Graeme Britton | Raffles University (original) (raw)

Books by Graeme Britton

Papers by Graeme Britton

Production Planning & Control, 2015

The Journal of injection molding technology, 2002

This paper explains how current best practice for qualifying and setting up plastic injection mol... more This paper explains how current best practice for qualifying and setting up plastic injection molds, scientific molding, can be incorporated into a simulation environment to improve part and mold designs. The study is limited to analysis of injection fill time. The paper describes scientific molding and the procedure to determine the optimal fill time. This is followed by a discussion on how scientific molding practices can be adapted to a simulation environment. A worked example is presented to clarify the concepts and illustrate the approach. A software implementation of the approach has been developed using Solid Edge and Moldflow simulation software.

Intelligent Knowledge-Based Systems, 2005

... The major challenge is to develop a 'design-centric' expert system that incorporate... more ... The major challenge is to develop a 'design-centric' expert system that incorporates knowl-edge ... Section 2 introduces the reader to knowledge-based expert systems and discusses the ... Section 4 discussesthe specific application ofthe techniques using an approach known as ...

Proceedings of the 34th International MATADOR Conference, 2004

Traditionally strip layout is a manual, experience-based activity. Automation of strip layout is ... more Traditionally strip layout is a manual, experience-based activity. Automation of strip layout is desirable to improve productivity and the quality of design, and to provide computer-aided tools for design. One important, but very difficult, task in automated strip layout design is the determination of a good sequence of stamping operations so that the part can be stamped correctly and efficiently. This paper presents our work to develop a novel, graph-theoretic, operations sequencing method that is capable of generating a stamping sequence automatically, taking into account practical stamping constraints. A graph is used to represent a stamping part and define the relationships between its stamping features. These stamping features are then clustered into workstation sets using a graph colouring algorithm. Next, the sets are ordered to determine an optimal sequence of workstations. The objective function for the optimisation is ‘minimisation of the torque difference between two sides of the progressive die’. The proposed approach can speed up the progressive die design process by automating the strip layout design.

Proceedings of the fifth ACM symposium on Solid modeling and applications, 1999

Engineering with Computers, 1998

The purpose of this paper is to present a functional schema which can be used to develop computer... more The purpose of this paper is to present a functional schema which can be used to develop computer tools to assist designers during the early stages of the mechanical product design process. The schema is based on an analysis of the meaning of function. five main types of mechanical function are described: performance, assembly, manufacturing, marketing and maintenance. The paper

Engineering with Computers, 2001

Journal of Computing and Information Science in Engineering, 2003

This paper presents a case-based reasoning (CBR) methodology for metal stamping die design, that ... more This paper presents a case-based reasoning (CBR) methodology for metal stamping die design, that in particular addresses the indexing and retrieval of die design cases. A feature relation graph representation of stamped metal parts are used to create a high level of geometric abstraction, which is used to index design cases quickly and accurately. Though the potential search space for case retrieval is huge, by employing a novel dual-step similarity analysis between a new stamped part and existing parts in the case library, the proposed retrieval strategy can narrow down the search space efficiently and retrieve the most similar case in a reasonable period of time. An illustrative example is included to demonstrate the operation of the proposed approach and show its effectiveness in speeding up stamping die design.

Engineering with Computers, 2000

... can have a num-ber of attributes, and these attributes can be used to represent the flow of e... more ... can have a num-ber of attributes, and these attributes can be used to represent the flow of energy,material and signal ... Based on the input-output flow-of-action strategy of behavioural representation, we suggest the following procedure for exploring functional design ...

Engineering with Computers, 2002

... A CAD-CAE Integrated Injection Molding Design System Y.-M. Deng, YC Lam, SB Tor and GA Britto... more ... A CAD-CAE Integrated Injection Molding Design System Y.-M. Deng, YC Lam, SB Tor and GA Britton ... However, such interac-tion is not supported by current computer-aided systems (CAD and CAE), because design and analysis are realized as isolated modules. ...

The Fourth International Conference on Control and Automation, 2003. ICCA. Final Program and Book of Abstracts.

