Aspects Available

~ ~ One of the most important features of the domain is its need to be analyzed from multiple aspects, in order to demonstrate the effects of concurrent engineering on the design process. This section is a brief overview of the design aspects and their concerns that may impact the tower design. Figure shows the agents which are implemented in SNEAKERS. The rules which they express are shown in Appendix . The sections below offer a cursory view of the types of rules that can be written about this domain.

Design:

The design aspect includes rules of thumb and analytical tools that are used strictly for the design process. It is not concerned with any other aspects. In SNEAKERS, the design aspect is represented by rules about structure, rules about the order in which to design, rules supporting symmetry, and analytic tools to measure stress and buckling.

Manufacturing:

The manufacturing aspect of design contains knowledge of the manufacturing process, and how a design relates to that process. In SNEAKERS manufacturing is the connecting of pieces on site and in house. Manufacturing is represented by rules about which connectors can be used with which materials and the time needed to connect the components.

Assembly:

The assembly aspect is concerned more with the ability to put the connections together than manufacturing is. In SNEAKERS, the height of the tower, number of pieces, and connector type selection are the domain of the assembly aspect.

Cost:

The cost aspect is concerned with the ability to estimate costs and reduce costs where possible. It contains rules about tower type, number of pieces, and the costs of certain processes, and how these relate to the overall cost of a design.

Marketing:

The marketing aspect of the tower's design is concerned with the ability to sell the tower that has been designed. The rules try to get the designer to design sleek, thin towers, with very few jagged edges and points, and a base as small as the platform. It prefers I and X-type towers.

Safety:

The safety aspect is concerned with designing towers which are safe for human use. This means that towers should be designed which would have a lower likelihood of an accident, or a lower probability of serious injury occurring from an accident. The design aspect has already handled concern over tower stability, but the safety aspect tries to increase the amounts of bracing, for hand holds, have a minimum platform size, and design shorter towers.

Disposal:

The disposal aspect is concerned with the end phase of the tower's life cycle. It is concerned with the ability to take the tower apart and also to recycle it. Snaps, followed by bolts are, therefore, the preferred methods of connection. It is also easier to dispose of the tower all at once if it is made of one material.

Packaging:

The packaging aspect is concerned with getting the pieces of the tower to the building site. As a result, smaller pieces are preferred, so that they can all be fit into a single truck. If there is very little welding to be done, it could be done at the manufacturing site, and then transported welded. Otherwise, welding equipment also needs to be transported.