Abstract

This research presents a new method to preserve data consistency in a multi-user CAx environment. The new method includes three types of constraints which work by constraining and controlling both features and users across an entire multi-user CAx platform. The first type of constraint includes locking or reserving features to enable only one user at a time to edit a given feature. The second type of constraint, collaborative feature constraints, allows flexible constraining of each individual feature in a model, and the data that defines it. The third type of constraint, collaborative user constraints, allows the constraining of user permissions and user actions individually or as a group while providing as much flexibility as possible. To further present this method, mock-ups and suggested implementation guidelines are presented. To demonstrate the effectiveness of the method, a proof-of-concept implementation was built using the CATIA Connect multi-user CAD prototype developed at BYU. Using this implementation usage examples are provided to show how this method provides important tools that increase collaborative capabilities to a multi-user CAx system. By using the suggested method design teams will be able to better control how their data is used and edited, maintaining better data consistency and preventing data conflict and data misuse.

Degree

College and Department

Ira A. Fulton College of Engineering and Technology; Mechanical Engineering

Rights

http://lib.byu.edu/about/copyright/