Research Themes
Design Information and Knowledge
Introduction
Engineering design and manufacture are crucially dependent on timely access to relevant knowledge and information. The work within the DIAK research theme is focused on developing an understanding of the knowledge and information needs of engineers and of approaches to knowledge and information capture, organisation and management. There is a particular emphasis on through-life information management for complex products, an area in which the team leads a large national 'Grand Challenge' project in through-life knowledge and information management.
Current work is aimed at development of approaches to design information and knowledge management that enable rapid and reliable access to and contextual understanding of high-quality design information and knowledge over the product life cycle. This work involves computational techniques such as semi-structured approaches to engineering documentation, Bayesian assessment of information quality, faceted classification and information annotation. This work is supported by the study of designers' information needs, and of approaches to information use covering personal, group and company information. Development of a design-observation laboratory will allow new developments in empirical research.
Vision
The vision of the Design Information and Knowledge (DIAK) theme is to work with UK companies from SMEs to large multinationals to devise innovative approaches to knowledge and information management with applications ranging from immediate to long term, especially using IT support.
Contacts
- Theme leader
- Prof. Stephen Culley
- Theme representative
- Dr Mansur Darlington
Related external projects
Current Projects
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A Study of Document Structures and Information Use Patterns in Engineering Information Management
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An Investigation into the Applicability of Mark-up to CAD Models to Aid Multiple-Viewpoint Design
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The Organisation of Engineering Design Information (KIM T1.2)
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The Development of a Formal Design for Changeover Methodology
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Costing Estimating for Low Volume Long Life Products in Electronic Defence Systems
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Confidence in Cost Estimates - A Novel Methodology to Improve the Confidence in Cost Estimates Using Quality Improvement Techniques
Completed Projects
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Distributed Cognition - Distributed Cognition, Failure Causation and Complex System Design.
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Intrinsic Safety - Development And Inculcation Of Intrinsic Safety Principles For Fluid Power System Design.
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LIME - Lean Information Management in Engineering Design.
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The Moral Manufacturer - A Framework for the Ethics of Product Designs that Entail Risk to Others.
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ORCS - Investigation into the Use of Ontologies for Requirements Capture Support.
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Remanufacturing - Development of metrics and guidelines to permit progress in remanufacturing towards the aim of sustainable development.
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Semantic Methods for Information Retrieval (SMIR) - Enhancing Engineering Information Retrieval using Semantics-encoding Technologies.
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A Study of Document Structures and Information Use Patterns in Engineering Information Management - Enhancing Engineering Information Retrieval using Semantics-encoding Technologies.
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Development of a Theory-Based Ontology of Design-Induced Error