Design support system

• US 20050229136A1
• Filed: 04/06/2005
• Published: 10/13/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 04/08/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Inventors: Watanabe, Norito, Sakimura, Shigetoshi, Yuda, Shinya, Minami, Shunsuke
• Granted Patent: US 7,409,324 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 716/125
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 30/00 Computer-aided design [CAD]

Abstract

The design support system regarding the present invention comprises a node data storage means that stores node data to generate functional models which present a group of function nodes which are functions divided from performance function of apparatus which is an objective to be designed and a group of part nodes which realize the functions in mutual relations, a functional model generating means that generates the functional models in reference to the node data storage means, a node designation receiving means that receives the designation of a node among the functional models, a node selection means that selects a node which has a mutual relation with nodes to which the designation are given, a display unit that displays the node selected by the node selection means.

Claims

1. A design support system comprising,

a node data storage means that stores node data to generate functional models which present a group of function nodes which are functions divided from performance function of apparatus which is an objective to be designed and a group of part nodes which realize said functions in mutual relations;

a functional model generating means that generates said functional models in reference to node data stored in said node data storage means;

a node designation receiving means that receives the designation of a node among said functional models;

a node selection means that selects a node which has a mutual relation with nodes to which said designation are given; and

a display unit that displays said node selected by said node selection means.

2. A design support system according to claim 1, wherein said functional models are presented with hierarchical layers composed by said function nodes and part nodes functional a group of functional node and said node selecting means selects nodes to which said designation is given.

3. A design support system according to claim 1, wherein said function nodes includes validation item data regarding said functions and said display unit presents a list of included validation item data regarding said selected function nodes.

4. A design support system according to claim 2, wherein said node selecting means has a capability to select an selection of all nodes over said hierarchical layers and an selection of all nodes in each of said hierarchical layers.

5. A design support system according to claim 1 further comprising,

a validation record data storage means that stores validation record data which make relation with said function nodes;

a validation record data selection means that selects validation record data regarding to a node to which a designation is given; and

a validation record data display means that displays said validation record data.

6. A design support system according to claim 2 further comprising,

a failure case data storage means that stores failure case data which is related to said function node;

a failure case data selecting means that selects failure case data regarding node to which a designation is given; and

a failure case data display means that displays failure case data.

7. Design Support system according to claim 6, wherein said failure data selection means selects failure case data which is related to a failure case data in a lower hierarchical layer against a node to which a designation is given.

8. Design support system according to claim 2, wherein said part node has one or plural design parameters and hierarchical layers of part nodes and function nodes are constructed with parameters to be used for design.

9. Design support system according to claim 1, wherein said part node has one or plural design parameters, said function node has one or plural operation parameters and target specification parameters, further comprising,

a parameter relation information storage means that stores parameter relation information that defines paring of parameters;

and

a function validation model generation means that generates function validation model that shows relation among parameters included in said node with referring to said parameter relation information storage means.

10. Design support system according to claim 9, further comprising,

a parameter designation receiving means that receives parameter designation among function validation models;

a parameter selection means that selects parameters which are related to parameter to which said parameter designation is given; and

a parameter display means that displays selected parameters.

11. Design support system according to claim 10, wherein said parameter display means has a capability to further display nodes including said parameters that said parameter selection means selects.

12. Design support system according to claim 11 further comprising a retrieval direction receiving means that receives a direction whether parameters which are related to parameters displayed by said parameter display means are to be retrieved, wherein said parameter selection means selects parameters which are related to parameters that are directed to be searched for further related parameters and said parameter display means further displays parameters that said parameter selection means selects.

13. Design support system according to claim 12, wherein said function nodes include validation item data regarding function thereof and said parameter display means displays a list of validation item data that said function nodes include regarding said function nodes that includes parameters that said parameter selection means selects.

14. Design support system according to claim 12, wherein said parameter selection means does not select parameters which are related to parameters that are directed not to be searched for further related parameters.

15. A design support system according to claim 10 further comprising a retrieving kind judgment means that judges retrieving kind on a basis of parameter designation that said parameter designation receiving means receives.

16. A design support system according to claim 15 further comprising a presentation data processor that changes presentation method of retrieving results in response to retrieving kind already carried out.

17. A design support system according to claim 16 further comprising,

a retrieving kind judgment means that selects retrieving kind in response to a kind of changing whether apparent specifications of equipment which is an objective to be designed are changed or specifications of composing parts are to be changed;

and

a presentation data processor that outputs specification change information in an order of importance for apparent specifications and an order of degree of influence of component specification change.

18. A design support system according to claim 16, wherein said retrieving results are confined into part nodes.

19. A design support system according to claim 2, wherein environment, in which apparatus which is an objective to be designed thereby is used, and subsidiary materials are handled as part nodes.

20. A design support method, carried out in an information processing system including a node data storage means that stores node data to generate functional models which present a group of function nodes which are functions divided from performance function of apparatus which is an objective to be designed and a group of part nodes which realize said functions in hierarchical relations, comprising,

a functional model generating step that generates said functional models in reference to said node data stored in said node data storage means;

a node designation receiving step that receives the designation of a node among said functional models;

a node selection step that selects a node which has a mutual relation with nodes to which said designation are given; and

a display step that displays said node selected in said node selection step.

21. A design support method according to claim 20, wherein said information processing system further comprises a parameter relation information storage means that stores parameter relation information that prescribes paring among parameters, each of said part nodes that said node data storage means stores has parameters regarding one or more design and each of said function nodes has parameters regarding one or more operations and target specifications, further comprising a function validation model generating step that generates function validation model that shows a relation among parameters included in nodes in reference to said parameter relation information stored in said parameter relation information storage means.