Review of the CAD/CAM Problem

In Chapter 3, I described the requirements for the CAD/CAM problem, a real-world problem that first got me on the road to using design patterns.

The problem domain is in computer systems to support a large engineering organization, specifically, to support their CAD/CAM system.

The basic requirement is to create a computer program that can read a CAD/CAM dataset and extract the features that an existing expert system needs to be able to do intelligent design. This system is supposed to shield the expert system from the CAD/CAM system. The complication is that the CAD/CAM system was in the midst of changes. Potentially, there could be multiple versions of the CAD/CAM system that the expert system would have to interface with.

After initial interviews, I developed the high-level system architecture shown in Figure 12-1 and the following set of requirements for the system:

Figure 12-1. High-level view of the solution.


Requirement Description
Read a CAD/CAM model and extract features

  • My system must be able to analyze and extract CAD/CAM descriptions of pieces of sheet metal.

  • The expert system then determines how the sheet metal should be made and generates the required instructions so that a robot can make it.

Be able to deal with many kinds of parts

  • Initially, I am concerned with sheet metal parts.

  • Each sheet metal part can have multiple kinds of features, including slots, holes, cutouts, specials, and irregulars. It is unlikely that there will be other features in the future.

Handle multiple versions of the CAD/CAM system

  • From Figure 12-1, you can infer that I need the ability to plug-and-play different CAD/CAM systems without having to change the expert system.


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