Design decision based on dependencies among product specifications

Changes in product specifications and their combinations can be achieved through adaptations of physical components. To better satisfy the changeable product specifications, design decisions on physical components need to be made by considering the dependencies among product specifications. In this paper, a method for dependencies quantification among product specifications is defined from the statistical point of view. Since product specifications are achieved by physical components, then the statistical dependencies among product physical components are analyzed based on specifications/components relationships. A method for design decision support based on components clustering is proposed for new product development. An example is provided to illustrate the proposed methodology