Overview
Knowledge Bases in OrbitAI enable agents to access and retrieve information from external documents and data sources. Using Retrieval Augmented Generation (RAG), agents can ground their responses in factual information, answer questions about specific domains, and provide accurate, contextual assistance based on your organization’s knowledge.RAG-Enabled
Multi-Format
Semantic Search
Automatic
Scalable
Dynamic
Key Capabilities
Retrieval Augmented Generation (RAG)
Retrieval Augmented Generation (RAG)
Semantic Document Search
Semantic Document Search
Automatic Context Injection
Automatic Context Injection
Multi-Document Synthesis
Multi-Document Synthesis
How Knowledge Bases Work
RAG Architecture
Embedding-Based Retrieval
Knowledge bases use vector embeddings to enable semantic search:- How It Works
- Vector Similarity
- Embedding Models
System Integration
Configuration and Usage
Basic Configuration
Add knowledge sources to agents or orbits using simple file paths:Agent-Level Knowledge Base
Configure knowledge bases for individual agents:Define Knowledge Sources
Create Tasks
Execute
Orbit-Level Knowledge Base
Share knowledge across all agents in an orbit:- When to Use
- Priority Rules
- Best Practices
- Agents need different domain knowledge
- Specialized agents with unique document sets
- Fine-grained control over knowledge access
- Separate knowledge bases per role
- All agents need same knowledge
- Collaborative workflows
- Shared company knowledge
- Simplified configuration
Dynamic Knowledge Sources
Add knowledge sources dynamically after creation:- Loading documents based on user input
- Adding knowledge as it becomes available
- A/B testing different knowledge sources
- Incremental knowledge base building
Knowledge Sources
OrbitAI supports multiple document formats for knowledge ingestion:Supported File Formats
PDF Documents
.pdf
Use Cases: Manuals, reports, research papers, books
Features:- Text extraction from pages
- Metadata preservation
- Table detection
- Multi-page support
Markdown Files
.md, .mdx
Use Cases: Documentation, wikis, README files
Features:- Native markdown parsing
- Header hierarchy preservation
- Code block handling
- Link resolution
JSON Data
.json
Use Cases: Structured data, catalogs, configuration
Features:- Structured data parsing
- Nested object handling
- Array processing
- Schema-aware search
Plain Text
.txt
Use Cases: FAQs, notes, transcripts, logs
Features:- Simple text ingestion
- Fast processing
- No formatting overhead
- Universal compatibility
File Path Specifications
Knowledge sources accept various path formats:- Relative Paths
- Absolute Paths
- Directory Paths
- URL Paths
Document Organization
Organize knowledge sources for optimal retrieval:Knowledge Source Examples
Customer Support System
Customer Support System
Legal Document Analysis
Legal Document Analysis
Product Recommendation Engine
Product Recommendation Engine
Technical Documentation Assistant
Technical Documentation Assistant
Healthcare Information System
Healthcare Information System
Integration Patterns
Knowledge Base + Memory
Combine knowledge bases with memory systems for powerful agents:- Use Case: Personalized Support
- Use Case: Learning System
- Use Case: Sales Assistant
Knowledge Base + Tools
Combine knowledge bases with tools for action-oriented agents:- Query knowledge base: Find John’s email in contacts
- Query knowledge base: Check meeting policies for defaults
- Use tool: Send email to John
- Use tool: Create calendar event
- Return: Confirmation with details
Knowledge Base Access in Tasks
Access knowledge base programmatically in custom tasks:Best Practices
Document Preparation
Clean Documents
- Remove unnecessary formatting
- Use clear headings and structure
- Include relevant metadata
- Keep content focused
- Include excessive boilerplate
- Use unclear abbreviations
- Mix unrelated topics
- Keep outdated information
Chunk-Friendly Content
Rich Metadata
Document Size
- Merge related documents
- Create topic-based documents
- Good chunk coverage
- Manageable retrieval
- Split into logical sections
- Create separate documents per topic
Knowledge Base Architecture
- Small Projects
- Medium Projects
- Large Projects
- Enterprise Scale
- Single agent with all knowledge
- Flat file structure
- No complex organization needed
Retrieval Optimization
Tune Similarity Thresholds
Tune Similarity Thresholds
Limit Result Count
Limit Result Count
- Quick answers: 3-5 results
- Comprehensive analysis: 5-10 results
- Research tasks: 10-20 results
- Monitor context window: Don’t exceed LLM limits
Query Formulation
Query Formulation
Caching Strategies
Caching Strategies
Production Best Practices
Version Control
- Track document changes
- Rollback if needed
- Coordinate with code releases
Validation
Monitoring
Documentation
Troubleshooting
Common Issues
Knowledge Base Not Loading
Knowledge Base Not Loading
- Invalid file paths
- Missing files
- Permission issues
- Unsupported file format
Poor Retrieval Quality
Poor Retrieval Quality
- Threshold too high or too low
- Poor embedding model
- Document quality issues
- Query formulation problems
- Insufficient knowledge coverage
Slow Knowledge Retrieval
Slow Knowledge Retrieval
- Large knowledge base
- Expensive embedding generation
- No caching
- Inefficient vector search
- Network latency (remote embeddings)
Knowledge Not Updating
Knowledge Not Updating
- Cache not invalidated
- Index not refreshed
- Using old orbit instance
- Documents not reprocessed
Out of Memory Errors
Out of Memory Errors
- Too many documents
- Documents too large
- All documents loaded at once
- Embeddings cached in memory
Debugging Knowledge Bases
Create debugging utilities for knowledge base inspection:Advanced Configuration
Knowledge Base Configuration Object
For advanced use cases, configure knowledge base behavior withKnowledgeConfiguration:
Chunking Strategies
Different chunking strategies for different document types:- Fixed-Size Chunking
- Semantic Chunking
- Structural Chunking
- Sliding Window
- Predictable chunk sizes
- Simple implementation
- Works for most documents
- May split mid-sentence
- Doesn’t respect structure
Vector Store Options
Choose the appropriate vector storage backend:In-Memory Store
- ✅ Fast retrieval
- ✅ No setup required
- ✅ Simple debugging
- ❌ Lost on restart
- ❌ Memory limited
- ❌ Single instance only
Persistent Store
- ✅ Survives restarts
- ✅ Reasonable performance
- ✅ No external dependencies
- ❌ Slower than in-memory
- ❌ Limited scalability
Pinecone
- ✅ Massive scalability
- ✅ Fast at any scale
- ✅ Managed service
- ❌ External dependency
- ❌ Additional cost
Custom Backend
- Integration with existing systems
- Specialized search algorithms
- Custom security requirements
Metadata Extraction and Filtering
Extract and use metadata for enhanced retrieval:Reranking Strategies
Improve retrieval quality with reranking:- No Reranking
- Cross-Encoder
- LLM Reranking
- Hybrid
Performance Optimization
Optimization Checklist
Optimize Chunk Size
- Small (256-512): Precise retrieval, technical docs
- Medium (512-1024): Balanced, general use
- Large (1024-2048): Broader context, narratives
Tune Retrieval Parameters
- Lower
retrievalLimit= faster, may miss information - Higher
similarityThreshold= fewer but better results - Enable reranking for quality, disable for speed
Implement Caching
- LRU: Good for varied queries
- LFU: Good for repeated queries
- TTL: Good for time-sensitive data
Choose Efficient Embedding Model
Batch Processing
Lazy Loading