A method of implementing formalized multidisciplinary collaboration in product conceptual design process

Xi-Qiang Yan,Yan Xiong,Wen-Qiang Li,Jian Chen,Yan Li

doi:10.1177/0954406216646399

Abstract

Modern product design can be considered as a process, which involves intensive iteration, complex reasoning, and mutual cooperation among the design groups in different disciplinary areas. In order to meet the requirements of modern products on multidisciplinary collaboration, the traditional method, where the product conceptual design is usually solved only within a single discipline, should be improved. Based on the classic function–behavior–structure model of product conceptual design, this paper studied the collaborative mechanism of functions, behaviors and structures, and proposed a new method/system of implementing formalized multidisciplinary collaboration in the product conceptual design process. In this method, the model/system of conceptual design process with multidisciplinary collaboration was established first, and three collaboration mechanisms were developed. After the coupling relationship among the design sub-states and the disciplinary classification characteristics of the design sub-states were expressed by the mathematical ways, the particle swarm algorithm was applied for the discipline planning, next the solving process for multidisciplinary collaboration were proposed. Finally, the conceptual design process of a stylus printer was used to illustrate the application of the proposed method.

Highlights

There have been ever-increasing numbers of subsystems and components for modern products, such as hybrid vehicles, high-end printers, and medical equipment [1], and the design process of these products has become extremely complicated
Because most part of the product cost is determined in the product conceptual design stage, it is more important to consider the multidisciplinary collaboration in the product conceptual design stage rather than in the product detailed design stage
Based on the classic FBS conceptual design model, this paper proposed a method which systematically integrated the multidisciplinary collaboration in the product conceptual design and can assist the designers to obtain the optimal and creative design schemes

Summary

Introduction

There have been ever-increasing numbers of subsystems (disciplines) and components for modern products, such as hybrid vehicles, high-end printers, and medical equipment [1], and the design process of these products has become extremely complicated. In order to obtain the optimal design scheme in the product conceptual design process, the collaborative relationship among different subsystems should be considered, and the collaboration among the functions, among the behaviors and among the structures should be established. All of the studies mentioned above can support the product conceptual design process, but because the solving process is always limited to the knowledge in a single discipline, the multidisciplinary collaboration is restricted and it is difficult to obtain the best conceptual design scheme. Based on the classic conceptual design model of functions, behaviors and structures, a method of implementing formalized multidisciplinary collaboration was developed for product conceptual design process.

Design state

Thermodynamic subsystem 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0

Findings

Conclusion