CyPhy Process for Rapid Product Design and Evaluation

University Of Texas At Austin, Austin TX

Investigators

Abstract

The overall objective of this research project is to change, fundamentally, industrial engineering design processes by providing a means to integrate, directly, virtual and physical prototypes. Six supporting research objectives will be pursued to meet this goal. The first is to benchmark industrial design processes to clarify critical managerial needs, and quantify their cycle time, cost, and product quality tradeoffs. The next objective is to develop a new similarity method to enable reliable functional tests with rapid prototypes in broad product domains. A third objective is to embed instrumentation (sensors and interconnects) within physical prototypes, and to estimate product behavior through physical measurements. Based on these measurements, a theoretical framework and algortihms will be developed to compare and integrate virtual models with physical models, followed by the objective of validating the new process by designing, fabricating, and thermo-mechanically evaluating prototype products from industrial benchmarks. If successful, the research will significantly reduce design cycle times. As a consequence, more information will be available to the designer earlier in the design process, possibly increasing productivity and design robustness. Particular benefits expected from the research include: a novel solid freeform fabrication process with embedded sensor technology; sensor models using polymer materials; control, signal processing, and similitude analysis techniques for integrating virtual and physical models.