Smart Product Engineering

Smart Engineering aims at a new approach for describing, designing and dimensioning Smart Products. Design methodology is far advanced and provides both a systematic approach to develop new products as well as appropriate methods to support development tasks in specific development phases. Within this development process the communication capabilities of Smart Products, the structure of communication among Smart Products as well as executing functional operations triggered by communicated messages is not described yet.

This new approach for the description of Smart Products introduces products’ states specification to derive the description of functional behavior as well as the execution of working procedures. In this contribution a basic systematic analysis of both sensors for communication and internet based communication protocols is presented to enable appropriate products’ states. Based on this analysis a framework approach for processing events will be presented. The Smart Engineering approach will be demonstrated finally within an application scenario.

In an increasingly competitive business world, engineering companies need to improve their capability in developing products that offer high value to customers. In this connection, the

Toyota Product Development System

—commonly referred to as ‘LeanProduct Development

’

—is a benchmark for effective, new practices across industries.

Lean

contains many of the same elements as

traditional

engineering design methodologies, developed in the 1970-80s, which describe systematic design and engineering processes. However, the former differs through its philosophical nature—rather than being a methodology or tool—as well as its focus on increasing effectiveness through waste reduction.

In this paper, a literature review of the traditional, systematic product engineering/development methodologies and the more recent lean concept is conducted. Both approaches are analyzed, providing a discussion as to what extent traditional methodologies include elements of lean-thinking and to what extent the associated product engineering processes are lean.

There are many methods for the development of new products. One of them is model-based design. This article is dedicated to the usage of this design method for the reduction of the time required for the commissioning of manufacturing plants. For this purpose, the method of virtual commissioning is combined with the model-based design which makes it possible to create a procedural model. The presented approach assists the developer in order to save time during the actual commissioning and thus reduce costs. The presented approach is validated on an application example.

Design for eXcellence (DfX) entails a wide range of goal specific design methods targeting different phases of a product’s lifecycle. These methods are often not standardized and sometimes even have contradicting rules among them. As a consequence, design processes experience an increase in organizational entropy. This paper presents a template for DfX methods. The goal is to assist the industry in setting up lean design processes. The results of this research are threefold: (1) standardization of DfX design tasks and information flows, (2) facilitating the implementation of DfX methods and (3) enable benchmarking of DfX methods to purify design processes.

Fulfilling customer requirements significantly influences product success. Improving the quality of documentation is a primary objective of requirements engineering and management. Despite properly outlined requirements however, it is very common that mistakes emerge throughout the product development lifecycle due to diverging interpretations. Because if this enhancing the quality of requirements documentation to ensure a common understanding is increasingly the focus of quality improvement considerations. In response to this need, an approach was developed which uses Secure Information Transformation from Input to Output (SITIO) as an aspect of PLM integrated requirements management to provide a sustainable enhancement of interpretation-quality through linguistic pragmatics.

Within the last decades the position of customers has changed from a passive recipient to an active co-designer in the value creation. Successful innovators use competence within an extended network which particularly includes the competence of customers. Therefore the ability to allow information about customers and their needs to flow into the process of product creation is decisive. But todays methods and IT-Tools often do not achieve the desired results in innovation projects. In order to improve the active virtual customer integration into the process of product creation; this paper presents a Product Lifecycle Management (PLM)-centered research environment with a ubiquitous mobile frontend. A process outline for the provision of product descriptive data from a PLM system to a mobile device and the information return, back into the product creation process is included.

This paper describes High-Definition PLM (HD-PLM), Siemens PLM Software’s vision for supporting companies make smarter decisions that result in better products. Working from the knowledge that companies in all industries are faced with increased complexity in both products and processes, HD-PLM vision builds on three core concepts: intelligently integrated information, a future-proof architecture, and a high-definition user experience. The High-Definition PLM vision enables decision makers throughout the product lifecycle to make better informed decisions more efficiently and with a higher level of confidence. This paper explains the network of technologies and capabilities to achieve a defined set of strategic objectives and the technology foundation of the core HD-PLM concept. The basics and environment are described and how HD-PLM supports a cross-domain decision making by uniting users with the people, tools and precise product-related information they need to intelligently evaluate decision alternatives.

Doing business globally causes the increase of very complex and dynamic processes. It demands a high level of flexibility and adaptability from the companies involved. The aim of companies is to find efficient ways in order to produce new products and to better meet customer demands. Open Innovation (OI) approaches contribute to this aim and therefore drive the evolution of future Product Lifecycle Management (PLM). Based on four scenarios, developed using scenario planning method, the implications are shown on different levels of PLM. A catalogue of requirements for PLM 2020 was drawn up on the basis of the results of interdisciplinary panels, qualitative and quantitative interviews, and of a sector-specific use case for the automotive industry. The paper discovers ways in which PLM can be made more successful in future and pinpoint challenges that PLM will have to meet with regard to OI concepts.

Model-Based Systems Engineering is on everyone’s lips as innovative approach to overcome traditional, error-prone document-based product development. The Systems Modeling Language (SysML) is the most popular tool for model-based development of multidisciplinary systems. Several research works and industrial pilot projects have applied the OMG-standardized language in the last years, but it has still not become widely accepted. Previous experiences of the authors from several research projects with industry underline this statement and have shown that engineers still have trouble in applying SysML. This paper investigates possible reasons for this issue and presents results of a survey regarding term understanding of engineers as well as acceptance of SysML.

Today, coping with the different workflows, methods and tools of this inter-disciplinary approach to product development throughout a product’s life-cycle is the key challenge for a company. There is evidently a need for requirements engineering and management, as well as model-based design and engineering. More specifically, however, what is required is a unique and integrated methodology for requirements engineering and management, functional and logical design, as well as physical design in different domains for the multi-disciplinary development process based on a Systems Engineering approach early in the design process. In this paper, the RFLP approach (Requirements – Functional – Logical – Physical) will be presented as the baseline for model-based design with Systems Engineering that enable close interaction and collaboration between the different engineering disciplines render resources and processes more efficient, enhance quality, and ensure that the target system ultimately meets the requirements, while reducing design cycle time and engineering lead time.

The selection of the optimal connection is one of the most crucial parts in product development as it determines both, product properties and production processes. In multi-variant series production, functionality presumed, process cost is more and more in the focus of the selection. Designers face a big challenge in evaluating the feasible connections and surveying them holistically. Main challenge is the consideration of both, product and process related characteristics as they are documented according to different methodologies and in different sources. Therefore, a system-theoretical approach for consolidating product and process information is developed enabling designers effective designing and surveying the possible connections for given parts to be assembled. A case study evaluates impact on design time and connection quality.

The aim of this paper is to introduce the Systems State Flow Diagram as a structured approach to high level solution-independent function based decomposition of a complex multi-disciplinary system. The approach is discussed in the context of existing function modelling frameworks and in relation to current practice in industry. A generic case study is used to introduce the approach and to highlight the salient features, followed by an illustration on its application to the analysis of an electric vehicle powertrain. Experience with the practical application of the approach with engineering teams is discussed.

