Source: http://www.google.com/patents/US6922682?ie=ISO-8859-1&dq=5083039
Timestamp: 2014-10-30 19:29:12
Document Index: 538660583

Matched Legal Cases: ['Application No. 60', 'Application No. 60', 'Application No. 60', 'Application No. 60', 'Application No. 60', 'Application No. 60', 'Application No. 60', 'Application No. 60', 'Application No. 60', 'Application No. 60', 'Application No. 60']

Patent US6922682 - Method and system for engineering discovery - Google PatentsSearch Images Maps Play YouTube News Gmail Drive More »Sign inAdvanced Patent SearchPatentsA method and system for engineering discovery. A block diagram of a system can be further refined by building a basic search query listing the functional requirements for block. The search query can be expanded by selecting one or more saved rules. A database can return components or subsystems that...http://www.google.com/patents/US6922682?utm_source=gb-gplus-sharePatent US6922682 - Method and system for engineering discoveryAdvanced Patent SearchPublication numberUS6922682 B1Publication typeGrantApplication numberUS 09/689,248Publication dateJul 26, 2005Filing dateOct 11, 2000Priority dateOct 12, 1999Fee statusLapsedPublication number09689248, 689248, US 6922682 B1, US 6922682B1, US-B1-6922682, US6922682 B1, US6922682B1InventorsMartin Shum, Gregg Fialcowitz, Neven Karlovac, Narashimhan Kishore Mandeyam, Larry Yen, Ravi SajwanOriginal AssigneeAprisa, Inc.Export CitationBiBTeX, EndNote, RefManPatent Citations (16), Non-Patent Citations (5), Referenced by (3), Classifications (5), Legal Events (4) External Links: USPTO, USPTO Assignment, EspacenetMethod and system for engineering discoveryUS 6922682 B1Abstract A method and system for engineering discovery. A block diagram of a system can be further refined by building a basic search query listing the functional requirements for block. The search query can be expanded by selecting one or more saved rules. A database can return components or subsystems that meet the criteria from the basic search query or the expanded search query. One or more candidates can be chosen from the answer set and assigned to the block. A system-constraint-based selection can compare combinations of the candidate components against a set of predefined criteria to indicate the components to be used for the system which meet those criteria. The design of the system can be accomplished by using generic descriptions rather than blocks.
U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/158,962, filed on Oct. 12, 1999, entitled �Method for Building an Accreted Database and User-Defined Database Rules�; U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/158,428, filed on Oct. 12, 1999, entitled �Application of Accretive Knowledge Base to Engineering Discovery�; U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/158,440, filed on Oct. 12, 1999, entitled �Creation of Objects from Rules�; U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/158,963, filed on Oct. 12, 1999, entitled �Generic Method and System for Modeling Objects�; U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/158,439, filed on Oct. 12, 1999, entitled �Rendering Object Hierarchy and Object Relationships into Block Diagrams�; U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/158.429, filed on Oct. 12, 1999, entitled �Retention of Search Engine Rules for Individual Users�; U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/158,431, filed on Oct. 12, 1999, entitled �Method and System for Establishing Relationships, Constraints, and Rules Among Objects�; U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/158,430, filed on Oct. 12, 1999, entitled �Method and Search Engine for the Extraction and Retrieval of Tiered, Logical and Relational Information from a Plurality of Sources�; U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/158,438, filed on Oct. 12, 1999, entitled �Method and Computer Program for Tokenizing Rules and Search Engine Queries�; U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/167,630, filed on Nov. 26, 1999, entitled �Tool for Discovery and Heuristic System Design�; and U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/239,617, filed on Oct. 11, 2000, entitled �CircuitNet: A Tool for Discovery and Heuristic System Design.� The contents of these provisional applications are incorporated herein by reference.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to computer-aided design and particularly to a computerized discovery tool for electrical engineers.
