| Affiliation: | 1. Università degli Studi di Parma, Parco area delle scienze 181/A, 43121 Parma, Italy;2. Università Politecnica delle Marche, via brecce bianche n. 12, 60121 Ancona, Italy;1. Computer Engineering Department, University of Pernambuco, Recife, Brazil;2. Electrical Engineering Post-Graduation Program, Federal University of Pernambuco, Recife, Brazil;1. State Key Laboratory of Advanced Design and Manufacturing for Vehicle Body, Hunan University, Changsha 410082, PR China;2. Laboratory of Science and Technology on Integrated Logistics Support, National University of Defense Technology, Changsha 410082, PR China;1. College of Science, North China University of Science and Technology, Tangshan 063210, PR China;2. Hebei Key Laboratory of Data Science and Applications, North China University of Science and Technology, Tangshan, Hebei 063210, PR China |
| Abstract: | Target design methodologies (DfX) were developed to cope with specific engineering design issues such as cost-effectiveness, manufacturability, assemblability, maintainability, among others. However, DfX methodologies are undergoing the lack of real integration with 3D CAD systems. Their principles are currently applied downstream of the 3D modelling by following the well-known rules available from the literature and engineers’ know-how (tacit internal knowledge).This paper provides a method to formalize complex DfX engineering knowledge into explicit knowledge that can be reused for Advanced Engineering Informatics to aid designers and engineers in developing mechanical products. This research work wants to define a general method (ontology) able to couple DfX design guidelines (engineering knowledge) with geometrical product features of a product 3D model (engineering parametric data). A common layer for all DfX methods (horizontal) and dedicated layers for each DfX method (vertical) allow creating the suitable ontology for the systematic collection of the DfX rules considering each target. Moreover, the proposed framework is the first step for developing (future work) a software tool to assist engineers and designers during product development (3D CAD modelling).A design for assembly (DfA) case study shows how to collect assembly rules in the given framework. It demonstrates the applicability of the CAD-integrated DfX system in the mechanical design of a jig-crane. Several benefits are recognized: (i) systematic collection of DfA rules for informatics development, (ii) identification of assembly issues in the product development process, and (iii) reduction of effort and time during the design review. |
