Presentation to Joint Amtec-Unisys Seminar on Computer Integrated Manufacture, 31st August-2nd September 1987.

S F Bush

Introduction

Computer Integrated Manufacture and I D M:

• ultimately will converge;
• both concepts apply to both metals and polymers;
• but currently priority differences because:
   
  • Metal products (generally cut or bent to shape individually (product manipulation complexity high)
  • Polymer products (generally) moulded by flow into a once-and-for-all shaped cavity (product manipulation complexity low)
  • Number of processes affecting polymer material choice is large compared with metals (usually steel)

 
A role for the computer in making strategic choices:

• The design razors and certain rules of experience can constitute the inference basis of an I K B S – Intelligent Knowledge Based System to help select the material and process in parallel.
• This complements Material Selection Data Bases which broadly apply when manufacturing process has already been decided on.
• This IDM IKBS could thus be seen in due course as a font-end to a CIM system.