An approach to layout and process verification for microsystem physical design

 The physical phases of microsystem design are concerned with generating all data needed to fabricate microstructures. As lithography-based technologies are used to fabricate MEMS, this includes the design of two-dimensional mask layouts as well as the design of process step sequences and parameters which determine the object extensions in the third dimension. LIDO is a MEMS physical design system that supports this concurrent design strategy by providing tools to easily configure appropriate process sequences, to derive consistent sets of geometric layout design rules from them and to use these design rules to verify mask layouts. Received: 11 March August 1996 / Accepted: 1 August 1996     

Container spaces and functional features for top-down 3D layout design

Although there have been many advances in computer-aided modelling techniques and representations of mechanical parts, there are areas where exact modelling is a handicap. One of these is 3D layout design. Here, simpler models are useful for initial design sketches to verify kinematic behaviour and organise product structure before the detailed component design phase begins. A commitment to exact, or close approximational geometry too early can imply a commitment to form before functionality has been finalised. This paper describes a system for top-down 3D layout design based on simple conceptual elements which can be used as a basis for visualisation, discussion, definition of product structure and kinematic functionality in the conceptual design phase before the embodiment or detailing begins. This tool forms a bridge between the abstract nature of the conceptual design phase and the geometric nature of the embodiment phase. The 3D layout module uses design spaces with simple geometry and kinematic connections to represent a product. The design spaces act as containers or envelopes within which the final component design is to be realised. The kinematic connections allow the behaviour of the product to be simulated to gain more information (such as overall component dimensions and areas of potential collisions) for the detailed design phase. In addition the paper describes the design process based on the proposed 3D layout design system and contrasts this with the traditional design process. An industrial case study is presented to illustrate the following advantages of the proposed approach: (i) the design process proceeds faster because unnecessary layout parameter and constraint modifications are avoided since kinematic functionality verification precedes the detail design, (ii) the design process can produce better designs since alternative solution principles can be explored early in the design process. Theoretical issues are discussed concerning kinematic constraint inheritance during design space decomposition and concerning computer support for non-rigid design spaces.     

Systematic layout planning in human–system interface: An evaluation of alarm displays with spatial proximity for accidents diagnosis of advanced boiling water reactor

To ensure safety in nuclear power plants, this study investigated the interface design of a digital alarm system by analyzing the diagnosing process of operating information. This study focused on the layout planning of alarm windows and followed proximity compatibility principle and nuclear human–system interface design review guidelines to improve the human–system interface. This study adopt systematic layout planning to modify the design of alarm windows. The time of alarm handling, and accuracy, as well as human reliability were evaluated to compare the original layout with the improved one. In the end, according to the results of the comparison, an alternative alarm window layout human–system interface, which fits diagnosing process, is suggested.Relevance to industryThe similar layout planning process could be applied to design control centers in high reliability organizations, in particular which need decision-making by person.     

Plastic injection mould cooling system design by the configuration space method

The cooling system of an injection mould is very important to the productivity of the injection moulding process and the quality of the moulded part. Despite the various research efforts that have been directed towards the analysis, optimization, and fabrication of cooling systems, support for the layout design of the cooling system has not been well developed. In the layout design phase, a major concern is the feasibility of building the cooling system inside the mould insert without interfering with the other mould components. This paper reports a configuration space (C-space) method to address this important issue. While a high-dimensional C-space is generally required to deal with a complex system such as a cooling system, the special characteristics of cooling system design are exploited in the present study, and special techniques that allow C-space computation and storage in three-dimensional or lower dimension are developed. This new method is an improvement on the heuristic method developed previously by the authors, because the C-space representation enables an automatic layout design system to conduct a more systematic search among all of the feasible designs. A simple genetic algorithm is implemented and integrated with the C-space representation to automatically generate candidate layout designs. Design examples generated by the genetic algorithm are given to demonstrate the feasibility of the method.     

