O. Maimon et D. Braha, ON THE COMPLEXITY OF THE DESIGN SYNTHESIS PROBLEM, IEEE transactions on systems, man and cybernetics. Part A. Systems and humans, 26(1), 1996, pp. 142-151
Citations number
25
Categorie Soggetti
System Science",Ergonomics,"Computer Science Cybernetics
In this paper we present and analyze a formal model of a design proces
s, emphasizing the synthesis part. The design artifact description is
identified as an algebraic structure. The desired function and constra
ints are mapped to the artifact description using an evolutionary proc
ess that can be visualized as a feedback loop of analysis, synthesis a
nd evaluation. A special case of the synthesis activity, called the Ba
sic Synthesis Problem (BSP), is addressed. The BSP is shown to be NP-C
omplete. As a consequence, tractability can be obtained by enforcing c
onstraints on the artifact structure. As such, we present a model havi
ng an element of descriptive design theory that is also a framework fo
r the future development of computational support systems and automati
c design tools.