A new method for platform design based on parametric technology

A new method for platform design, named parametric platform design method (PPDM), is presented in this paper in order to improve the mobile platform design efficiency. In this method, an integrated parametric system that fully considers the characteristics of the platform is developed, which significantly optimizes the design process with the top–bottom design concept. In the parametric system, the main geometric dimensions are taken as parameters, while the topology between the structure members, the function requirements and the safety requirements are converted into geometric constraints. By geometric constraint solving (GCS), a set of parameters that satisfy all the given constraints are determined, and then the design scheme is obtained by several core algorithms, such as parametric tank subdivision, 3D stability calculation, parametric structure design, FEM preprocessing, etc. The parametric method greatly increases the changeability and the reusability of the platform model, and concurrent design is well supported. As the model is driven by parameters, PPDM is an excellent method for optimization design. As a result, PPDM has incomparable advantages on the design efficiency over traditional methods.