工程布局CAD系统设计与实现

针对工程布局设计的复杂性,提出了开放式的工程布局设计CAD系统的结构框架,讨论了实现该系统的关键方法,包括自动化设计进程建模、基于功能特征的待布物和布局空间几何近似建模、布局知识和布局约束的表达、布局方法应用.基于该系统框架,实现了计算机辅助工程布局设计原型系统,并以车辆动力舱布局设计为背景,对原型系统的有效性进行了验证.     

机房排课及预约管理系统的设计与实现

系统结合实际需求,采用B/S模式,以IIS为应用服务器,并结合ASP.NET开发技术及SQL Server 2008数据库来进行开发,实现了用户管理、机房管理、预约管理、预约流程管理以及验证申请等功能。对系统开发的背景和意义,系统结构设计,数据库设计,功能模块设计,功能模块实现等方面进行详细地介绍,前后台页面版式一致,功能比较完善。该系统经过在学院试用,稳定性好,并具有可移植性。     

Experimental validation and prototyping of optimum designs obtained from topology optimization

This paper provides, through both numerical analyses and physical tests, a validation of the optimality of structural designs obtained from a topology optimization process. Issues related to the manufacturability of the topology-optimized design are first addressed in order to develop structural specimens suitable for experimental validation. Multidomain and multistep topology optimization techniques are introduced that, by embedding the designer’s intuition and experience into the design process, allow for the simplification of the design layout and thus for a better manufacturability of the design. A boundary identification method is also proposed that is applied to produce a smooth boundary for the design. An STL (STereo Lithography) file is then generated and used as input to a rapid prototyping machine, and physical specimens are fabricated for the experiments. Finally, the experimental measurements are compared with the theoretical and numerical predictions. Results agree extremely well for the example problems considered, and thus the optimum designs pass both virtual and physical tests. It is also shown that the optimum design obtained from topology optimization can be independent of the material used and the dimensions assumed for the structural design problem. This important feature extends the applicability of a single optimum design to a range of different designs of various sizes, and it simplifies the prototyping and experimental validation since small, inexpensive prototypes can be utilized. This could result in significant cost savings when carrying out proof-of-concept in the product development process.     

A method of object-oriented information management for layout design

During the layout design process, the spatial arrangement of components in an engineering system is developed in order to meet design goals and constraints. Proper organization of the information involved in this process enhances the quality of layout designs. The organization of information is accomplished through the use of the techniques and methods existing in the information management field. Using the object-oriented technique, a method was developed to guide the design of information management systems that support the layout design process. The method was developed in a case study involving, the layout design of automobile engine bay compoenents.     

Smashing peacocks further: drawing quasi-trees from biconnected components

We extend the popular force-directed approach to network (or graph) layout to allow separation constraints, which enforce a minimum horizontal or vertical separation between selected pairs of nodes. This simple class of linear constraints is expressive enough to satisfy a wide variety of application-specific layout requirements, including: layout of directed graphs to better show flow; layout with non-overlapping node labels; and layout of graphs with grouped nodes (called clusters). In the stress majorization force-directed layout process, separation constraints can be treated as a quadratic programming problem. We give an incremental algorithm based on gradient projection for efficiently solving this problem. The algorithm is considerably faster than using generic constraint optimization techniques and is comparable in speed to unconstrained stress majorization. We demonstrate the utility of our technique with sample data from a number of practical applications including gene-activation networks, terrorist networks and visualization of high-dimensional data     

Integrating data envelopment analysis and analytic hierarchy for the facility layout design in manufacturing systems

