Extended liaison as an interface between product and process model in assembly

This paper describes the use of liaison to better integrate product model and assembly process model so as to enable sharing of design and assembly process information in a common integrated form and reason about them. Liaison can be viewed as a set, usually a pair, of features in proximity with which process information can be associated. A liaison is defined as a set of geometric entities on the parts being assembled and relations between these geometric entities. Liaisons have been defined for riveting, welding, bolt fastening, screw fastening, adhesive bonding (gluing) and blind fastening processes. The liaison captures process specific information through attributes associated with it. The attributes are associated with process details at varying levels of abstraction. A data structure for liaison has been developed to cluster the attributes of the liaison based on the level of abstraction. As information about the liaisons is not explicitly available in either the part model or the assembly model, algorithms have been developed for extracting liaisons from the assembly model. The use of liaison is proposed to enable both the construction of process model as the product model is fleshed out, as well as maintaining integrity of both product and process models as the inevitable changes happen to both design and the manufacturing environment during the product lifecycle. Results from aerospace and automotive domains have been provided to illustrate and validate the use of liaisons. (C) 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A framework for analysing business performance, firm innovation and related contextual factors: Perceptions of managers and policy makers in two European regions

The aim of this paper is to propose a novel reference framework that can be used to study how different kinds of innovation can result in better business performance and how external factors can influence both the firm's capacity to innovate and innovation itself. The value of the framework is demonstrated as it is applied in an exploratory study of the perceptions of public policy makers and managers from two European regions - the Veneto Region in Italy and the East of England in the UK. Amongst other things, the data gathered suggest that managers are generally less convinced than public policy makers, that the innovativeness of a firm is affected by factors over which policy makers have some control. This finding poses the question "what, if any, role can public policy makers play in enhancing a company's competitiveness by enabling it to become more innovative?".

Enterprise resource planning: Analysing the impact

Describes a study that set out to evaluate the performance impact of a SAP R3 implementation. The SAP system was implemented by a major multinational business in four of its European plants. Qualitative and quantitative data were collected over a two-year period, through surveys and interviews with systems users and by accessing company records. While users were able to identify the operational benefits of SAP, they were still doubtful at the end of the evaluation process whether the system had resulted in any significant positive financial benefits for the business. Two themes related to this observation are explored. First the time lag between operational improvements and subsequent financial impact. Second the importance of learning as a means of reducing the time lag. Learning in this context is a multi-dimensional concept and covers learning how to use the system, learning how to improve the system and learning how to improve the implementation process.

Developing ISO 14649-based conversational programming system for multi-channel complex machine tools

A multi-channel complex machine tool (MCCM) is a versatile machining system equipped with more than two spindles and turrets for both turning and milling operations. Despite the potential of such a tool, the value of the hardware is largely dependent on how the machine tools are effectively programmed for machining. In this paper we consider a shop-floor programming system based on ISO 14649 (called e-CAM), the international standard for the interface between computer-aided manufacture (CAM) and computer numerical control (CNC). To be deployed in practical industrial usage a great deal of research has to be carried out. In this paper we present: 1) Design consideration for an e-CAM system, 2) The architecture design of e-CAM, 3) Major algorithms to fulfill the modules defined in the architecture, and 4) Implementation details.

CIMS信息集成环境下轧钢企业财务管理系统的实现

以鞍钢冷轧厂计算机集成制造系统开发为背景 ,介绍了基于Client/Server方式 ,以OR ACLE为后台数据库的财务管理系统的设计与实现。运用软件工程和数据库理论 ,结合ORACLERDBMS的特点 ,并对实现方法做了比较全面地论述。最后 ,探讨了通向财务信息集成的途径

渤海造船厂计算机集成制造系统(BS-CIMS)

简介了渤海造船厂计算机集成制造系统（ＢＳ－ＣＩＭＳ）的系统结构，系统组成（工程设计、经营管理、财务管理、生产管理、建造作业和质量管理６个应用分系统），信息分类编码原则，计算机支撑环境，分系统之间信息界面和系统集成方案。

A framework to integrate design knowledge reuse and requirements management in engineering design

This paper presents a framework to integrate requirements management and design knowledge reuse. The research approach begins with a literature review in design reuse and requirements management to identify appropriate methods within each domain. A framework is proposed based on the identified requirements. The framework is then demonstrated using a case study example: vacuum pump design. Requirements are presented as a component of the integrated design knowledge framework. The proposed framework enables the application of requirements management as a dynamic process, including capture, analysis and recording of requirements. It takes account of the evolving requirements and the dynamic nature of the interaction between requirements and product structure through the various stages of product development.

Kinetostatic-model-based Stiffness Analysis of Exechon PKM

As a comparative newly-invented PKM with over-constraints in kinematic chains, the Exechon has attracted extensive attention from the research society. Different from the well-recognized kinematics analysis, the research on the stiffness characteristics of the Exechon still remains as a challenge due to the structural complexity. In order to achieve a thorough understanding of the stiffness characteristics of the Exechon PKM, this paper proposed an analytical kinetostatic model by using the substructure synthesis technique. The whole PKM system is decomposed into a moving platform subsystem, three limb subsystems and a fixed base subsystem, which are connected to each other sequentially through corresponding joints. Each limb body is modeled as a spatial beam with a uniform cross-section constrained by two sets of lumped springs. The equilibrium equation of each individual limb assemblage is derived through finite element formulation and combined with that of the moving platform derived with Newtonian method to construct the governing kinetostatic equations of the system after introducing the deformation compatibility conditions between the moving platform and the limbs. By extracting the 6 x 6 block matrix from the inversion of the governing compliance matrix, the stiffness of the moving platform is formulated. The computation for the stiffness of the Exechon PKM at a typical configuration as well as throughout the workspace is carried out in a quick manner with a piece-by-piece partition algorithm. The numerical simulations reveal a strong position-dependency of the PKM's stiffness in that it is symmetric relative to a work plane due to structural features. At the last stage, the effects of some design variables such as structural, dimensional and stiffness parameters on system rigidity are investigated with the purpose of providing useful information for the structural optimization and performance enhancement of the Exechon PKM. It is worthy mentioning that the proposed methodology of stiffness modeling in this paper can also be applied to other overconstrained PKMs and can evaluate the global rigidity over workplace efficiently with minor revisions.

Supporting conceptualisation processes in collaborative networks: a case study on an R&D project

The development of new products or processes involves the creation, re-creation and integration of conceptual models from the related scientific and technical domains. Particularly, in the context of collaborative networks of organisations (CNO) (e.g. a multi-partner, international project) such developments can be seriously hindered by conceptual misunderstandings and misalignments, resulting from participants with different backgrounds or organisational cultures, for example. The research described in this article addresses this problem by proposing a method and the tools to support the collaborative development of shared conceptualisations in the context of a collaborative network of organisations. The theoretical model is based on a socio-semantic perspective, while the method is inspired by the conceptual integration theory from the cognitive semantics field. The modelling environment is built upon a semantic wiki platform. The majority of the article is devoted to developing an informal ontology in the context of a European R&D project, studied using action research. The case study results validated the logical structure of the method and showed the utility of the method.