The development and design of mechatronic systems require detailed knowledge in mechanical, electrical and software engineering. In order to face challenges, like reduced time-to-market, reduced costs and increased variability, complex systems should be modularized and the identified mechatronic modules reused for the development of new variants or versions. This paper focuses on the identification of adaptive reusable modules with an appropriate level of granularity and the representation of the deduced modules to support the development. Based on the collection of deduced modules, with defined functions and structure, new systems can be designed through a combination of the appropriate modules.In this contribution, the methodology will be presented through a use case. This example shows how appropriate modules are identified in a first step. In the second step, the impact on the engineering process is shown by the support of the selection and design of the modules.

Today industrial companies are still trying to optimize in terms of time and cost the re-manufacturing of mechanical components. They need to directly define a new process planning from 3D information (points cloud, drawings…). This paper proposes an approach called Reverse Engineering For Manufacturing (REFM) which allows to directly obtain a CAPP (Computer Aided Process Planning) model from 3D and knowledge information. Routine tasks will also be taken into account. In this paper, RE is considered as a specific domain and concerns parts where no information is available on them. The system management is based on Design For Manufacturing (DFM) approach and enables to manage manufacturing information (the number of fixtures, the kind of milling operations...). Additionally, the future REFM system will have to propose alternatives for CAPP models. Therefore the main innovative point of REFM is to develop “manufacturing knowledge extraction” phase which is the aim of this paper.

This article proposes a fixturing system consists of a cuboid baseplate located through a 3-2-1 configuration of locators. The locators are mounted on machine table/pallet and posses one axial DOF. The workpiece is mounted on the baseplate and all the elements are assumed to be rigid with zero friction. The positioning error of the workpiece is calculated and the compensation is performed by the axial movement of the locators. The proposed analytical model is verified by the simulation performed in the CAD model.

A new perspective on a control architecture, capable to increase the overall performance of the manufacturing equipment by endowing it with distributed intelligence, thus providing short ramp-up times, plug-and-play capability, great integrability and scalability, together with cost reduction, is presented in this paper. The architecture concept, based on the outcome of applying specific problem solving methods, shows an intelligent axis equipped with a network of smart sensors and units controlled and supervised by a master control unit. The proposed solution is based on both electronic and software designs in order to expand equipment performances and take a step forward in supporting manufacturing systems towards reconfigurability. An experimental testing bench has been constructed around a mechanical axis for exploring control architecture performances and intelligent axis concept feasibility. Results have shown that the proposed control architecture is functional, highly reconfigurable, cost effective, and the concept of intelligent axis is feasible.

Process modeling is a set of activities to be followed to create one or more models of a process for a certain purpose. Some modeling methods are more suitable for a given purpose than others, an essential fact to remember when choosing a modeling method. Some literature reviews about product development process modeling and their purposes are available on the literature; however, none of them intend to deplete the subject. Therefore, this research aims to provide a state of the art about product development process modeling methods and propose a detailed and comprehensive classification of them based on their purposes. To this end, a systematic literature review is conducted, followed by the elaboration of a matrix that relates modeling methods to their purposes. The resulting matrix can serve as a starting point for the elaboration of a framework for modeling method selection.

Product engineering processes are subject to increasing complexity. In order to address this problem, various model-based simulation or optimization techniques have been published. However, these techniques are limited to the structure and quality of the data that they work with. In addition, modeling effort needs to be minimized, in order to efficiently support product engineering. In this contribution an approach for the activity-based analysis of product engineering processes is presented. It is intended to support modeling of complex processes with a focus on easy information acquisition. The overall suitability of the approach as well as ways to minimize modeling effort are discussed in two case studies.

The complexity of automotive systems has increased dramatically, driven by the requirement to address environmental and safety concerns and the pressure to offer higher level consumer technologies. This places a great challenge on product development organizations to manage the multidisciplinary systems integration in a reliable and robust manner. Engineering changes, which are integral part of the iterative automotive product development process, need to be managed in a way that efficiently addresses the integration requirements of complex multidisciplinary systems. The aim of this paper is to present a structured approach for engineering change management which is based on an enhanced interface analysis method which aims to identify comprehensively the system integration functional requirements as the basis for both engineering change prediction and support of robust engineering change design. The framework will be illustrated with an industrial case study on the development of an electric vehicle powertrain. The effectiveness of the proposed approach will be discussed in contrast with other methods for engineering change management.

To reduce product development time, upstream testing and downstream design processes are often overlapped. Existing studies do not recommend overlapping in situations where test results may have a significant effect on downstream redesign. However, this study identifies that, due to long procurement time and lengthy physical tests, companies may have no choice but to overlap these tasks to meet product delivery deadlines. This research investigates how a case study company manages these overlaps, and proposes a model to support the overlapping of testing and subsequent redesign phases during the development phases.

Today, the purpose of many PLM implementation projects is the realization of PLM-Architectures which aim on product data integration over the dimensions domain, business unit and product line along the Product Development Process. Currently, these projects are mostly addressed like IT-Projects for implementation of domain specific products (e.g. CAx, PDM- or ERP-Systems). Hence the implementation focuses on functional aspects. This focus usually lacks consideration of semantic and progression conception which are key aspects for PLM implementation. To improve this situation the Do(PLM)Con methodology was developed. It provides methods for abstract design of integrated PLM-Architectures including semantics and progression. The following paper will explain the terms semantics and progression in PLM and describe the Do(PLM)Con method as an instrument for systematic design of integrated PLM-Architectures.

Active systems are characterized by an integration of electronic components into mechanical systems and can be distinguished into mechatronics and adaptronics. In adaptronic systems the electronic components are full structural integrated. The Department of Computer Integrated Design (DiK) has developed the W-model as a new proceeding model for the integrated development of adaptronic systems which is based upon a virtual cross-disciplinary integration and verification in all phases of product development. Therefore the W-Model insists on the use of special development environment which is based on the product data management functionalities. In this paper a proposal for a meta-data-model for such an environment is presented. Following the W-model the meta-data-model allows the definition, import and analysis of complex system models, the derivation of hierarchic requirements-, function- and product structures and the definition of integrated system simulations for the virtual verification of results.

A production system can be treated at various levels beginning on components and going on machinery, plant, factory and even company. As for each level there are specific IT tools, every level necessarily implies an increase of the amount of data to be managed. To accomplish this integration of multiple sources the

FedMan

project uses the concept of federative databases and organizes this data in a model with three orthogonal domains: Product, Processes and Resources. The integration is based on a service-oriented architecture, which provides the access to specific information via web services requesting to the owner of information. This federative approach treats the data encapsulated in order to keep the partial autonomy of specific tools, without significant loss of flexibility. This model of integration is promising in the sense of integrating large amounts of data involved in a production system, maintaining the flexibility of each information technology tool.

The adoption of product lifecycle management (PLM) approach requires the selection and implementation of IT systems. Currently, there is a wide variety of IT systems focused on PLM available in the market. The problem that motivates this research is the difficulty faced by manufacturing companies to evaluate and to compare existing PLM systems available commercially, in order to select the most appropriate alternative to their business processes needs. At academia, the main problem is the lack of a widely accepted definition of the software functions that should be considered within the scope of PLM. This paper presents a PLM functional reference model for software support. The reference model is comprehensive and neutral, establishing a common base to facilitate software comparison and thus support software selection at manufacturing companies. Additionally, the presented reference model establishes a generic definition of PLM to be discussed at academy and industry.