Facility layout design (FLD) has a very important effect on the performance of a manufacturing system. The concept of FLD is usually considered as a multiobjective problem. For this reason, a layout generation and its evaluation are often challenging and time consuming due to their inherent multiple objectives in nature and their data collection process. In addition, an effective facility layout evaluation procedure necessitates the consideration of qualitative criteria, e.g., flexibility in volume and variety and quality related to the product and production, as well as quantitative criteria such as material handling cost, adjacency score, shape ratio, and material handling vehicle utilization in the decision process. This paper presents a decision-making methodology based on data envelopment analysis (DEA), which uses both quantitative and qualitative criteria, for evaluating FLD. The criteria that are to be minimized are viewed as inputs whereas the criteria to be maximized are considered as outputs. A computer-aided layout-planning tool, VisFactory, is adopted to facilitate the layout alternative design process as well as to collect quantitative data by using exact and vague data by means of fuzzy set theory. Analytic hierarchy process (AHP) is then applied to collect qualitative data related to quality and flexibility. The DEA methodology is used to solve the layout design problem by simultaneously considering both the quantitative and qualitative data. The purposed integrated procedure is applied to a real data set of a case study, which consists of 19 FLDs provided of the plastic profile production system.     

The structure,design principles,and strategies of Mulreg

Mulreg is an interactive computing environment for data exploration, regression modeling, and the visualization and use of regression results. It is designed to allow both statisticians and nonstatisticians easy access to state-of-the-art tools for linear modeling. Design features of Mulreg are the object orientation of its internal data structures and of its user interface, its integration of graphics into every stage of the modeling process, the guidance provided by the menu layout, and the choice of statistical algorithms, which provide a consistent data analysis strategy to attack the great diversity of regression-type problems.     

Computer aided engineering of automated guided vehicle systems

Automated Guided Vehicle Systems (AGVS) are becoming more and more the main material handling devices in flexible manufacturing systems. The design of an AGVS network is a complex, iterative process. It requires a sequence of geometrical layout drawings and an analytical and computational evaluations. The ability to analyze the AGVS design directly and interactively from the layout drawing would substantially increase the productivity of the design engineer.

A Computer Aided Engineering (CAE) design tool must provide the following three capabilities. First, it must allow the easy, interactive and graphical definition of the system by providing standard drawing symbols and the required operations on those symbols. Second, it must support direct, interactive analysis of the design from within the drafting package. Third, it must provide for the necessary output to interface with off line simulation, analysis and verification programs.

The possibility of extending the prominent CAD packages CADAM and AutoCad to perform CAE of AGVS is examined. A prototype of such a CAE tool has been developed based upon the Autocad package and implemented on a microcomputer. Design and implementation issues, as well as future research areas, will be reported on.     

智能虚拟布局设计关键技术研究与运用

布局问题的研究具有广泛的工程应用背景,是设计领域的一个重要分支。近年来,布局问题已经被证明具有建模复杂性和NP完全问题性质,求解比较困难。传统的布局问题求解方法大多是基于数学规划,进行建模和求解,遇到复杂产品布局问题建模难度高、计算量大。基于智能算法,结合虚拟现实技术的智能虚拟布局设计方法,将设计师或专家的知识、经验系统地融入布局优化设计进程中。通过实时人机交互和数据反馈修改布局方案,进行目标函数循环,最终获取全局最优方案。通过实例,对智能虚拟布局设计方法有效性进行验证。     

Coach design for the Korean high-speed train: a systematic approach to passenger seat design and layout

Proper ergonomic design of a passenger seat and coach layout for a high-speed train is an essential component that is directly related to passenger comfort. In this research, a systematic approach to the design of passenger seats was described and the coach layout which reflected the tradeoff between transportation capacity and passenger comfort was investigated for the Korean high-speed train. As a result, design recommendations and specifications of the passenger seat and its layout were suggested. The whole design process is composed of four stages. A survey and analysis of design requirement was first conducted, which formed the base for designing the first and second class passenger seats. Prototypes were made and evaluated iteratively, and seat arrangement and coach layout were finally obtained. The systematic approach and recommendations suggested in this study are expected to be applicable to the seat design for public transportations and to help modify and redesign existing vehicular seats.     

An AutoCAD-Based Expert System For Plant Layout

This paper describes the development of a plant layout system implemented in AutoLISP on an IBM PS/2 computer. This system combines computational algorithms, human expertise, and computer graphics in one program for plant layout design and drafting. The objective is to develop a computer system for automation of the layout design and documentation process.

