This volume, Mechanical Design: Theory and Methodology, has been put together over the past four years. Most of the work is ongoing as can be ascertained easily from the text. One can argue that this is so for any text or monograph. Any such book is only a snapshot in time, giving information about the state of knowledge of the authors when the book was compiled. The chapters have been updated and are representative of the state of the art in the field of design theory and methodology. It is barely over a decade that design as an area of study was revived, mostly at the behest of industry, government, and academic leaders. Profes sor Nam Suh, then the head of the Engineering Directorate at the National Science Foundation, provided much of the impetus for the needed effort. The results of early work of researchers, many of whom have authored chapters in this book, were fundamental in conceiving the ideas behind Design for X or DFX and concurrent engineering issues. The artificial intelli gence community had a strong influence in developing the required com puter tools mainly because the field had a history of interdisciplinary work. Psychologists, computer scientists, and engineers worked together to under stand what support tools will improve the design process. While this influ ence continues today, there is an increased awareness that a much broader community needs to be involved.

Formal Design Theory (PDT) is a mathematical theory of design. The main goal of PDT is to develop a domain independent core model of the design process. The book focuses the reader's attention on the process by which ideas originate and are developed into workable products. In developing PDT, we have been striving toward what has been expressed by the distinguished scholar Simon (1969): that "the science of design is possible and some day we will be able to talk in terms of well-established theories and practices. " The book is divided into five interrelated parts. The conceptual approach is presented first (Part I); followed by the theoretical foundations of PDT (Part II), and from which the algorithmic and pragmatic implications are deduced (Part III). Finally, detailed case-studies illustrate the theory and the methods of the design process (Part IV), and additional practical considerations are evaluated (Part V). The generic nature of the concepts, theory and methods are validated by examples from a variety of disciplines. FDT explores issues such as: algebraic representation of design artifacts, idealized design process cycle, and computational analysis and measurement of design process complexity and quality. FDT's axioms convey the assumptions of the theory about the nature of artifacts, and potential modifications of the artifacts in achieving desired goals or functionality. By being able to state these axioms explicitly, it is possible to derive theorems and corollaries, as well as to develop specific analytical and constructive methodologies.

This book brings together some of the most influential pieces of research undertaken around the world in design synthesis. It is the first comprehensive work of this kind and covers all three aspects of research in design synthesis: - understanding what constitutes and influences synthesis; - the major approaches to synthesis; - the diverse range of tools that are created to support this crucial design task. With its range of tools and methods covered, it is an ideal introduction to design synthesis for those intending to research in this area as well as being a valuable source of ideas for educators and practitioners of engineering design.

The second edition of a bestseller, this book discusses an integrated product and process design that has been successfully used to conceptualize, design, and rapidly product competitively-priced quality products. It examines the overlapping, interacting, and iterative nature of the engineering aspects that impact the product realization process. A detailed introduction to the creation of high quality products, the new edition explores the role of innovation, requirements engineering, smart materials, different rapid prototyping methods, and life-cycle cost determination, to name just a few. The book delineates proven methods that have been used successfully to create products.

Information modelling is the essential part of information systems design. Design methods, specification languages, and tools tend to become application dependent, aiming at integration of methodologies stretching from traditional database design to knowledge bases, and including use of logical languages, and process oriented reactive systems description. The topics of the articles cover a wide variety of problems in the area of information modelling, information systems specification, and knowledge bases, ranging from foundations and theories to systems construction and application studies. The contributions are grouped into the following major categories: - Systems specification and information modelling schemes - User interfaces and multimedia - Knowledge organization database structuring - Formal systems - Knowledge and information - From conceptual modelling to software engineering - Description and organization of concepts and objects - Learning systems and applications This book is the eighth volume in the sub-series 'Information Modelling and Knowledge Bases'. This dates back to 1990 with annual publications now amounting to more than 200 reviewed articles. The current volume is intended for researchers, students and practitioners in the area of information systems.