This research introduces new systematic methods dealing with a

complete end-to-end design process

to production systems, where the uncertainty of product variety is mapped to product attributes and manufacturing processes, then mapped into a manufacturing and production line using product decomposition into systems, sub-systems, and modular assembly. Graph network (NW), change propagation index (CPI) and hybrid design structure matrix (HDSM) were introduced to: (1) establish connectivity between sub-systems (modules) before mapping design changes, (2) measure the degree of changes to the state of systems due to changes propagated through the entire systems, (3) estimate how much embedded flexibility is needed for these elements (design variables) to absorb future changes. A practical example of actual production systems was presented. Hybrid Design Structure Matrix (HDSM) is used to transmit knowledge gained, detailing design of production systems.

This paper discusses the appearance of mechatronic machine elements (MME) in the greater context of cyber-physical systems (CPS). For this purpose it establishes classifications for CPS. Three groups of MME are identified, characterized and illustrated with examples. Regarding the advantages of MME, the text explains how they allow for new functions in mechanical systems and how they help to reduce the development effort for complex products. As desirable characteristics for MME in general are identified independent communication abilities, “plug-and-play” integration in networks and mechanics and the preprocessing of sensor data on the element itself. CPS with specifically designed MME can further become a valuable tool in product development for information collection.

The success of mechatronic systems is determined by the close interaction of mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, control engineering and software engineering. During the design processes developers often rely on established and proven solutions. In order to ensure the desired system behavior simulations are carried out. This leads to considerable modeling effort to create the necessary simulation model. In this paper an approach for early validation of mechatronic systems is presented. The aim is to reduce the modeling effort for simulation models and to allow early simulations of different concepts. Therefore idealized simulation models are combined to a simulation-ready Modelica model of the system. The model is generated (semi-)automatically based on information provided by the active structure, a shape model and a behavior model. All models are part of a coherent system that describes the principle solution. Adjustments and changes in the simulation model are transferred back into the partial model.

The development and manufacturing of highly precise micro-mechatronic systems, such as MEMS applications, is a challenging task due to the complexity and variety of their manufacturing technologies, as well as their high quality requirements. Within the context of the product engineering process of micro-mechatronic systems, quality inspection by means of production measurement technology is a crucial factor. This paper presents a survey of the challenges regarding quality inspection of micro-mechatronic systems. Furthermore, a Design for Testability approach for these types of products is described and exemplary applications of its implementation are shown.

This paper starts highlighting the importance of simulating manual assembly processes in the automotive industry and shortly presenting current available modeling possibilities. It then introduces a reference framework for modeling and simulation in the context of manual assembly process verification and presents a set of available simulation approaches. It concludes by proposing a methodology to assess the quality of different methods and technologies to verify planned manual assembly processes without using the classical physical prototype based approach.

Integrating product engineering and process planning (e. g. assembly process planning) is a relevant research theme of the last years. Primary objective is the reduction of costs and time-to-market in modern product engineering processes. In this paper the concept of Product Assembly Information is presented to support the assembly-oriented product engineering and to reinforce the integration of product development and assembly process planning. Product Assembly Information contains assembly time-relevant product criteria and is an essential part of continuous data exchange between product development and process planning.

Assembly process planning involves many aspects from geometrical matters to operational research. Though, the literature shows very few works about assembly technique selection.

This paper deals with an original method to select assembly techniques and to allocate component geometrical tolerances in order to minimize the product cost and to maximize the conformity rate associated with the assembly plan.

The data structures used to define a parametric assembly plan is detailed. This data structure is used to formulate a multi-objective optimization problem reflecting the concerns of the study.

The entire method is illustrated trough a case study. The results obtained are presented and followed by a discussion about the potential benefits of its application in an industrial context. The useful support that this method can provide to decision-making is highlighted. Its shared point of view from product designers to manufacturing process designers makes it an efficient tool for concurrent engineering.

Digital Human Model (DHM) simulations are established as alternative to prototype based assembly verification. Prohibitive modeling effort constrains its application to selected tasks. In this work, a novel methodology is introduced to automatically generate DHM assembly simulations from textually planned assembly processes. The methodology is based on the software ema, which employs a human movement database mapped to building blocks. The methodology is evaluated using a model for a car interior pre-assembly station at Daimler AG. It is compared to state of the art process verification with prototypes, classical DHM modeling and manual application of ema. Most of the processes can be identified and half of them are realistically modeled. The presented methodology is a promising approach towards automating DHM modeling for process verification. Such a feature could help integrating today’s alpha-numerical process planning to 3D geometric planning because no CAD expertise is required.

In many industries the market sees a lot of change happening these days; new trends and challenges obviously need to be addressed as part of the product creation process.

Dassault Systèmes (3DS) is introducing a 3DEXPERIENCE PLATFORM to expand the usability of the digital smart product development in an accurate virtual universe beyond Product Lifecycle Management (PLM).

The target is to provide the ability to place the customer at the heart of a system, integrating both company business processes and product development processes. It is a combination of science, art and technology to bring value to our customers by helping them to respond to the needs of their customers and creating ‘magnetic’ products with strong market appeals.

3DExperiences can be a catalyst for innovation, enabling any enterprise stakeholder to participate in the innovation process, contributing to drive value for the end consumer and create smart products from design to recycling.

This presentation highlights some aspects of the new Dassault Systèmes strategy; shows some of the solution experiences and how customers respond to them. 3DS is a scientific company positioned among the top 10 software companies worldwide and for more than 30 years has been helping companies to transform the way they design and produce their products.

The conclusion is based on an explanation to leverage the virtual product with accuracy through the production of a Probabilistic Certificate of Correctness for complex cyber physical smart product definition.

The past several decades have seen major advances in sensor technologies, including surface scanning at multi-scales. While state-of-the-art research focuses on methods for integrating diverse scanned data into a single geometric model for inspection analysis, these methods still cannot handle multi-scale data. This paper proposes a new approach for data fusion from multi-scale sensors by defining two generic frameworks for data fusion: Single-Level Multi-Sensor (SLMS) for multi-scale data merged on one level and Hierarchical Multi-Sensor (HMS) for hierarchically merged multi-scale data. These frameworks are based on state-of-the-art generic frameworks and use the properties of multi-scale sensors properties. The feasibility of the proposed approach is demonstrated on 2.5D surfaces scanned by CMM touch probes and laser scanners and on 3D multi-scale synthetic data from CAD models.

State-of-the-art industrial products generate large amounts of data that is not lead back into product development. The use of modern technologies like mobile devices and Auto-ID to identify product items and collect data offers a new, rich data source that can be used by product development. To gain an understanding of the products in practical application, the collected data can be processed by assistant systems for the improvement of products. The assistant system outlined in the paper in hand uses statistical methods and methods derived from risk management to provide a comprehensive analysis. A short overview of the analysis results is presented to the product developer as a preselection of parts worth improving. Based on the preselection, the product developer can choose specific parts and gain further information via the assistant system. The system itself provides that information using different methods of product and information visualization.

