The Management of Evolving Engineering Design Constraints

Abstract

This chapter presents research aimed at determining the requirements of a database software tool that supports integrity validation of versioned-design artefacts through effective management of evolving constraints. It has resulted in the design and development of a constraint management model, which allows constraint evolution through representing constraints within versioned objects called Constraint Versions Objects (CVOs). This model operates around a version model that uses a well-defined configuration management strategy to manage the versions of complex artefacts. Internal and inter-dependency constraints are modelled in CVOs. The combination of our versioning, configuration management, and constraint management approaches has produced a unique model which has been implemented in a prototype database tool with an intuitive user interface. The user interface allows designers to manage design constraints without the need to program. The innovative concepts developed in this chapter are introduced using an ongoing example of a simple bicycle design.