Roman Zavbi

Expert systems in conceptual phase of mechanical engineering design

The paper presents an engineering design model for innovative design (i.e. variation of working principles), which represents a deep knowledge of an expert system for conceptual configuring of technical systems (i.e. from simple to complex ones). The knowledge base contains functional descriptions of building blocks (i.e. components of different level of complexity). An expert system can also extract functional structures which are then used as shallow knowledge for partial alteration of technical systems. A flexible functional structure is used to manage models of shape properly.

Evaluation of a method and a computer tool for generating concept designs

The authors have developed a method/computer tool to assist (student) engineering designers in generating concept designs. The method is based on the chaining of physical laws and complementary basic schemata (BS). The tool generates chains which serve as an aid in the development of concept designs. In this paper, the authors compare concept designs generated by a control group (which used functional structure and morphological matrix) with those from an experimental group that used computer-generated chains. The experimental group was found to have generated a greater number of different solutions than the control group; the generation of different solutions indicates a high level of variety and a better chance to find potentially innovative solutions. The established difference in the number of different solutions is statistically significant and the results indicate that the BS facilitate greater variety of concept designs.

Innovations for Future Development of Farms: A Case Study of the Implementation of an Opportunity Search Method on a Farm

The management of farms and large agricultural holdings is becoming increasingly similar to the management of business companies, as circumstances in the market and in Europe have forced farmers into an entrepreneurial way of thinking. Traditionally a more conservative social group, farmers have had to implement methods of cost savings and offer products with a higher added value. Similarly to business enterprises, farmers and agricultural consultants must also follow new production technology. These changes in thinking also influence rural development. Farm diversification is becoming more and more important, especially in mountain regions. However, because they have no currently available method that would allow them to identify a suitable opportunity for future development, farmers are left to trial-and-error methods. The opportunity search method presented in this article, originally implemented in the industrial sector, can also be applied to farms. Searching for opportunities requires an interdisciplinary approach involving cooperation between farmers, agricultural consultants, and economists. In four steps, it is possible to identify a number of opportunities that can be used on a farm. In step one, the farm and trends are analyzed, while in the second step, opportunities are searched for by means of social, economic, technological, and legislative factors. In step three, unsuitable opportunities are eliminated, and in step four, the selected opportunities are closely analyzed and assessed. The method was tested on a farm where the objective was to solve the problem of traditional stockbreeding that was yielding very poor economic results. The application of the method resulted in a more suitable type of breeding that is already taking place on the farm, and as well as other opportunities (farm diversification). This successful implementation of the opportunity search method, which had previously been successfully implemented in industry, is an indication that knowledge and methodology transfer from industry environment to farming is possible. As a link between science, new technologies, and the farm owner, agricultural consultants play an important role.