The high-tech research and development process is highly complex and consists of three logical phases�Discovery, Design and Implementation. The most crucial phase is the Discovery phase because it provides the foundation for a product's development and, if incomplete, may result in a product that is non-competitive or unprofitable, has a short life cycle or violates others' intellectual property. Rather than a linear process, the Discovery phase is an extensive, iterative and organic process, frequently requiring a collaborative, as opposed to an individual, effort. During the Discovery phase, engineers conceptualize an idea, break it down into manageable elements, identify a finite set of possible solutions for each element, test each solution against predefined performance criteria and finally select the optimal solution, while ensuring the interdependencies between each element remains intact. In one method too accomplish this, engineers: (1) create a block diagram of their concept; (2) research vast amounts of specialized information such as algorithms and standards from leading research institutions and industry forums; (3) verify the product concept against protected art to ensure uniqueness; (4) consider the optimal hardware architecture and components to implement the design; (5) investigate available firmware and software from third-party developers to determine �make or buy� decisions; and (6) repeat these steps for each block in their diagram, as many times as necessary to select the optimal component or subsystem for each block, while ensuring the interdependencies between each block remain intact.
Each of these sources suffers from limitations. Some publications do not contain up-to-date information and other sources of information are frequently biased because they contain data only on certain manufacturers' or distributors' products. Still others, such as dissertations or information available only by executing non-disclosure agreements (�NDAs�), are not easily accessible or, in the case of patents, understandable to engineers because they are drafted by lawyers who use their own specialized language. Similarly, consultations are typically incomplete because the knowledge or bias of the consultant limit them.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION This invention can be regarded as a computerized discovery tool for engineers. In one embodiment of the invention, the tool allows engineers to design a system as a block diagram made up of a series of interconnected blocks. The tool assists the engineer in refining the blocks by finding components or subsystems that are the best choices for the blocks based on a set of criteria. In one embodiment, a first block is selected and a search query is built for finding which components or subsystems can be used for the first block. An answer set is received satisfying the search request. At least one component or subsystem from the answer set can be assigned as a candidate object for the first block. In some embodiments, if a single component is chosen, the block diagram can be updated by replacing the first block with a representation of the component or subsystem. In some embodiments, all of the blocks of the block diagram are refined in this matter.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is flow chart diagram of one embodiment of a method of performing discovery in accordance with the invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION The present invention is a method and a computerized discovery design tool for engineers. Throughout the drawings, an attempt has been made to label corresponding elements with the same reference numbers. The reference numbers include:
Referring to FIG. 1, an engineer can either begin Discovery from scratch (without any block diagram design), or the engineer can base the conceptual design on a previously generated and saved block diagram design (Steps 100, 105, 110, and 115). Regardless of the approach used, in some fashion, the engineer obtains a block diagram of the system. The block diagram is made up of a series of interconnected blocks. Each of these blocks represents a component or subsystem (since systems are often hierarchical, containing various levels of subsystems and components). Throughout this application, the use of �component� refers not only to true components, but also includes subsystems. Also, throughout this application, although a system is often referred to as a series of interconnected blocks in a block diagram, other methods of describing the system are also encompassed by the present invention. Thus, a system can be described as a series of inter-related generic descriptions, where each generic description represents a component or subsystem, like a block does in a block diagram.
With the present invention's method, an engineer breaks the discovery process into iterative steps. The engineer chooses one of the blocks from the block diagram for current research (step 120). To retrieve all components which can be used to implement this block, the engineer constructs a search query which includes the necessary limitations. Suppose the a engineer is designing a simple computer system made up of a CPU, a memory, and a clock. For various reasons, the engineer may determine that the CPU must operate at least at a speed of 400 megahertz. Because of business restrictions, the engineer may be prevented from utilizing any components manufactured by a certain corporation (�XYZ Corp.� for example). The CPU may need to be PC compatible and have an operating voltage of between 2.2 and 3.3 volts. From these limitations, the engineer can build a series of search query rules, such as:
AND Manufacturer!=�XYZ�
Compatibility=�PC�
Clock-Speed>400 AND Manufacturer!=�XYZ� AND Compatibility=�PC� AND Voltage BETWEEN (2.2,3.3) AND Cost<25.00 ELSE
Clock-Speed>400 AND Manufacturer!=�XYZ� AND Compatibility=�PC� AND Voltage BETWEEN (2.2,3.3) AND Cost<10.00 END
Rule 2: Manufacturer=�Intel�
Rule 3: Manufacturer!=�XYZ�
Rule 4: Compatibility=�PC�
Rule 5: Availability=�Immediate�
User Interface 250 Discovery tool 200 includes a user interface 250 on a user's computer, which allows the user to interact with the functionality of the discovery tool 200. The user interface 250 allows the user to search for various components and designs, to build interpretive rules, and to validate a design through the compatibility checking function. The user interface 250 can be substantiated as set of Active Server Pages (�ASPs�, HTML pages and graphics that access the various C++ objects of the rest of the system.
