  The frame problem originated as a narrowly defined technical problem in  logic-based artificial intelligence  (AI). But it was taken up in an embellished and modified form by philosophers of mind, and given a wider interpretation. The tension between its origin in the laboratories of AI researchers and its treatment at the hands of philosophers engendered an interesting and sometimes heated debate in the 1980s and 1990s. But since the narrow, technical problem is largely solved, recent discussion has tended to focus less on matters of interpretation and more on the implications of the wider frame problem for   cognitive science. To gain an understanding of the issues, this article will begin with a look at the frame problem in its technical guise. Some of the ways in which philosophers have re-interpreted the problem will then be examined. The article will conclude with an assessment of the significance of the frame problem today.