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1 SAE TECHNICAL PAPER SERIES E Virtual Design: Concepts Fábio Gonçalves Teixeira Tânia Luisa Koltermann da Silva Régio Pierre da Silva José Luís Farinatti Aymone FILIADA À XVII Congresso e Exposição Internacionais da Tecnologia da Mobilidade São Paulo, Brasil 07 a 09 de outubro de 2008 AV. PAULISTA, HORSA II - CJ CEP SÃO PAULO SP

2 Virtual Design: Concepts Fábio Gonçalves Teixeira Tânia Luisa Koltermann da Silva Régio Pierre da Silva José Luís Farinatti Aymone Copyright 2008 Society of Automotive Engineers, Inc ABSTRACT This paper presents a set of concepts related to design, virtualization and design virtualization, which contributes to understanding of the virtual design concept as a product development process. This methodological and conceptual base, needed for the integration of technologies aiming the optimization of this process, is presented in this work as the first part of a bigger project, which is complemented with the second part approaching the technological issues of the process. INTRODUCTION Product design is a systematic and multidisciplinary activity, where team work and an efficient coordination are crucial to achieve positive results. The modern information technology and communication (ITC) and the digital technologies have potential to optimize this process in all its steps. However, the indiscriminate use of these technologies in the product development without a proper theoretical foundation does not guarantee a significant improvement in the process. In this regard, the concept of Virtual Design (VD), which is characterized by integrating a theoretical and technological basis that requires an appropriate methodology, constituting itself as applied science, comes to support the use of technology as an integrated tool into the project process. Most companies use some kind of virtual resource in the development of its products, but they are isolated activities as part of a conventional process. The lack of application of appropriate methodologies is one of the factors that contribute to VD not being a standard. To change this scenario it is necessary to invest in scientific research to develop methodologies and management systems that allow continues use of VD as products development process. THE VIRTUAL DESIGN Currently, the technological resources are used with the purpose of improving the products development process through its virtualization. The virtual environments arose from the convergence of technological advances in digital electronics from computers with the technology of visual presentation. According to Jons [1] the main technological developments in creating realistic images, are: the project based on simulation, virtual prototyping, virtual reality and the distance collaborative project. In this context, some basic concepts are necessary to understand this process and, mainly, to conceptualize the virtual design. DESIGN The word design is originated from the Latin verb designare which translated means to determine. From this source, the design is the science of determining on the presentation. As a historical reference, according to Bürdek [2], the first description of the term design was made in 1588 referring to a plan or scheme developed by man for later completion, a graphic design of a work of art or an object of applied arts useful for building works. In the mid-nineteenth century, came the industrial design focusing mainly on the setting of new materials. The design, from this context, sought to combine the conditions of industrial production (techniques, manufacturing processes, materials) with the social conditions. A more complex description, established by the International Design Center of Berlin, was presented in 1979, explaining, in addition to the functional aspects, the language of the product, and ecological aspects of design, which over time have become increasingly Important [2]. Maldonado [3] defines Design as "a project activity that determines the formal properties of the objects to be 1

