Chapter 2 - Activities in Virtual Engineering

Abstract

This chapter provides an insight into engineering modeling activities in accordance with emphases in present industrial practice. Shape-centered design, analysis, and manufacturing planning rely on a shape description of parts as engineering objects. Shapes are organized into structures. Nonshape information is mapped to these structures and the shape descriptions. The shape model is constructed in the model space by the definition of elementary shapes—such as contours, elementary surfaces, solid primitives, and form features. The modeling of mechanical units is applied in the engineering and production of most industrial products and production equipment as well as in devices for the manufacture of other products. The term mechanical unit relates to any unit that contains parts placed in assemblies and, where applicable, allows movements between pairs of parts with a given degree of freedom. Computer-modeling-intensive engineering is applied in a new industrial environment where the configurable variants of products are designed, analyzed, manufacturing planned, and production planned and manufactured using leading information and computer technology. Products have changed from heavy and relatively simple mechanical and electric structures to complex mechatronics where styled shapes are accompanied by well-engineered functional elements. Modeling tools are utilized in the continuous, market-demanded improvement of product and production related capabilities.