The Engineering Design Process through an Understanding of the Evolution of Engineering Digital Objects (original) (raw)

10 Traceability of the Development of ‘ Information Objects ’ in the Engineering Design Process

2009

Mario Štorga∗,a, Mansur Darlington†, Steve Culley‡ and Dorian Marjanović∗,b ∗Faculty of Mechanical Engineering and Naval Architecture, University of Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia, Tel: +385 1 6168 432, Fax: +385 1 6168 284. E-mail: amario.storga@fsb.hr, bdorian@fsb.hr †Innovative Design and Manufacturing Research Centre, University of Bath, Bath, United Kingdom, Tel: + 44 (0)1225 38 6131, Fax: +44 (0)1225 38 6928 E-mail: M.J.Darlington@bath.ac.uk ‡Faculty of Engineering and Design, University of Bath, Bath, Bath, United Kingdom, Tel: + 44 (0)1225 38 6456, Fax: +44 (0)1225 38 6928. E-mail: S.J.Culley@bath.ac.uk

Modelling the Evolution of Computer Aided Design Models: Investigating the Potential for Supporting Engineering Project Management

International Conference on Product Lifecycle Management (PLM15), 2015

The development of Computer Aided Design (CAD) models is a fundamental and distinct feature of Engineering Projects. CAD models can be considered to be the digital embodiment of the products’ design and are used to support a wide variety of tasks that span the embodiment, detail, manufacture and commissioning phases of a project. With this in mind, it is proposed that the monitoring and modelling of the edit trace behaviour of CAD files may provide additional understanding and evidence that supplements current approaches to monitor and manage engineering projects. To explore this proposition, this paper presents results from an exploratory study that seeks to model the edit trace behaviour of CAD files based upon their meta- data attributes (for example, file size, date modified & date accessed). The edit trace behaviour has been mapped to a sigmoid function in order to be able to describe and potentially predict future behaviour. The potential impact of being able to provide this type of information to engineering project management is also discussed.

The emergent structures in digital engineering work: what can we learn from dynamic DSMs of near-identical systems design projects?

Design Science, 2019

Design structure matrices (DSMs) are widely known for their ability to support engineers in the management of dependencies across product and organisational architectures. Recent work in the field has exploited product lifecycle management systems to generate DSMs via the co-occurrence of edits to engineering files. These are referred to as dynamic DSMs and results have demonstrated both the efficacy and accuracy of dynamic DSMs in representing engineering work and emergent product architectures. The wide-ranging applicability of the theoretical model and associated analytical process to generate dynamic DSMs enables investigations into the evolving structures within digital engineering work. This paper uses this new capability and presents the results of the world’s first comparison of dynamic DSMs from a set of near-identical systems design projects. Through comparison of the dynamic DSMs’ end-of-project state, change propagation characteristics and evolutionary behaviour, 10 emergent structures are elicited. These emergent structures are considered in the context of team performance and design intent in order to explain and code the identified structures. The significance of these structures for the management of future systems design projects in terms of productivity and efficacy is also described.

The Process of Engineering Design: A Comparison of three Representations

2009

Graphic representations that show how the design process changes over the course of solving a problem are powerful tools for researchers. This paper presents three such representations-timelines, cumulative time plots, and progress time plots-and describes how they provide insights into the design process of engineers.

Capturing an integrated design information space with a diagram-based approach

Journal of Engineering Design, 2013

The Decision Rationale editor (DRed), an IBIS derivative, originally developed to support the capture of design rationale has progressively evolved into a tool to map an integrated information space covering product planning, specification, design, and service. This article presents the research undertaken to enable this evolution and to test the application of the tool in industry. The work consisted of extending the notation and the functionality of the DRed tool in the service of new methods for information representation and developing a new approach to designing and its documentation by integrated diagrams. Thus far the approach has been taught for two years and a half to engineering graduates involved in the training programme of the collaborating company. The application of the approach to an aerospace engineering design task is illustrated through a case study. The results of the evaluation have shown that creating large digital information spaces is feasible and delivers benefits to users.