Inclusion of uses and users in product design remains a challenge to take up; especially when their characterizations are very specific (it’s the case with disabled persons). In the musical domain, a lot of adapted interfaces are manufactured to enable users with disabilities to play music from digital audio. But few of them allow the music practice on acoustic instruments, which is one of the goal identified by the AE2M non-profit association (Ergonomic Adaptation of the Musical Material). In this specific context, this paper presents the design of a universal product which transforms any user environment object to a personalized interface, to play percussion instruments.

In this paper a new technology roadmapping method, based on the stochastic simulation of key performance indicators, is presented. Initially the specific challenges and the system model associated with the introduction of an innovative electric bus systems are worked out. The future behavior of this complex technological system is forecasted based on a Monte Carlo simulation method with stochastic input to take uncertainties into account and a deterministic model which is derived from the structure of the technological system. Stochastic outputs are obtained for technology readiness, economic feasibility and environmental sustainability. The data are evaluated with a technology information management system to generate technology roadmaps and to support decision making on development strategy and planning of time to market. The method is exemplary illustrated for an urban electric bus system with a special focus on the technology readiness level as a performance indicator.

Nowadays, industry and trading companies are facing a lot of risks. These risks occur in a variety of different fields such as in the corporate strategy, the development of new products or in the introduction of new business and production processes. Due to external influences in particular technical risks are increasing, e. g. by regulations, increasing price and quality competition or shorter product life cycles, reasoned by innovative products. Therefore, an effective and efficient technical risk management system is crucial, to keep competitive advantages. A survey of the

Fraunhofer Institute for Production Technology IPT

, regarding technical risk management (TRM) in manufacturing companies, confirms the described importance, because 75% of the companies assign TRM a very high importance within the product and process development. Against the background of shown challenges, the

Fraunhofer IPT

developed an approach to make the assessment and control of technical risks more efficient.

In this paper a simultaneous engineering approach is introduced to cope with the complex and elaborative engineering design process for bifurcated sheet metal products. The design process comprises product design, sheet blank design, and tool design. Free form surfaces derived from mathematical optimization processes are the starting point for product, tool, and sheet blank design. Part design is strongly connected and references to the underlying free form surface. For the 3D-CAD models a modeling concept is introduced where free form surfaces are referenced from an external source. A workflow to manage the design process and to deal with possible changes and iterations during product development is also developed and presented.

Fresnel mirror in thermodynamic solar power plant technology is an efficient power resource in many potential countries. The key challenge is cost effectiveness of the product and its settling. The importance of using this technology redounded in writing this paper to propose a methodology in order to design this system considering its complexities. Because of the dependency of the product with process of production and installation of this solar plant, a simultaneous design methodology is required. Moreover, a concept of movable factory, from one solar farm site to another one, is also discussed which is identified as a proper solution for such project with reusability.

The phases of the embodiment stage are sequentially conceived and in some domains even cyclic conceived. Nevertheless, there is no seamless integration between these, causing longer development processes, increment of time lags, loss of inertia, greater misunderstandings, and conflicts.

Embodiment Discrete Processing

enables the seamless integration of three building blocks. 1)

Dynamic Discrete Representation

: it is capable to concurrently handle the design and the analysis phases. 2)

Dynamic Discrete Design

: it deals with the needed modeling operations while keeping the consistency of the discrete shape. 3)

Dynamic Discrete Analysis

: it efficiently maps the dynamic changes of the shape within the design phase, while streamlining the interpretation processes. These integrated building blocks support the multidisciplinary work between designers and analysts, which was previously unusual. It creates a new understanding of what an integral processing is, whose phases were regarded as independent. Finally, it renders new opportunities toward a general purpose processing.

The development of appliances focuses on more efficient and high functionality products. The recent European legislation limits energy consumption for several domestic devices, including kitchen hoods which encloses an impeller moved by an electrical motor. A correct impeller design is important to guarantee fluid dynamic performance and the reduction of resistance torque in a cooker hood system. The traditional design approach is based on pilot manufacturing and related experimental tests. This paper aims to present a methodology design for centrifugal impellers integrating a multi-level approach based on a Virtual Prototyping tool, Design of Experiments (DOE) method and Rapid Prototyping system in order to support the project design. The proposed research has been validated during the design of a fan wheel for domestic cooker hoods. A DOE approach, based on main impeller parameters, has been applied to the virtual experiment with CFD tool to reduce cost and time-to-market.

The fuzzy front end (FFE) of new product development (NPD) has been an important area of research during the last decade. The FFE is recognized by several researchers as the part of the innovation process where most substantial improvements can be achieved with minimum cost. This paper investigates former research to determine if there is a common perception of the FFE. Referring to state of the art and the nature of the FFE, it is argued that an ‘ideal’ FFE model brings limited value to a firm. A number of contextual factors that influence the characteristics of the FFE are presented to further argue this finding. That is, the context is far too important to be overlooked in the search for a FFE strategy.

This paper presents a Knowledge Based Engineering (KBE) application developed for the aeronautical sector. Specifically, this paper describes a KBE application that aids on the definition of the contact interface between turbine discs and blades of low pressure turbines, namely the firtree. Designing firtrees requires more than 60 different entry parameters, a check for static stresses, de-featuring for fatigue finite element analysis and as cast design for manufacturing and weight management purposes. The application delivered at first the typical benefits of KBE applications: significant time savings, error reduction and standardization. However, the challenges posed by the aeronautical industry, quickly pushed designers out of the standard agreed topology for the firtree. This raised the typical issue on development time and maintainability of KBE applications. The challenge was partially solved through designer knowledge capture and reuse in the form of a User Defined Feature library integrated in to the original KBE application.

A key challenge for gaining important time and cost potentials in production engineering projects is an early virtual validation during the pre-series. Under the premise to replace physical by digital mock-ups, we will present requirements and solutions of a virtual validation focused on manual assembly of power electronics in automotive industry. Using a digital human model for dynamic analysis is not very prevalent, because of the high modeling complexity in the digital environment. The resulting motions of the human model are furthermore unrealistic. Hence the need for research is a time saving and, regardless, a realistic movement design for virtual validation by a human model. To achieve this goal, we use an experimental setup including a variable eight camera motion capture system, a data glove and an interface for the connection to the digital validation software.

Resistance Spot Welding is frequently used for joining of sheet metal assemblies. Geometrical variation in parts to be joined, variation in fixtures and lack of repeatability in welding guns and robots, result in variation in spot weld position. Analysis of industrial scanning data showed deviations of spot weld positions of magnitudes up to 19 mm. This variation leads to variation in the initial gap between the parts to be joined and therefore, also to variation in the assembly force required to join the parts. In this paper, a simulation method for prediction of variation in assembly forces due to variation in spot weld position is presented.

For cutting tool data exchange in manufacturing CAx (Computer-Aided technologies), standardized representation and classification of items and properties is important. ISO 13399 (Cutting tool data representation and exchange) provides a solution to represent cutting tool data classified with an ISO 13584 (Parts Library, PLib) based dictionary. However, ISO 13399 does not support classification of shape geometry directly, which limits its use. Another limitation is representing GD&T (Geometric Dimensioning and Tolerancing) as simplified general properties, which does not fulfill high semantic precision and validation rules. This research provides a unified solution to represent cutting tool parameters integrated with geometry and dedicated properties based on STEP AP242 (ISO 10303-242 Managed model-based 3D engineering). Standardized libraries such as the ISO 13399 dictionary can be reused with the modeling approach for AP242 cutting tool representation. Software is developed to validate and demonstrate how this solution facilitates the data integration process to support CAx applications.

