DECOMPOSITION AND REPRESENTATION METHODS IN MECHANICAL DESIGN

The broad interest in concurrent engineering has inspired research in the area of decomposition in mechanical design. Much of the research r eported in the literature falls into one of three categories: (1) prod uct decomposition, (2) problem decomposition, or (3) process decomposi tion. This paper provides a derailed discussion of the typology of dec omposition in mechanical design. Related work is described and example s are provided to illustrate the need for decomposition of products, p roblems, and processes in design. Representation techniques and method ologies for decomposition are outlined. Finally, future research issue s in decomposition in mechanical design are identified.