Top-Down Design ToolsManaging Complex Assemblies Victor RemmersHolland Engineering Consultants BV,Tips & Techniques,Top-Down Design Philosophy,Traditional Design Approach,“Bottom-Up Design” Design of individual components independent of the assembly Manual approach to ensure that components fit properly and meet the design criteria Components and those placed in sub-assemblies are brought together to develop the top-level assembly Errors are manually identified and modifications to each component are made to make the adjustment. As assembly grows, detecting these inconsistencies and correcting them can consume a considerable amount of time,Top Level Assembly,Component Design,Component Design,Component Design,Possible example Bottom Up?,Mate,Top-Down Design Philosophy,“Top-Down Design” Method of placing critical information in a high-level location Communicating that information to the lower levels of the product structure Capturing the overall design information in one centralized location,Design Information,Component,Component,Component,A more integrated approach.,Top Down Design Stages It is a concept.,6-Stage Process,Conceptual Engineering Phase Layouts and Engineering Notebook Preliminary Product Structure Phase Pro/INTRALINK, Model Tree Capturing Design Intent Phase Skeleton Models Manage Interdependencies Phase Reference Viewer & Reference Graph Communication of Design Intent Phase Copy Geoms, Publish Geoms & Shrinkwrap Population of the Assembly Phase Automatic Component Constraints & Component Interfaces,The Bobcat example,Conceptual Engineering PhaseLayouts and Engineering Notebook,Understand Existing Situation High-level Requirements Space Allocation Define New Space and Motion 2D Sketches 3D Models Rapid Iteration & Convergence Animations Capture Key Design Intent Parameters Notes Spreadsheets Proprietary Data,Stage 1,Preliminary Product Structure Phase Pro/INTRALINK, Model Tree,Quickly define product hierarchy Before any of the components geometry is defined Intuitive, automatic mapping to “start models” Templates ensure all designs share the necessary common elements such as layers, views Copy from start models Automatic assembly of default datums Unplaced, Partially- & Over-Constrained Components,Stage 2,Capturing Design Intent Phase Skeleton Models,What needs to happen? Capture conceptual design parameters within the context of the assembly Capture & control critical object interfaces in a single, convenient location How? Skeleton Models Centralized pathway for communication Facilitate task distribution Promote well-organized design environments Enable faster, more efficient propagation of change Special Treatment in BOMs, Simplified Reps, Drawings, Model Tree & Mass Property Calculations Uniquely supported Scope Control Setting,Stage 3,Manage Interdependencies PhaseReference Viewer & Reference Graph,Stage 4,Tools to Manage References External Reference Control Ensures Top-Down Design methodology is followed Incorporate design management rules directly into the design Ensures proper design reuse Pro/INTRALINK Model Tree Global Reference Viewer Reference Graph,Communication of Design Intent Phase Publish Geoms, Copy Geoms & Inheritance,Publish Geometry Features Provides ability to pre-determine the geometry to be referenced by a Copy Geometry feature Allows designers to define their interfaces to the rest of the design Copy Geometry Features Allows copying of all types of geometry Surfaces, edges, curves, datums, quilts, copy/publish geometry Retains copied geometry name and layer settings Dependency on parent geometry can be toggled Can be “Externalized” External Copy Geometry Build relationships on external models independent of an assembly Useful for coordinate system assembly practices Inheritance Inherit model geometry for one-way associativity Shrinkwrap (included in Foundation Advantage Package),Stage 5,Population of the Assembly PhaseAutomatic Component Constraints & Component Interfaces,Stage 6,What tools are available for populating the assembly? Assembly Tools Drag & Drop Placement Component Interfaces Component Creation Within the context of the assembly Mirror Parts or Subassemblies,How does Top Down Design relate to company goals?,Four Goals from Upper Management 1) Cycle Time Reduction. 2) Increase User Satisfaction with Software. 3) Margin Increase. 4) Cost Reduction.,Why should you use it?,Benefits: Reduced design time Reduced errors (right the first time) Increased quality Better project management visibility Concurrent engineering Confidence in top-level regeneration Knowledge of how modules interface Top-level change control,Example: to design an alternator.,What information should a designer need to work with most times?,Complete Top-Level Assembly 540 MB,All Skeleton Models in Top-Level Assembly 70 MB,Neighboring Subassemblies 320MB,Subassembly, with Skeleton Model containing all required information 20 MB,What does an example look like?,Three Phases,Pro/INTR