Considering variation of influent factors is a critical issue to enhance the robustness of sheet metal forming process in the product design process. The stochastic variability of uncontrollable factors results in the variations on the formed part which can lead to rejected parts. Since the inherent sources of variation in the sheet metal forming process comes from part-to-part, within batch and batch-to-batch variation. Therefore, the prediction and control of the variability influencing on the performance of the product is an essential demand of automotive and aeronautic manufacturers. Moreover, it is very necessary to have a numerically dedicated tool which predicts the process variability with a good confidence. In this paper, prediction of the variations of the formed part due to the variabilities of the sheet stamping process and the workpiece by numerical simulation will be carried out.

Lead user identification is a systematic approach to uncovering product development opportunities by identifying lead users, individuals or groups actively involved in modifying or developing products for personal benefit. In this paper, a systematic approach called Fast Lead User IDentification (FLUID) based on online data mining, specifically of the Twitter micro-blogging site, is proposed. Topic classification, sentiment and intent of a given tweet or user-metadata can be automatically determined using various text mining techniques. The described FLUID system makes use of such techniques to rank retrieved users based on indexes derived from well-established lead user characteristics. In the initial analysis phase collection of relevant artifacts and contextual inquiry allow for measuring impact of each index toward delineating lead users from other non-lead users. Through refinement based on statistical analysis of expert assessments the effectiveness of the FLUID system is optimized.

Human interference with engineers’ activities negatively influences engineering tasks’ success. Regarding human influence is therefore a promising approach to improve that success. This Paper examines the aspect of man-induced disturbances in Systematic Engineering Design processes. Based on a lab study done with engineering students and interviews with engineers in industry a model of how to link engineering tasks with the most appropriate problem solving design engineer is developed. To underline the importance of the model, specific background information on Design Theory approaches is given.

In order to further include the employees’ creativity in the innovation processes, companies provide social software platforms for internal innovation communities to share, discuss and evaluate ideas. The main challenge for organizing such communities is to foster motivation for participation. In this paper, motivation theories are put in context with an innovation community concept developed at the automotive manufacturer Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG. Firstly, an interview study analysis of this concept is used to identify new relevant expectations, hopes, needs and abilities of employees. Secondly, measures proposed in the past are evaluated. With the help of 20 semi-structured interviews it can be shown that each of the employees is unique and has own motivational deficiencies. Thus it is important that a concept for fostering motivation includes several measures which motivate the various users to participate. These measures are integrated into a holistic concept presented in this paper.

Product architecture represents components grouped into modules that can be assembled later to constitute a specific variant. Literature provides Methods of clustering components into weakly related modules with strong interconnections between components within modules. The number of modules and their hierarchical relationships shape product architecture and determine the balance between modular design and components integration. A novel hierarchical clustering approach, based on the biological Cladistics analysis, has been developed to cluster Design Structure Matrix (DSM) widely used to promote modularity. It evaluates different granularity levels of the resulting hierarchy and finds the best granularity level for maximum modularity. An automotive Body-in-White of 38 different components is used as a case study. Results showed the superiority of the recommended modularity pattern and synthesized product architecture over other clustering techniques.

Reducing internal variety is a major challenge for industrial enterprises. Several approaches have been presented in literature supporting the development of modular product families in order to accomplish variety reduction. The Integrated PKT-Approach for Developing Modular Product Families integrates aspects of design for variety with technical-functional and product - strategic modularization methods. It furthermore proposes how to embed product family development into a holistic strategy for the specific corporate product program.

Mass customization is an effective means to economically produce the wide product variety that the market now demands. The product platform strategy has emerged as an important enabler, where common components used across different product variants are maximized to decrease design and manufacturing cost. A model for designing optimal products platforms was developed. It determines the best number, combinations, and composition of modular product platforms. It defines the optimum hierarchy of relations between the platform components and enables delayed product differentiation to achieve economy of scope. Unlike designing product platforms using common components, the new model enables customization of the platforms themselves to suit the dynamically changing and evolving product families. It uses a mathematical nonlinear and linear mixed integer programming approach. A case study of a family of touch screen computer tablets is used to illustrate the application and advantages of the newly developed dynamic product platform design model.

This paper presents a framework consisting of a mathematical model and an algorithm for representation, analysis and exploration of the design space in redesign problems. The framework develops and extends the existing formalism of the Characteristics Properties Model (CPM) and Property Driven Design (PDD). A platform independent quantitative model based on formal logic is presented to map the characteristics and properties, as well as the relations and dependencies between them, along with the necessary conditions for solution evaluation. The model is based on generalization of existing mathematical design models and is supported by the development of an algorithm enabling property driven design. The resulting framework offers a rich and flexible syntax and vocabulary along with a mathematical and computational tool applicable to mechanical product redesign.

During product origination many deviations occur which manifest in unreliable functional behaviour and reduced product quality. Thus, the observable geometric deviations have to be limited by geometric tolerances of function-relevant part features. In this context the standards for Geometrical Product Specification and Verification (GPS) provide helpful tools for geometric tolerancing. A basic concept within these standards is the skin model concept which can be understood as a model of the physical interface between the workpiece and its environment. Recent research tries to translate this concept into discrete geometry and focuses upon the technical aspects related to generating skin model shapes, whereas the implications of this concept and emerging simulation possibilities for the geometric variations management process stay disregarded. Therefore, this paper highlights the consequences of the skin model concept and modern simulation tools for the computer aided tolerancing process and the management of geometric deviations during product development.

This paper examines the influence of a pre-sketching activity on the quantity and novelty of the design solutions. A controlled experiment is used to investigate the influence of pre-sketching activity on quantity and novelty of the concepts. Two student groups sketched solutions for the same design problem; with one group given a pre-sketch activity before the design problem. Results reveal that this short pre-sketching activity positively affects the novelty of the solutions of the design problem (p-value=0.05 for novel means). Further, while the findings suggest that the pre-sketching activity resulted in more concepts generated, this was not found to be statistically significant (p-value=0.22). Therefore, it is recommended that idea generation methods be augmented with short pre-sketching activities before the sessions.

Currently, micro-machines are often based on principles of macro-machines. Results are unfavorable ratios between the build and the work space and also between the large moving masses and the work piece mass. To over-come these shortcomings, it is necessary to develop new approaches for work piece adaptable micro machine components as well as new kinematic chains especially geared towards the requirements of micromachining. For this reason, a work piece adaptable, highly integrated, piezohydraulic feed axis is developed. In this paper, the design of the hydraulic feed axis as well as a simulation and scaling tool are outlined. Furthermore, measurements regarding accuracy are presented.

In this paper a module-based methodology for the automated configuration of machine simulation is presented. The aim is the fast generation of different simulation models for control tests and virtual commissioning which are based on a module database. This approach can be integrated into current engineering processes of machine builders. Depending on the degree of detail of the module, the simulation can be used in individual engineering steps. Therefore, it is not necessary to have completed engineering data. The methodology comprises several steps beginning with the systematic module identification based on the machine components and its functions; followed by the evaluation and assessment of the identified modules. Finally the modules are modeled and validated for the automatic or manual configuration of simulation models from a module database. The impact of the methodology is examined exemplarily on a production machine.