For example, suppose an engineer who has already designed an RF amplifier's first stage for low noise figure now needs to choose components for the second stage. The engineer could construct and execute the rule-based search to perform the following: �IF the first stage noise figure PLUS the second stage noise figure DIVIDED by the first stage gain is LESS THAN 3 dB THEN select the second stage with MAX gain or ELSE select MIN noise figure.� In such a search, the rules processor 230 is invoked by the search processor 225 and the search criteria statement is parsed and the operands used are identified. An SQL Query is built to fetch the values for those operands for all the component instances, and for each part, the values of the operands are given for evaluation. If the expression evaluates to �TRUE� then that component is added to the results list. If a component has multiple values for an attribute, then all possible combinations of the values of the attributes is first computed, and then all those combinations are used to evaluate the rule, and if any one of the combinations satisfies the rule, the component is added to the results list. The results of each of these parts are either combined or the intersection of the results is used based on the logical operator between the directives.
The discovery tool's search processor 225 addresses the problems common to other search engines of returning either too many or too few results. The rule-based searches, which allow complex search criteria statements to be constructed, solve the �too many results� problem. The �too few results� problem is solved by the implementation of an �instant response� feature. The Instant Response feature provides immediate feedback on the number of hits that will be returned by the current search. By seeing the Instant Response number, the user can adjust the search parameters to arrive at a search that will return a more adequate number of hits.
It takes, as secondary input, a set of directives (parameters) either from a screen or from a configuration file. These directives include visually identified factors that the Input Data Processor can use to increase its effectiveness. For example, a configuration parameter could be the location of the product name, as a string of the form �Product:� in a specific font.
It recognizes multiple �levels� of attributes, like a table for a given attribute, as sub-attributes of a product.
It records all processed input in a �holding� database.
It records a detailed log in a structured table that includes component name, product name, attribute processed, etc. The log includes summary information about each product that is processed, each �run� of the Input Data Processor and details of the user who invoked it and the time it ran (from and to).
It includes an interface that helps users move �cleared� products and components from the holding database to the search database 215.
i) If matched link is on visited list, continue on next match ii) Add matched link to visited list iii) Concatentate directory onto current path iv) If rule is terminal, and modification time of the linked document is not equal to the existing local copy of that document, retrieve it preserving modification time, and save it under path v) If rule is nonterminal, the link matches base URL of current resource, the content type is HTML, and depth is not greater than the site's limit, then add job with new url/path, and depth+1 5) Go to step 3 Transaction Engine 205 The Transaction Engine 205 is a common platform for the transfer of these types of transactions, operating securely and with speed. It is built as a set of VC++ objects running on an NT server, with Microsoft's Site Server Commerce Edition (�SSCE� and Microsoft's transaction management platform. SSCE is integrated into the discovery tool environment to handle data and sales transactions through the SSCE Commerce Interchange Pipeline (�CIP�. Specific transaction classes provide interaction with partners and vendors for data updates.
Referring to FIG. 2, the interconnections of the discovery tool 200 can be described by walking through an example of a user executing a search request. First, the user creates the search query. The query can be modified by: (1) filters, such as �not including�; (2) references to specific constraints to attributes of specific objects (such as �SLIC package-width not >5 mm�; (3) references to already existing user rules; or (4) processing options (such as �apply rules on request�).
This section describes the major components of software and hardware that goes into building a website as one embodiment of the discovery system 200. The site is hosted externally, on servers owned by a high-end web hosting company. Most of the �systems software� that is needed to keep the site up and running full time is included as part of the hosting service such companies.
Microsoft Cluster Server (MSCS): MSCS �clusters� multiple server machines into one large fail-safe group, thereby providing round the clock access to the website. High-end hosting companies normally provide this (or an equivalent mechanism) as a part of the service.
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