An Information-based Framework for Composites Design

The heterogeneity of composites determines that composite materials can be engineered to better satisfy a specific design requirement. The main problems that have hindered the application of composites are the need for the material and manufacturing design to be conducted simultaneously, the involvement of a large number of design factors, the difficulty in the characterization of composites, and the inherent repetition of the design process. Considering these problems, this thesis presents an information-based framework for composites design. This research consists of four main aspects: (1) The development of a heterogeneous CAD modelling algorithm and an integrated CAD/CAE method, and their application in a unit cell-based characterization of composite materials with a complex fiber form, (2)The development of a unit cell database for improving the material and manufacturing process design, which covers the design of its database model and the access strategies based on the logic architecture of unit cells and the relationships among elements of unit cells and with the environments, (3)The design of an Information-Based Design Support System (IBDSS) to support the composites design by using the unit cell database, in which the blackboard framework is adopted for the system to organize various computer techniques for different design stages, and to support the design iterating to satisfactory ones incrementally and efficiently, and the data structure of the blackboard, the algorithm to control design iterations, and design procedures for every stage are studied, and (4) The introduction of a ranking-based unit cell evaluation methodology and effective ranking factors for facilitating and improving the composite design process. The approach improves the efficiency of composites design by automating design iterations, supporting composite characterization, alleviating the cost of composite material and manufacturing method design, and assisting in tailored material selection. Case studies are presented to show how the IBDSS is applied to support composites design.