PLC-controlled specialized production machines are usually employed to automate customer-specific production processes. Sequential engineering processes are frequently used for designing these machines. To reduce the time and effort, parallelization of the different disciplines as well as increasing the reuse of already designed modules has to be considered. Both of these activities originate in the system design phase. Therefore, the sequential design process is analyzed to define the information required for starting detailed engineering in parallel. Additional requirements in the system design phase are derived from the characteristics of the system design phase itself and the special situation when designing specialized production machines. A method how these requirements can be fulfilled is shown based on these requirements.

Human reliability is an essential quality of the complex and highly dynamic domain of new product development (NPD), because a low level of human error positively influences quality, cost and safety of a product. However, there is lack of empirical research in this area, especially regarding methodological approaches. In this paper, based on the abstraction hierarchy and the multi-facet human error taxonomy of Rasmussen as well as on the requirements of systematic engineering design by Pahl et al., a theory for human reliability in NPD is described. Based on this theory, a framework for a large-scale laboratory experiment (n=111) with three NPD-compliant design tasks was developed, which focused on the effects of limited available time on human reliability. The experiment provided a broad range of empirical results, which were quantitatively analyzed, and serves as the base for follow-up NPD experiments.

The use of current complex products is rarely intuitive and self-explanatory. The approach presented in the paper in hand therefore considers support of product users by facilitating ubiquitous and providing easy access to product information for different use case scenarios through the use of new information channels. The approach includes a design method for the integration of accessible technical documentation into product development. A special emphasis of the proposed product documentation is made on special quick guides with instructions for the installations and frequently occurring use case scenarios, as well as references to more detailed information. To provide a first validation of the approach, a case study is introduced towards the end of the paper.

Due to the ever rising significance of the products’ usability the consideration of the user in the product development process becomes more and more important to stay competitive. This paper firstly outlines the historical evolution of how user-product relationships have been investigated and considered in product design in the past. A literature research has been conducted to acquire information about the state of the art in the multidisciplinary field of human-centered design as well as to derive which challenges towards a virtual assessment of human-related product properties exist. Finally the most recent research activities aiming to solve the identified issues as well as future prospects in simulating human-product interactions are presented.

This paper explains a new distance collaboration support environment for use in product development processes. This environment makes it possible to organize a meeting with up to eight stakeholders in two locations, where there is minimal distraction by the distance. Not only audio and video are shared, but also physical products placed on a table and hand movements are visible for each participant. This allows for pointing with a finger at objects which are only present at one location. All these technological possibilities are integrated in one physical setting to minimize start-up times and to ensure that all remote locations are comparable. Consequently, so participants know exactly what participants at the remote location see.

The management of product design relevant information in the context of technologies is getting more and more relevant in industries and research. In this paper a framework is introduced to support the management of technology in extension to existing PLM concepts. Moreover, the Technology Object (TO) as one main building block of this framework is presented. With the TO it is possible to represent information which is relevant on technology level – instead of on product level. Furthermore, dimensions of information are introduced that help to describe each TO; such as requirements towards this technology or performance capabilities which a technology is able to fulfill towards the respective environment. This paper focusses on concepts and methods in context of the introduced Technology Framework.

Customer expectations towards products are constantly increasing. They are not limited to product quality alone but also include the accompanying services and information provided. Intelligent Products allow the retrieval and communication of large amounts of information from all stages of the product lifecycle. Customers have become used to user-centric presentation and customizable information presentation from their experience with the Web 2.0 and Social Networks. Implementing Product Avatars as parts of Social Networking Services (SNS) as digital representations of physical products allows the presentation of individually customized information in a familiar environment for different stakeholders. This can raise the acceptance and the lower the adoption threshold for Product Avatars by increasing their availability and usability on both stationary and mobile devices.

To implement a Product Evolution in the product development process, intelligent systems are necessary. Gentelligent components combine the intelligent system with genetic approaches. In that way, the life cycle information has to be prepared and to provide for Design Evolution. Design Evolution is an optimization strategy which implements evolutionary mechanisms to further develop gentelligent components within the scope of adaptive design. A gentelligent wheel suspension illustrates its practical application. By this way, it is shown how Product Evolution and usage data interact.

Existing process models for the development of mechatronic products are not considering the task of weight optimization – weight reduction and weight distribution – in a specific and sufficient way. The weight optimization is mostly applied at the end or in the late phases of the development process with the consequence that a large number of macro-iterations are necessary when design changes regarding the weight have to be done. These points result in an increase of development costs and time. In previous work, the authors propose a process model which exposes the task of weight optimization as an in-process development goal beside the goal of functionality.

In this paper, a detailed procedure for the design of weight-optimized mechatronic products in early phases is proposed. The process is supported by a set of different methods based on suitable lightweight strategies.

The time-depending motion behavior of systems in motion is essentially affected by manufacturing-caused as well as operation-depending deviations (e.g., deformations), which appear during the system’s use. Consequently, it is almost impossible for the product developer to define the optimal tolerances, which both ensure the mechanism’s functionality and cause minimum manufacturing costs. This paper presents a methodology for the “statistical tolerance-cost-optimization of systems in motion”. Therefore two appropriate mathematical optimization concepts are developed. The practical use of the methodology is shown for a non-ideal crank mechanism which is subject to manufacturing-caused as well as operation-depending deviations.

Considering environmental aspects in early product development stages is a complex endeavor. Product life cycle data are fuzzy and subject to changes. Additional workload due to data handling is a common reason why it is withdrawn by engineering designers. Some studies suggest parameterization of products in order to gain a limited set of parameters to handle, some others suggest integration of Life Cycle Assessment into CAD or Product Data Management systems. However, the handling of heterogeneous data from multiple sources is not paid much attention. This paper suggests an ontological approach that allows considering data from multiple sources to set up an environmental profile of the product and allow for adaptations in the product concept.

Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) and eco-efficiency analysis are powerful tools to support the lifecycle engineering and to become a part of Product Lifecycle Management (PLM). This paper presents an approach of the implementation of LCA tools as fully integrated within the PLM supporting the design engineer in terms of sharing relevant product data across modules and lifecycle phases, thereby reducing the overall amount of data management related work performed by engineers and increasing data availability. In a case study the capabilities of an existing LCA solution are examined and presented at the example of a wheeled excavator.

Life cycle assessment (LCA) is an essential tool for achieving design for life cycle. An LCA examines all stages of a product’s life cycle and gives a quantitative assessment of its potential environmental impact. The results of the LCA help identify priority areas for improvement and ways to reduce environmental impacts. This paper presents a comprehensive LCA approach to quantitative assessment of environmental impact for industrial off-road equipment. This paper describes how LCA can be applied to off-road equipment and how it can be used to improve the environmental performance of a product. Six potential opportunities for reducing the environmental impact of off-road equipment are explored, and sensitivity analyses are presented as a tool for evaluating the effectiveness of those solutions. The LCA approach is demonstrated with the example of a construction machine.

