In 2009, the cooperation with the research partner Rolls-Royce got transformed into a BMWi project. It is part of the 2nd call of the fourth Luftfahrtforschungsprogramm, a national funded program for aeronautical research. The cooperation between DiK and Rolls-Royce Deutschland Ltd & Co. KG is part of the “RoKoTek” project, which focuses on rotating components.
In this research project, a number of axis-symmetric components, in this case compressor- and turbine disks, were analysed. Common geometric shapes, called Standard Features, were modularised and organised in a structured reuse library.
In collaboration with manufacturing engineers, experience about stable processes was transformed into a set of rules. A CAD integrated software tool is then used to inform the designer about these in the context of the current model. This semi-automated design process leads to a more manufacturing conformant design model, which can then be further detailed by the designer.
Future research is planned to focus on possible ways of acquiring the necessary information. Even a designer or manufacturing engineer who is not trained as a programmer, should be able to provide his experience and knowledge.
