Springer Advanced Design and Manufacturing Based on STEP (Springer Series in Advanced Manufacturing)

Design and manufacturing is the essential element in any product development lifecycle. Industry vendors and users have been seeking a common language to be used for the entire product development lifecycle that can describe design, manufacturing and other data pertaining to the product. Many solutions were proposed, the most successful being the Stadndard for Exchange of Product model (STEP). STEP provides a mechanism that is capable of describing product data, independent from any particular system. The nature of this description makes it suitable not only for neutral file exchange, but also as a basis for implementing, sharing and archiving product databases. ISO 10303-AP203 is the first and perhaps the most successful AP developed to exchange design data between different CAD systems. Going from geometric data (as in AP203) to features (as in AP224) represents an important step towards having the right type of data in a STEP-based CAD/CAM system. Of particular significance is the publication of STEP-NC, as an extension of STEP to NC, utilising feature-based concepts for CNC machining purposes. The aim of this book is to provide a snapshot of the recent research outcomes and implementation cases in the field of design and manufacturing where STEP is used as the primary data representation protocol. The 20 chapters are contributed by authors from most of the top research teams in the world. These research teams are based in national research institutes, industries as well as universities. From the Back Cover The globalisation of manufacturing has led to a need for a common language which can be used throughout the entire product development life cycle. Advanced Design and Manufacturing Based on STEP discusses the most successful of the proposed solutions – the STandard for Exchange of Product model, or STEP. STEP aims to provide a complete computer-interpretable product data format, so that users can integrate business and technical data to support all aspects of the product development cycle, e.g., design, analysis, manufacturing, sales and customer services. Of particular significance is the publication of STEP-NC as an extension of STEP to NC, utilising the feature-based concept for CNC machining purposes. The contributors to this volume are based in some of the world’s leading national research institutes and universities and enterprises. The twenty chapters cover recent research results, and a range of STEP and STEP-NC application case studies from the fields of design and manufacturing. Advanced Design and Manufacturing Based on STEP will serve as a useful compilation for researchers and students in advanced manufacturing technologies and manufacturing information systems. It offers a range of literature concerning the use of STEP in both design and manufacturing domains. The Springer Series in Advanced Manufacturing publishes the best teaching and reference material to support students, educators and practitioners in manufacturing technology and management. This international series includes advanced textbooks, research monographs, edited works and conference proceedings covering all subjects in advanced manufacturing. The series focuses on new topics of interest, new treatments of more traditional areas and coverage of the applications of information and communication technology (ICT) in manufacturing. About the Author Xun Xu’s recent work centres around the deployment of the STEP-NC data model, in replacement of the 50-year-old G-code model, to achieve a total integrated CAD/CAM/CNC scenario. He was invited to chair an editorial panel to lead a Special Issue on "STEP-Compliant Process Planning and Manufacturing" for the International Journal of Computer Integrated Manufacturing. Associate Professor Xu obtained his PhD from UMIST, UK, and is now a member of the Department of Manufacturing Engineering at the University of Auckland, where he is Director of the Intel