In recent years modularization has been used to solve the trade-off between the diversity of variety and the effort to optimize product complexity or product standardization. In the context of the implementation of an optimal product strategy and the conduction or extension of a modularization concept, it is required to evaluate the costs to support engineering decisions. The outcome of this paper is an approach to support modularization decisions of an engineer. With it, a structured procedure is introduced to identify factors which influence the costs and which depend on the product modularity.

Nowadays, the product user experience (UX) is essential in the design of innovative products. Several methods assist in defining this UX. Some help to define the aesthetic appearance of a product (which conveys the desired UX). They are very precise but are also complex and expensive to use. Others are easy and inexpensive to use but imprecise. The Conjoint Trends Analysis Method (CTAM) lies between these two extremes. However, several CTAM’s instructions can be biased by the subjectivity of the CTAM user. Therefore, this research seeks to increase the CTAM robustness by formalizing instructions and making its concepts more explicit, aiming to increase its accuracy. Six experiments divided in four studies are proposed to respond to different research questions. Finally, there is a discussion on how the results can provide a basis from which to extract more robust guidelines for each step of the CTAM.

Consumers perceive the value of durable goods at two points of time: first, they form their opinion about the value immediately before purchase determining their choice. Second, they form their opinion during the utilization phase, which determines their repurchase behavior. Both the expected pre-purchase value and perceived value during the utilization phase are affected by the product quality. Functionality and accuracy of production maintain no longer the only criteria for product differentiation. Ultimately, the perceived product quality, design and usability have a significant impact on the customer perceived product value. This paper presents the developed CPV construct and a three phased approach to provide the evidence that the pre-purchase differs significantly from the post-purchase value judgments. Empirical data of pre-studies are presented in this paper.

Expanding on previous work to predict assembly times from detailed assembly models, low fidelity part models are used in a series of predictive performance experiments. Results reveal that this tool can predict the assembly time of a product to within 40% of the target “as built” time using a high fidelity neural network and a low fidelity CAD model. The tool is based on structural complexity, representing the assembly graph as complexity vector of 29 metrics. The graphs are automatically compiled from examining part proximity (interference checks) regardless of the choice of mating constraints used in the modeling. A neural network is then used to build a relationship between the complexity vector (input) and the assembly time (output). Low-fidelity models can be used to predict assembly times, thereby supporting earlier inclusion of design for assembly methods in the design process.

The Virtual Reality laboratory (VR-Lab) at the University of Twente facilitates multi-stakeholder decision making processes. Using Synthetic Environments (SE) to facilitate collaboration and to visualize consequences and dependencies of choices, the lab stimulates optimal use of available expertise. The VR-lab embodies a flexible set of VR tools, software and working methods; therefore adequate facilitation of preparation and configuration of use is essential. For this purpose, a roadmap facilitates the attuning of the intents of (potential) user and the capabilities of the provider of the SE. This publication outlines the use of the VR-lab as a Synthetic Environment, as well as the preparations that a required to make that usage purposeful and efficient.

Companies need to improve product use value thanks to ergonomics integration into product design process. This could be achieved by collaboration between ergonomists and mechanical designers. However, these actors have different methods, representations and tools making difficult to carry out the convergence between them. Thus, the aim of this paper is to introduce a new tool, Virtusketches, to improve communication between ergonomists and mechanical designers during convergence phases of a human-centered design process. Virtusketches is based on linking virtual reality (VR) technologies with 2D sketching and annotation as a tool that could be used by all the actors involved in design process regardless of their specificity. A case study is presented to test the tool during a convergence step of an automotive design project.

In various industrial and scientific fields, conceptual models are derived from real world problem spaces to understand and communicate containing entities and coherencies. Abstracted models mirror the common understanding and information demand of engineers, who apply conceptual models for performing their daily tasks. However, most standardized models in Process Management, Product Lifecycle Management and Enterprise Resource Planning lack of a scientific foundation for their notation. In collaboration scenarios with stakeholders from several disciplines, tailored conceptual models complicate communication processes, as a common understanding is not shared or implemented in specific models. To support direct communication between experts from several disciplines, a visual language is developed which allows a common visualization of discipline-specific conceptual models. For visual discrimination and to overcome visual complexity issues, conceptual models are arranged in a three-dimensional space. The visual language introduced here follows and extends established principles of Visual Language science.

The aims were firstly to identify major problems within a calculation and analysis SME and then to determine the adequate Knowledge Management Strategy. A participant observation was performed for a tem month period within an engineering analysis SME, making a census of usual and unusual problems met by engineers during their daily activities. A keyword characterization grid for engineer’s problems was performed. Through census prioritization and anecdote characterization three families of problems were identified: perpetual training, electronic-paper-document-mail classification and engineering activities support. The results justify a Knowledge Management implementation, highlight the importance of the turnover factor, and lead to recommending a codification strategy.

Formal representation of design and manufacturing knowledge in distributed design repositories is a key enabler of autonomous design-to-fabrication. This paper presents an ontological approach to formal representation of product and process knowledge in order to enhance the intelligence of design repositories. The product and process ontology developed in this work is based on the Web Ontology Language (OWL). A methodology is proposed for part characterization, clustering, and similarity measurement based on the asserted and inferred properties of the part instances in the ontology. Part families are formed according their semantic similarities from the perspective of geometric and non-geometric attributes. Ontology population is conducted semi-automatically assisted by automated feature recognition techniques.

The following paper describes the development of a method for identifying, scoring and classifying captive process know-how in German enterprises of the automobile industry. Object of study will be the product development process. An initial point is described, in order to illustrate the results of an empirical analysis that lead to the necessity of protecting captive process know-how methodology.

After decomposing the selected product development processes (PDP) into reasonable steps, a special scoring system is used. Subsequently, the process dependencies between each other are being analyzed using multidimensional scaling. Within these steps the criticality of each process part concerning know-how protection is being scored. Using the method of scenario planning it is feasible to draw different possibilities of global cooperative partnerships in the future. These scenarios are the basis for classifying the identified process know-how for utilization in future cooperations.

Regarding the economical and environmental pressure from consumers, legislation, and competitors companies need to be proactive and to propose new products in shorter times. For this, they need to change and adapt their design methods. To be effective, the design process must now address the entire life cycle of a product, from its definition to its end of life. Thus, integrated design is one solution to better design a product while considering and integrating all its aspects all along its life cycle. However, the environmental aspect is not so easy to integrate than another technical constraint. This paper aims at showing the changes induced by the integration of environmental concerns into the integrated design process. It involves notably new data, new tools, new actors or still new strategies.

An auspicious approach to increase sustainability of a product/packaging cycle is to investigate the dependencies between the different life cycle phases and corresponding actors. For any actor, the perspective on the global cycle initiates from his own position; therefore, it is required to make the entire life cycle more transparent by showing and interpreting the dependencies as well as the correlations and sensitivities of the different phases in the life cycle. The emerging actor network can serve as a fundament for an approach that allows for the meaningful comparison of various aspects of sustainability during the development life cycles of product/packaging combinations.

In the final stages of product development, dimensional tolerances are specified by designers to ensure high functionality at low costs. A traditional approach to this decision-making process is to minimize economic losses to the manufacturer and the consumer. This paper presents a new approach for tolerance allocation optimization that considers sustainability not only from economic costs but also ecological costs. The framework is formulated as a multi-objective optimization problem and explored with a case study on the design of an automotive body panel. Results of the case study include Pareto frontiers of non-dominated optimal solutions along with a parametric study to explore the influence of material choice on the results.