3 produced industrially", understanding these properties "not only as the external features, but especially the structural and functional relations of objects". For the International Council of Societies of Industrial Design [4] the design is conceptualized as "a creative activity whose purpose is to establish the multifaceted qualities of objects, processes, services and its systems, covering their entire life cycle, being considered as a crucial factor in the innovative humanization of technologies and for the economic and cultural exchanges. Faced with a variety of descriptions for the design, Bürdek [2] was concerned in naming a few problems that design should consider, such as: visualize technological advances; prioritize the use and easy management of products; make the context of production, consumption and reuse transparent; besides promoting services and communication. Generally, the term design is related to the project, being quite wide and may have different meanings and backgrounds. As shown by Baxter [5], the project can be considered as a set of inter-related activities with the objective of conceiving and defining a product in a way that it can be produced. Many authors [2, 5, 6, 7, 8] in the area of product development describe this process as a series of steps that form the final project before its construction, testing and evaluation, and the stages of project are: Informational, needs definition and information search stage; Conceptual, which corresponds to search for product concepts; Preliminary, stage of development of the layout and basic parameters; Detailed, completing the project and detailing. According to Baxter [5], the development of products covers these stages at different levels, from the macro level (product as a whole), to the level of systems and assemblies and at the micro level (parts and details). Seeking to accelerate the development of a product the concept of Simultaneous Engineering arose, in the 1980 decade, where the stages of project occur on a joint and simultaneous way, in multidisciplinary teams that foresee difficulties before the full development. Thus, the corrections may be made during development time without wasting time and investments resources. The overlapping of project activities, implemented temporarily in parallel, enabled the reduction in time of the development cycle of product [5, 8, 9]. VIRTUALIZATION Understanding the virtual is fundamental when it comes to achieving the potential of the technologies that, incorporated into processes, bring not only methodological changes, but also conceptual. Currently, the virtual is a term fairly widespread and widely used in the expression of different forms or constitutions, such as: virtual companies, virtual communities, and virtual reality, among many others we can presence in modern life. Commonly, the virtual is used in a mistaken way to refer to the absence of existence considering the tangible and material presence. However, in Latin origin, virtualis derived from virtus which mean strength and power. Virtualization is considered by Lévy [10] as a general movement that affects the information and communication processes, and also the bodies and the collective frameworks of sensitivity and the exercise of intelligence, beyond the economic functionality, causing technical, economic and cultural changes. Lévy [10] examines virtualization from reality, possibility, actuality and virtuality concepts and from the several transformations of a way of being in another. In the philosophical sense, virtual is not contrary to the real but the current, opposing what is possible. Virtual corresponds to the complex problem, the knot of trends, forces and goals in a situation, an event, an object, or an entity. While the actualization comes as the solution to this problem, being a creation that implies in innovative production of an idea or a form, from a dynamic configuration of forces and purposes. Thus, we can distinguish the actualization that is the invention of a solution required by complex problem, from the realization that is the occurrence of a pre-defined state. As the possible already is defined and static, it becomes a real latent for which it lacks only the existence, and its realization will change nothing in its will or its nature, therefore, this realization is not considered a creation. This distinction between possible and virtual is vital to understand what virtualization is [10]. Virtualization as dynamic corresponds to the reverse movement of actualization; therefore, it doesn t consist in the transformation of reality in a set of possible (derealization). But in a change of identity that occurs by the "displacement of the center of gravity of the ontological object considered" that start to have its essential consistency in a problematic field [10]. 2

4 Lévy [10] considers that to virtualize an entity (any object) it is necessary to find a general question to which it relates to move its essence towards this question and in to redefine the starting actuality as a response to a particular issue. In the virtualization, the ontological essence moves from a starting actuality (solution given) towards a particular case of a general problem. As virtualization moves from a given solution towards a problem composed of a set of tensions, restrictions and issues, the degrees of freedom in the process of creation are increased, and the actualization becomes a solution to this problem, the creation of a form based on a dynamic configuration of forces and purposes. Regard to this, Lévy [10] states that "virtualization is a major vector in the creation of reality." VIRTUALIZATION OF THE PROJECT The process of developing the product begins in the project informational which defines attributes of the product to meet a need, generating specifications of the project, which is a quantification of requirements and restrictions (usually placed on a qualitative way). These attributes should cover various aspects related to the product, such as: legal; parameters for comparison with other similar products; performance parameters; among other requirements and restrictions that can still relate aspects such as manufacturing, assembly, maintenance, and restrictions of manufacture time, availability of machines and tools, etc.. Usually, the restrictions impose limitations to the project, setting maximum and minimum values for size, volume, weight, performance, cost, deadlines, among others [5]. The virtualization of the project consists into consider these set of requirements and restrictions in the process of product development. From this virtualization it is possible to launch various ideas and alternatives at the design stage, seeking to compare the performance of these and how each one of them responds to that set. In each of these alternatives we have a actualization that responds to virtualization, getting to the conceptual design. This last creates a solution for the product, with a configuration that will be refined and detailed in the following stages. Thus, the project process is dynamic by presenting successive virtualizations and actualizations on the project until reaching the definitive project. From the specifications of the project, the conceptual project generates a basic layout of the product that presents its functional structure comprising the principles of the solution (as each function is performed) and the disposition of various systems that make the product, allocating space for all components and even providing clearances when necessary [7]. Back [6] points out that in the layout stage many calculations are made related to the geometry of the product, such as: areas; volumes; moments of inertia, centre of gravity position, among others that allow changes while we don t have the project final yet. Currently, the threedimensional geometric modeling systems enable the virtual development of the project, through virtual reality models, or a mockup, for instance, that allows a spatial vision. According to Rosa [8], the definition of layout allows the construction of several prototypes with different types and purposes, depending on the complexity of the product, such as: Functional prototypes seeking test different settings or geometric dimensions, demonstrating the feasibility of the design and validating the concept, verifying the functionality of the project in a qualitative way; Performance prototypes which test the functional capacity of the project from the configuration adopted and the equipments, less concerned with the materials and manufacturing process, verifying the functionality of the project in a quantitative way; Durability prototypes that aim to check the carrying capacity of structural systems, resistance to wear the surface and other devices where can be applied static loads and fatigue loads; Process prototypes, which test the manufacture techniques, verifying the viability of the manufacturing process. As for coverage, Baxter [5] notes that the prototype can be built in different levels of the structure of the product, since the parts, systems or assembly, until a complete product level. However, the construction of physical prototypes used to test and evaluate concepts of projects can consume a lot of time apart from presenting elevated costs, because, in general, they are made when the complete project of the product is already done. These physical restrictions also hamper the realization of the project activities as advocates simultaneous engineering. According to Jons [1], a virtual prototype is capable of releasing the project from these restrictions imposed by the physical prototype, offering advantages in relation to the costs of building the prototype, in the visualization and perception of the functionality of the product, in the performance verification, and in verifying the operation of the product in a realistic environment and with human control. The technological resources represent a facilitator for the deployment of simultaneous engineering in product development, and the support offered by the Internet and 3

