Abstract
This article presents an evaluation of applying a
suggested method for modelling product families for product
configuration based on theory for modelling mechanical products,systems theory and object-oriented modelling. The modelling technique includes a so-called product variant master and CRC-cards for modelling and visualising the parts and properties of a complete product family. The modelling techniques
include:
Customer, engineering and part views on the
product assortment to model the properties,
functions and structure of the product family.
This also makes it possible to map the links between
the three views.
Modelling of characteristics of the product variants
in a product family
Modelling of constraints between parts in the
product family
Visualisation of the entire product family on a
poster e.g. 1x2 meters
The product variant master and CRC-cards are means to
bridge the gap between domain experts and IT-developers,
thus making it possible for the domain experts (e.g. engineers from product development) to express their knowledge in a form that is understandable both for the domain experts and the IT-developers.
The product variant master and CRC-cards have currently
been tested and further developed in cooperation with several industrial companies. This article refers to experiences from applying the modelling technique in three different companies.
Based upon these experiences, the utility of the product variant master and CRC-cards is evaluated.
Significance. Product configuration systems are increasingly used in industrial companies as a means for efficient design of customer tailored products. The design and implementation of product configuration systems is a new and challenging task for the industrial companies and calls for a scientifically based framework to support the modelling of the product families to be implemented in the configuration systems.
Original language | English |
---|---|
Title of host publication | ECAI 2010 |
Publication date | 2010 |
Publication status | Published - 2010 |
Event | 19th European Conference on Artificial Intelligence - Lisbon, Portugal Duration: 16 Aug 2010 → 20 Aug 2010 Conference number: 19 |
Conference
Conference | 19th European Conference on Artificial Intelligence |
---|---|
Number | 19 |
Country/Territory | Portugal |
City | Lisbon |
Period | 16/08/2010 → 20/08/2010 |
Keywords
- Configuration
- Product Modelling