Qualitative Reasoning about Features and Feature
Interactions with Applications to Integrated Design and Manufacturing
Planning
Michael M. Marefat, Erik J. Johnson, and
Ramanujam Raman
Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering
University of Arizona
Tucson, Arizona 85721
Abstract
This research develops multiple mechanisms for systematic reasoning about
manufacturing components to address several interrelated problems in
integrated design and manufacturing planning.
Namely, we have developed and systematically formalized the following ideas:
(i) First, using constraint satisfaction, propagation, and relaxation to
reason about geometry for the purpose of recognizing (shape) features in a
component.
Constraints provide a framework for systematically dealing with the
non-uniqueness associated with feature recognition. (ii) Second, developing
a qualitative spatial model of a component based on both its features as
well as mathematical spatial relationships between these features. This
model can be then be directly utilized in systematically reasoning about the
overall shape of a component.
(iii) Finally, incorporating the above qualitative model into a
manufacturing process planner. Through an analysis of the shape of a
component, the incorporation of the qualitative model allows for the
optimization of both the planner and the plans it produces.