Product performances are directly influenced by both classical and non technical properties of the materials used. That is why Material Selection Process (MSP) is an important part of the design process. The objective of this paper is to show that existing material selection approaches including mechanical and environmental criteria are not enough complete to make optimal material choice in preliminary design phase. Indeed, in this design phase, it is necessary to do the best choice in order to optimize technical and economical requirements of a component while reducing the product Environmental Impact (EI) in the whole Life Cycle (LC). Another LC approach is proposed here, including material in several life cycles and influencing the material selection process.

Especially for small batch series or customer specific development orders, development costs are a noteworthy part of the overall costs and cannot be balanced by optimized production processes and lower production costs as in the case of mass production. Even though they might not be state of the art in industrial application, there are numerous methods for the estimation of costs that are determined in the course of product development. However, the costs caused by the actual development processes are hardly considered. This gap is supposed to be filled by an estimation of development costs as a direct consequence of development (and with it information handling) effort. For this an information model of the design process and the information handling steps which aregenerating the design effort are presented.

This article reports on a survey for determining the current status of lean product development (LPD) practices among Norwegian manufacturing companies using a generic LPD model as basis. The model includes six main dimensions and was developed based on a systematic review of existing models, practices and interpretations, including the Toyota Product Development Systems amongst others. Using non-probabilistic design, a sample of 258 responses out of 356 invited subjects, demonstrates the relation between product development performance and the following elements: clear project prioritization based on portfolio thinking and balancing the workload; loyalty to the agreed upon design strategy; project dynamics cause project members to continuously update themselves on critical product characteristics; and the use of simple and visual communication modes is deployed in the organization.

The need for shorter development times, lower costs, and higher quality requires improving the performance of the product development process (PDP) continuously. Therefore the evaluation and monitoring of the product development performance is of great interest for companies wishing to increase their competitiveness. However, there are very few approaches for the performance measurement of the PDP. For this purpose, a process monitoring cockpit with the overall goal to enhance the PDP regarding time, costs, quality is presented. This approach for measuring and continuously improving the current state of a company’s PDP has been validated in an industrial case study.

Smart home grids require that their control devices are both usable and acceptable. The assessment of device usability and acceptability is often neglected due to the cost of prototyping solutions to be submitted to end-user during the different stages of the design process. In this context, the present paper describes a structured User-Centered Design (UCD) approach to develop usable control devices. It exploits advanced Tangible Augmented Reality (TAR) technique to represent the achieved design solution and perform usability testing without increasing development time and costs. Experimental results prove that such technology sensibility increases timesaving compared with traditional prototyping approaches and demonstrate its reliability to detect usability problems.

In the domain of designing innovative products in the medical field, investigations are often oriented towards communication between actors and needs comprehension. In the DESTIN (DEsign of Surgical/Technological INnovation) project, User Centered Design methodology with concrete experiments is applied. Researchers propose emulations in an operating room for co-evaluation of innovative products and new adapted surgical procedures. In this paper, they intend to evaluate the usage of the product in a virtual environment using a 3D haptic feedback system. Researchers not only propose a better ergonomic situation of the physician in front of the operating screen, but also increase the performance of the simulator in order to allow the manipulation of the innovative surgical instrument developed. We used virtual reality environment and the manufactured prototype with the aim to validate the new surgical procedure and the innovative designed surgical instrument.

This paper describes the application of AR (Augmented Reality) technologies to shipbuilding. General overview about AR technologies is introduced at first, and its potential of utilization especially given in shipbuilding is discussed in this section. The paper introduces actual development of an AR system which is applied to sheet metal forming works in shipyards. Workers can get quantitative information about the geometry of the curved plate or the work procedure intuitively by looking the plate through a tablet PC to which this AR system is installed. The paper also covers technical problems and solutions to put this AR system into practical use in a shipyard. Finally, the paper introduces some possible applications of AR technologies for an entire shipbuilding process.

Design Automation (DA) implements the idea of deriving the physical design of a product automatically from within codified engineering knowledge. If a product is no longer limited to be a physical device, it should be analysed if the idea of DA can be enhanced or if DA becomes obsolete for smart products. The authors believe that DA can even play a major role for the smart products development. Thus this paper additionally aims to provide a concept for an enhancement of DA. Instead of case based and locally implemented solutions, the concept relies on a central knowledge-based system in order to process the smart layer on top of the geometrical design. The proposed system should be grounded upon an ontology in order to represent the physical and the virtual domain at once. This way different kinds of product development applications can rely on one central knowledge-base.

To design products that meet the customer and market requirements as well as given cost limits, knowledge from the whole life cycle is essential. On the one hand, important parts of this knowledge are generated before and after design decisions. On the other hand, knowledge has to be distributed among various internal and external knowledge carriers. Thus, there is a need of methods supporting the integration of cost (related) knowledge from upstream and downstream phases in design processes. The paper presents such methods as part of a holistic cost knowledge management approach for product design.

In the aviation industry, engine components of different families, variants and versions are characterized by a high level of geometrical, functional and procedural similarities and offer a high potential for rationalization. The reuse of existing knowledge is enabled in product development by part families and features libraries. The classification, administration and retrieval of these parts and features are mainly based on geometric properties, while functional aspects are not considered sufficiently. Nevertheless, in engine design the functional attribute is crucial: Two geometry elements with a nearly identical shape may be applied for completely different functions. A flange serves for transmitting torque as well as for sealing against hot air. In this paper functional shape elements integrating knowledge from both design and manufacturing and the method for their definition are introduced and their application is presented exemplarily.

This research focuses on the conceptual design of a Knowledge-based Engineering (KBE) System. A concept for the KBE System and its requirements are described and an outlook of the KBE structure is provided. The KBE System supports design engineers to better understand the impacts of their design decisions on the entire product/system lifecycle. The following points are addressed: Clarification of the evaluation criteria for sustainability assessment, concept development for the KBE System and establishment of a comprehensive knowledge base.

Today the development of energy-efficient products throughout their entire lifecycle is more than a major issue for environmental and economic concerns, it also represents a high business potential for companies.

Unfortunately, a complete integration of energy-efficiency aspects into industrial product development practice has not been achieved yet. This is partly due to a lack of simple methods and tools for the evaluation of energy-efficiency and costs of design alternatives, as well as checking their compliance with regulatory constraints. A possible solution to this problem is an assistant system adapted to the designer’s working environment. This paper describes the main requirements in the automotive supply industry for such an IT support.

The requirements list was first obtained from an analysis of industrial and research publications and the most relevant regulations related to the energy-efficiency of products. This list was then weighted, extended, and validated through interviews with design experts from the industry.

Environmental restrictions request new – potentially revolutionary – mobility concepts which simultaneously address both user requirements and efficiency aspects. Early system simulation within the development process is able to support new development projects on the conceptual level. In an overall effort to support ecodesign as early as possible in the development process, this paper introduces a process model for ecodesign-oriented product development which focuses on these specific aspects. Special focus is set on the use of modeling and simulation in the conceptual design phase to evaluate and compare the energy efficiency and lifecycle assessment on the example of vehicle concepts.