraint logic. Here the variable elimination method and the original algorithm of Abraham to calculate disjoint terms for formulas are generalized.