5 other tools of information and communication technologies, contributes to the virtualization of the process of project. The tools Computer Aided Design (CAD) offering three-dimensional features (3D) helped replace the physical tests by virtual simulations, besides changing the process of project development. With the use of a solid modeler, the construction of a project is done by the addition of the necessary items, as the main information, dimensions, tolerances and specifications of materials, which are aggregated to the electronic model of the project [11]. According to Duarte and Barberato [11], the use of these tools allows, as well, the virtualization of the activities of technical drawing through its dematerialization. Allowing, then, sharing information and the implementation of projects in a interactive and collaborative way, without space-time restrictions related to the development teams. The simultaneous work of these teams is facilitated by the possibility of electronic transfer of the virtual prototype. According to Goldin et al. [12], the involvement of professionals with the virtual environment of project enables the creation or modification of their projects in real time, making possible an immediate check of the effects of their actions on the project as a whole. VIRTUAL DESIGN CONCEPT Given the foregoing, the Virtual Design can be conceptualized as the iterative process of product development, through successive virtualizations and actualizations, seeking optimization and done in all its stages, trough digital means using technologies and methodologies that ensure integration and Systemic management of the project at all levels. Virtualization of the products development process is rather a conceptual and methodological base, regardless of technological support. Virtualization is implicit in the products development process being one of the bases of its methodology. At the same time, the technology available and accessible allows the operational feasibility of the Virtual Design in its fullness, as the dynamic process of virtualizations and successive actualizations is increased, allowing the optimization of the design solutions found. The Virtual Design, through the integration of theory and methodology of product development with the technology, consolidates itself as an emerging area of knowledge, helping to strengthen the design as applied science. FINAL CONSIDERATIONS The Virtual Design, through the use of technology in an integrated way according to a methodology, allows the creation of design solutions (from geometric modeling software), try these solutions (from simulation software), feeding back the process until reach an optimum solution, according to the variables of the project. With a centralized and interchangeable database, the project can be detailed and documented from the geometric model and from associated parameters during the process. Tests and validations can be achieved through virtual prototyping, even before the construction of physical prototypes. The process can be planned and managed through virtual environments online, allowing to control the flow and sequence of activities, available resources, communications, files and schedule. REFERENCES [1] JONS, O. P. Preservation and restoration of historic vessels in virtual environments. San Francisco: San Francisco National Maritime Park Association, Disponível em:< ons. htm>. Acesso em: 15 fev [2] BÜRDEK, B. E. História, teoria e prática do design de produtos. São Paulo: Edgard Blücher, [3] MALDONADO, T. Definição de Design. Disponível em:< sebrae%20 em%20ação/via%20design/definicao_design.aspx>. Acesso em: 17 jan [4] INTERNATIONAL COUNCIL OF SOCIETIES OF INDUSTRIAL DESIGN. Definition of Design. Disponível em: < articles31.htm>. Acesso em: 17 jan [5] BAXTER, M. Projeto de Produto. São Paulo:Edgard Blücher, [6] BACK, N. Metodologia de Projeto de Produtos Industriais. Rio de Janeiro: Guanabara Dois, [7] PETROSKI, H. Invention by Design. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, [8] ROSA, E. Introdução ao Projeto Aeronáutico: uma contribuição à competição SAEAeroDesign. Florianópolis: UFSC/GRANTE, [9] FORD, D. N. and STERMAN, J. D. Overcoming the 90% syndrome: iteration management in concurrent development projects, Disponível em: < 4

6 Overcoming90SyndrCERA-PUBLISHED.pdf>. Acesso em: 15 fev [10] LÉVY, P. O que é virtual? São Paulo: Ed. 34, [11] DUARTE, A. L. C. M. and BARBERATO, E. A evolução das ferramentas no desenvolvimento de novos produtos como fator de competitividade. In: Simpósio de Administração da Produção, Logística e Operações Industriais, São Paulo. Anais eletrônicos. POI-FGV, [12] GOLDIN, D. S., VENNERI, S. L. and NOOR, A. K. A new frontier in engineering. New York: Mechanical Engineering Magazine, Disponível em: < february98/features/new-front/newfront.html>. Acesso em: 15 fev