# Presentation: 215430

## A Product Information Modeling Framework for PLM

- S. Fenves, R. D. Sriram,
- R. Sudarsan and F. Wong
- NIST, USA

## Outline

- Product Engineering Program
- Integration Framework
- Core Product Model
- Design-Analysis Integration Model
- Open Assembly Model
- Product Family Evolution Model
- Summary

## Product Engineering Program in Design & Process Group

- Objective:
- “...establish a semantically-based standard product representation scheme supporting seamless interoperability among CAD systems and others...”
- Anticipated environment:
- Initially: “from design to analysis to manufacturing” (design-in-the-small, PDM)
- Currently: from conceptualization to disposal (design-in-the-large, PLM)

## Context: external

***“******PLM is a strategic business approach for the effective management and  use of corporate intellectual capital” – Various Sources***

- Discover

- Prototype

- Design

- Manufacture

- Market

- Maintain

**CAD+PDM+DMU**

**PLM**

## Context: internal 

**Context: internal **

- Self-integrating systems

- Self-describing systems

- Common models of data

- Explicit, formal semantics

**We are still laboring on first 1 1⁄2 steps**

**Manufacturing System Integration Division roadmap**

## Progression of activities

| Year | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | ... |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Project Activities | Data Models for Various
Projects | Core Product Model | Design Repository Revision | Design Analysis Integration Model

Open Assembly Model

Product Family Evolution Model | Integration

Refinement

Extensions
 | Formalization

Ontology

Extensions

Pilot Implemen-
tation? |
|  | CAD/PDM                                                      PLM/KM                  |  |  |  |  |  |
| Target of Impact
 |  |  |  |  |  |  |

## Interoperability Framework for PLM

-  Objectives:
- serve as generic depository of all product information at all stages
- deliver all product description information to PLM and subsidiary systems using a single, uniform information exchange protocol
- support direct interoperability among CAD, CAE, CAM and other interrelated systems

## Interoperability Framework

-  Attributes:
- based on formal semantics (later: ontology)
- generic: deals with concept of artifacts
- specific instances can be generated (e. g., motors, pumps or gears)
- repository of variety of information about products
- intended to foster novel applications and processes
- incorporates explicit representation of design rationale
- convertible  into production-level framework

## Framework Components

## Core Product Model

-  Objective: base-level product model that is:
- generic
- extensible
- independent of any one product development process
- capable of capturing full engineering context
- Key feature: explicit representation of
- Function – Form - Behavior
- (in contrast to STEP AP 209 that essentially represents only form )

## Knowledge Representation

**A product  is represented  by a hierarchy of  entities of the class Artifact, which is an aggregation of Function, Form and Behavior. Function represents what the artifact is supposed to do; Form represents the proposed design solution for the design problem specified by the Function; and Behavior represents the evaluation of how the artifact implements its function.**

## Core Product Model Objects

**Core Product Model ****Objects**

## Core Product Model Relationships

**Core Product Model ****Relationships**

## Design-analysis Integration Model

- Objectives:
- support tighter design-analysis integration than is possible today
- support broad range of discipline-specific functional analyses
- make analysis-driven design (form-to-function reasoning) more practical
- eventually support opportunistic analysis
- Key feature: two models and two one-way associations

## Design-analysis Integration Model

## Design-Analysis Integration Model

- Organizing principles considered:
- net shape, as in AP 209 (eliminates function-based reasoning)
- design/analysis features (not mature)
- the Core Model
- Potential implementation mechanism:
- Master Model is virtual
- a metamodel defines executable idealization and mapping transformations

## Open Assembly Model 

-  Objectives:
- provide a standard representation and exchange protocol for assembly and system-level tolerance information
- be extensible
- Key features:
- emphasizes the nature and information requirements for part features and assembly relationships
- includes both assembly as a concept and assembly as a data structure

## Open Assembly Model

**Open Assembly Model**

## Open Assembly Model Tolerance

## Planetary Gear Example

**Planetary Gear Example**

## Assembly Hierarchy

## Assembly Associations

- fc: fixed connection   mc:  movable connection    po:  position and orientation

## Product Family Evolution Model

-  Objectives:
- represent the evolution of product families and of the rationale for the changes
- Key features:
- keeps track of product & component series & versions; configuration relationship ties them together
- keeps track of *what*, *how* and *why* of all changes between versions/series

## Product Family Evolution Model Family

##  Product Family Evolution Model Evolution

## Product Family Evolution Model Rationale

## Summary

- Framework is a first step towards a complete product modeling architecture supporting the full PLM philosophy
- Research needed:
- identify other framework components needed
- clarify product information needs of PLM process
- consider interactions between *product data* provided by framework and *metadata *maintained by PLM system
- Identify information exchange standards that can provide needed degree of interoperability