A proposal for CAD/CAM interface with expert systems

In the computer-integrated manufacturing (CIM) environment, the key technologies, CAD and CAM, should be fully integrated with high operability. It is claimed, however, that CAD and CAM have so far been developed independently. Although much effort has been made to integrate CAD and CAM, this reality is far from completion.

Therefore, to establish a CAD/CAM interface with higher integration, the concept of a computer-aided drafting procedure with expert systems has been proposed on the basis of analysis of the information explicitly and implicity described on the part drawing, and also of the required knowledge of the designer to produce the part drawing. The CAD/CAM interface proposed here is available for producing not only the part drawing but also the process plan for the corresponding part, by effectively utilizing the knowledge of the expert. A prototype CAD/CAM interface deals with axi-symmetrical rotational parts implemented on a workstation.