Systems Practice, 1994

The purpose of this paper is to explain the philosophical and methodological basis of the Singer/... more The purpose of this paper is to explain the philosophical and methodological basis of the Singer/Churchman/Ackoff School of Thought (experimentalism). The key features of experimentalism relate to its philosophy, methodology, and imagery. The paper traces and explains the development of experimentalist philosophy from a philosophy of science to a philosophy of life. The basis of this philosophy is the pursuit of ideals. Next the experimentalist methodology is discussed. This is teleological, deriving its justification from the pursuit of the scientific ideal of truth. The paper shows how the methodology changed from optimizing, problem solving to interactive planning. Then experimentalist imagery is discussed in depth. This consists of a formal, rigorous, conceptual framework that provides a conceptual link among the mechanical, probabilistic, and functional images of nature. The authors conclude by discussing how experimentalism could be further developed.

Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, Part B: Journal of Engineering Manufacture, 2004

This paper presents initial work to develop a novel, mathematical technique that is capable of ge... more This paper presents initial work to develop a novel, mathematical technique that is capable of generating a stamping sequence automatically in the design of progressive stamping dies. A graph is used to represent a stamping part and define the relationships between its stamping features. These stamping features are then clustered into workstation sets using a graph colouring algorithm. Next, the sets are ordered in order to determine an optimal sequence of workstations. The objective function for optimization is ‘minimization of the torque difference between two sides of the progressive die’.

Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, Part B: Journal of Engineering Manufacture, 2003

It is argued that design dimension specifications contribute to the manufacturability of a part a... more It is argued that design dimension specifications contribute to the manufacturability of a part and should therefore be subjected to optimization, targeting minimal tolerance stacks in a process plan. The optimality of a process plan, and therefore of a design, depends on the manufacuring environment. As this may change or be unknown at the deisgn stage, this paper proposes a mathematical approach to redimension a design without imparing the functionality of the part. The calculation of tolerances for substitute dimensions is emphasized, depending on the role of a dimension in the design.

Journal of Materials Processing Technology, 1996

ABSTRACT This paper discusses research results relating to automatic process planning for mould p... more ABSTRACT This paper discusses research results relating to automatic process planning for mould parts for plastic products. It is argued that current research is incomplete from an industrial point view. Industrial requirements for automated process planning are proposed. An object-oriented model that will meet these requirements is briefly described.

Journal of Intelligent Manufacturing, 2005

ABSTRACT This paper reports preliminary work to investigate the suitability of using a blackboard... more ABSTRACT This paper reports preliminary work to investigate the suitability of using a blackboard framework as a problem-solving model for stamping process planning in progressive die design. The model is described at two levels: knowledge level and computational level. The knowledge level describes how the stamping process planning domain is represented in a blackboard architecture. The computational level describes how the blackboard architecture is modeled and implemented using object technology. A software prototype has been developed using CLIPS and C++ interfaced with Solid Edge CAD system. An example is presented to illustrate the feasibility and practicality of the proposed approach.

Journal of Engineering Design, 2000

ABSTRACT Supporting the conceptual stage of mechanical product design has been recognized as a ch... more ABSTRACT Supporting the conceptual stage of mechanical product design has been recognized as a challenging research work. This is an area that is not addressed by current computer-aided design systems. In this paper, we present our work on the identification of functional design knowledge and the strategies for its organization. The functional design knowledge is aimed at assisting the conceptual stage of mechanical product design using a dual-stage functional modelling framework proposed by us. Several aspects of functional design knowledge are identified and represented, including function decomposition and functional mapping knowledge, physical structure and physical phenomena knowledge, as well as schematic geometry knowledge. These different aspects of knowledge are organized into three levels: meta level, physical level, and geometric level. A number of libraries are used to implement the design knowledge and its organization. The strength of the approach is that it encompasses very comprehensive aspects of functional design knowledge, and it provides a useful means for compiling past design experience in a formalized and structured form. To demonstrate how the approach can be applied, an example of automatic assembly system design is also studied.