Multidisciplinary Design Optimization Supported by Knowledge Based Engineering

Appendix BGuide to Implementing an MDO System

B.1 Introduction

In Chapter 8, we introduced the concepts and methods which can be used to construct a multidisciplinary design and optimization system for the optimal design of a major engineering product. The mathematical process introduced in this chapter needs to be converted into a set of linked computational tools that make up a working MDO system. In Chapter 9 and Appendix A, we named this system the design and engineering engine (DEE); it calls into play and manages the software tools that enact the processes defined, mathematically, in Chapter 8. Its activity is time dependent as the software tools are brought into action when required, some are needed at the start of the design and may require augmentation or replacement as the design process advances down the time line. The purpose of this appendix is to assist an MDO engineer or design team in defining the DEE software requirements for an IT specialist(s) tasked with proposing software that brings into being a functioning DEE. Some of the concepts presented in the following text have previously been introduced, but it is useful to draw all the issues relating to implementation into one place even if it duplicates material found in other chapters. In essence, this appendix is intended to give engineers facing an MDO implementation a flavor of the processes involved in creating a working system and is, therefore, an overview of the tasks rather than a detailed framework. ...