DRed and design folders: a way of capturing, storing and passing on-knowledge generated during design projects

Proceedings of the ASME …, 2004

This paper describes a software tool called DRed (the Design Rationale editor), that allows engineering designers to record their design rationale (DR) at the time of its generation and deliberation. DRed is one of many proposed derivatives of the venerable IBIS concept, but by contrast with other tools of this type, practicing designers appear surprisingly willing to use it. DRed allows the issues addressed, options considered, and associated arguments for and against, to be captured graphically. The software, despite still being essentially a research prototype, is already in use on high profile design projects in an international aerospace company, including the presentation of results of design work to external customers. The paper compares DRed with other IBIS-derived software tools, to explain how it addresses problems that seem to have made them unsuitable for routine use by designers.

A Framework for the Development of Characteristic Signatures of Engineering Projects

DESIGN 2014: International Design Conference. Dubrovnik, Croatia

Engineering projects are highly complex, involving many project actors as they produce thousands of files, emails and prototypes. The premise of this work is that in these complex project ecosystems there is a high amount of implied information, particularly in the digital files produced by each actor, which has potential to be automatically extracted and used to improve process or output. This work presents a framework by which files can be categorised and analysed, thereby generating useful project information directly from the actions of project actors; and gives two real-data examples.

Vios, Ramon N., & Ramilo, Runddy D. “Digital Innovation in Design Practices: A Case Study on Digital Design Tools and Processes” International Journal of Engineering Research of Science and Technology

2013

The emerging innovation of digital technology has significantly influenced the design practices in the field of architecture today. Innovative form finding techniques, through computationally driven processes that lead to innovation of the design practices; wherein, computer-based project plays a vital role in developing forms and spaces with functionality. The evolution of digital tools such as the non-parametric, parametric and building performance and simulation tools play a significant rule in design form finding technique. In achieving forms and space, it requires new tools and innovative procedures to determine the best result as the design development progress. Introducing the new computational process such as, generative design, Boolean operation, fractal geometry, space grammar, typology, fluidity and pliant. Will venture special forms that all the more ignite the infinite optimism and creativity in anticipating quality object a design built environment. The aimed of this study is to lay-down the foundational design frameworks in achieving parametrically design form-finding technique in away lead to a functional, unique, interesting form and sustainable design built environment. This research is a case study, a project base on how digital design tools and process embodied in the form finding design approach in achieving functional design. The utilization of this digital design tools and adaptation of the new innovative design process will be subjected to a correlative and semantic deferential analyses to determine how each tool function and relate to a specified, innovative design process. A descriptive qualitative method in analyzing data presented. The result will be analyzed to establish a framework for digital innovation. Case Study of achieving new spaces and forms in architecture. According to Poletto (2006), this shift has opened up a new interpretation of technology 120 This article can be downloaded from http://www.ijerst.com/currentissue.php Int. J. Engg. Res. & Sci. & Tech. 2013 Ramon N Vios Jr. and Runddy D Ramilo, 2013 that is able to overcome both the extremes of modernist exaltation with efficiency and a parallel postmodern rejection. It opens new territories of formal exploration in architecture and radically reconfigured the relationship between design and production creating a direct digital connection between what can be imagined and designed, and what can be built through 'file-to-factory' processes of Computer Numerically Controlled (CNC) fabrication (Kolarevic, 2003). This transformation provides the designers opportunity to express oneself, to be radical, and to distinguish from the past to a new generative, computational form of articulated design practices. The experience does not stop in the conceptualization but continues to the production or manufacturing processes using those acquired new forms into more prevailing tools in computational design process, computer generated, algorithmic design has gain momentum with the advent of the technological improvement. This development aids architects to achieve complex forms. Runddy Ramilo said that "complex forms and difficult spatial programming that is often a hindrance to architects in the early stage of design will become embodied in a computer system and will be very essential to design process in the future." Branko