REKK: A knowledge-based system as an integrated design-assistant

The Design Department within the Mechanical Engineering Faculty at the Technical University of Munich has developed an integrated design advisory system which consists of several task specific modules as a hybrid system, rather than rulebased or object oriented system only. It is an aid in the choice of material and process technique. The examples of a gear box of casted and of welded design are used here to illustrate this function. As well as the model costs of the gear box, the whole costs of the gear box and the costs of the entire gear box assembly can be calculated. Another module gives the designer advise in welding design and casting design. Detailed solutions can be sent to the CAD-system. Strength and costs of weld seams may be calculated simultaneously. A check-list-module helps the designer to evaluate his design. Parts which were designed in the feature based CAD-system can be checked for manufacturability and costs through a direct link to the knowledge based system. For this task a special geometry parser has been developed. Suggestions of the knowledge based system can be incorporated by the CAD-system.