Computer-aided design-while-engineering technology in top-down modeling of mechanical product

• CADWE is proposed to merge CAD and CAE application into a unified pattern.
• CADWE maintain top–down modeling process and change propagation in complex product design.
• CADWE is based on three cornerstones, i.e., unified preliminary model, generalized feature and agent of preliminary geometry.
• Preliminary model is a sort of unified and shareable integration information model.
• Generalized feature and its modeling method serve for global CAD/CAE modeling strategy.
• Agent of preliminary geometry can solve the problem involved in change propagation.

In order to considerably reduce the overall time and cost associated with design process, it has been widely noted that data consistence and a unified software platform play a vital role in CAD/E integrated design. A novel modeling mechanism named as CADWE (Computer-Aided Design-While-Engineering) is proposed to merge CAD and CAE application into a unified pattern. Meanwhile,the CADWE maintains top–down modeling process and change propagation in complex product design. Preliminary model is adopted to build up consistent and shareable integration information model instead of focusing on programming to link different model to keep the consistence. Particularly, generalized feature and agent of preliminary geometry are put to use to achieve synchronous and automatic change propagation from preliminary geometry to detailed model and FEM application. Thus, not only numerous duplication and human error in complex simplification operation and incompatible data exchange may be avoided, but also much software development is dispensable. A software package is developed and used in change propagation with the aid of NX/Open API. To explain the CADWE modeling process with more insight, two examples are used as the case studies. By means of the comparison with the techniques in the literatures high relevant to this topic, it proves that the CADWE technology is good at handling complicated product modeling and their change propagation with little software development.