This system emulates a plant layout expert in the last step of plant layout process. The input to the system includes department dimensions, between-department material flows, and aisle width. The system generates and evaluates layout alternatives according to given objectives. AutoCAD commands are called to plot the layout when an alternative layout is being created. This system ensures that each department has an access to the aisle and the travel distance between two departments are measured along the aisle. As both design expertise and computer graphics are programmed in the same environment, the interfacing problem between them is easily eliminated.     

装填布局的同构和非同构模式

装填布局问题在工程实践上具有广泛的应用，在理论上属于NPC问题．布局模式是其中的一个重要问题．该文以卫星舱布局方案设计为背景，研究装填布局模式问题，定义了同构和非同构布局模式、待布物的布局等价关系等概念，给出了关系矩阵和模式矩阵以及它们的变换，描述了布局模式控制区和非同构度，提出了同构和非同构布局模式的识别及构造方法．文后讨论了布局模式的若干应用．该工作希望能为缓解装填布局优化问题求解时存在的组合爆炸以及构造高效的求解算法提供启发和借鉴．     

Placing computations by adaptive procedures

The present work treats the computation of heterogeneous layout configurations; distinct shapes as rectangles and triangles have to get placed into a target frame. In our design application the main restriction is the requirement that the objects must not overlap. Here, we further constrain the problem to obey the following requirement: The user shall be able to interact with the (semi-)automatic layout system in a way such that s/he may pick an object to place it in a subarea, offered by the system, in an arbitrary manner without the need to think about the placement of the other objects. (After an algorithm's termination a globally consistent layout should be guaranteed.) Thereby, the user still has degrees of freedom to finally arrange the objects. Such a realization shall also enhance the acceptance of the system by the user because entire solution classes, obtained by topological layout relations (instead of maintaining single co-ordinate points), are offered. The current work employs evolutionary computing techniques in order to get timely computations. This paper shows the use of interesting artificial intelligence techniques in the design area with close connections to a class of combinatorial problems in operational research with a wide range of applications in business and industry.     

面向对象的动态图编辑器的设计与实现

提出了一种面向对象的动态图编辑器,该动态图编辑器区别一般图编辑器的方面在于：可以根据用户的需要在任何时候动态地执行用户程序定义的方法;产生可序列化的图;编辑部分和显示部分既能合并使用也能分开使用;允许用户定义任意形状的结点和弧;具有处理无向图和有向图的双重功能。用户可以分别利用交互式编辑环境和图布局机制输入小型图和中、大型图。动态图编辑器体系结构建立在软件工程设计模式和面向对象设计思想的基础上,用ＪＡ－ＶＡ２实现。     

A -based layout design for gratings allocation

In the design process of gratings, the grating layout design is the most important activity influencing manufacturing cost. In the grating layout design, the key to saving manufacturing cost is to find a design with a minimal number of cutting operations. This paper presents an application of the A^* algorithm in grating layout design. The design problem is represented as the space search problem of design alternatives. A^* explores the feasible alternatives within the space, until an optimal solution is obtained.     

Using genetic algorithm to optimize the dummy filling problem of the flash lamp anneal process in semiconductor manufacturing

In deep sub-micron era, many semiconductor fabrication process variations highly relate to uniformity of IC layout design. Chemical-polishing process and Flash Lamp Anneal (FLA) are two of the crucial processes aiming to increase uniformity of IC. Dummy filling is an efficient and effective Design for Manufacturability method for increasing layout uniformity by filling non-functional dummy shapes onto unoccupied area and thus reducing pattern-induced process variation. However, none are design for the thermal effects of FLA process. FLA process annealed the wafer in high temperature (1250°C) in a few milliseconds. Wafer surface emissivity determines the amount of heat absorption during FLA process. The temperature variation of FLA process induced by surface emissivity variation of IC layout results in shifts of transistors?? electrical parameters. This paper proposed to use genetic algorithm to minimize the emissivity variation of IC layout by filling a series of prescribed dummy patterns with various emissivity. The experimental results from twenty test cases show that 35% emissivity variation reductions can be achieved and moreover the observed temperature deviation during FLA is under 2.8%.