The aim of this research was to investigate strategies for the support of design exploration, in particular, how computer based technology could contribute to this activity during the early phase of design. The research comprised of the design and development of three software prototypes, the later versions of which enabled discussions with design professionals concerning the underpinning approach of the work. Three case studies of design practice were undertaken. These focused on the interdependencies between freehand drawing, physical modelling and CAD. Based on the research it was concluded that computer based support for exploration during the early phase of design was viable and that the generation of alternative solutions played a key role in the process. Furthermore, the approach offered by shape grammars provided a generative mechanism that was both grounded in the discipline of design and amenable to representation in a computer based system. Finally, it was concluded that the introduction of a 'controlled irregularity' into the resulting design alternatives increased their likelihood of encouraging design exploration.

This thesis is concerned with the application of computation in the context of professional architectural practice and specifically towards defining complex buildings that are highly integrated with respect to design and engineering performance. The thesis represents applied research undertaken whilst in practice at Foster + Partners. It reviews the current state of the art of computational design techniques to quickly but flexibly model and analyse building options. The application of parametric design tools to active design projects is discussed with respect to real examples as well as methods to then link the geometric definitions to structural engineering analysis, to provide performance data in near real time. The practical interoperability between design software and engineering tools is also examined. The role of performance data in design decision making is analysed by comparing manual work-flows with methods assisted by computation. This extends to optimisation methods which by making use of design automation actively make design decisions to return optimised results. The challenges and drawbacks of using these methods effectively in real deign situations is discussed, especially the limitations of these methods with respect to incomplete problem definitions, and the design exploration resulting in modified performance requirements. To counter these issues a performance driven design work flow is proposed. This is a mixed initiative whereby designer centric understanding and decisions are computer assisted. Flexible meta-design descriptions that encapsulate the variability of the design space under consideration are explored and compared with existing optimisation approaches. Computation is used to produce and visualise the performance data from these large design spaces generated by parametric design descriptions and associated engineering analysis. Novel methods are introduced that define a design and performance space using cluster computing methods to speed up the generation of large numbers of options. The use of data visualisation is applied to design problems, showing how in real situations it can aid design orientation and decision making using the large amount of data produced. Strategies to enable these work-flows are discussed and implemented, focusing on re-appropriating existing web design paradigms using a modular approach concentrating on scalable data creation and information display.

<p>Multithreading is a processor technique that can effectively hide long latencies that can occur due to memory accesses, coprocessor operations and similar. While this looks promising, there is an additional hardware cost that will vary with for example the number of contexts to switch to and what technique is used for it and this might limit the possible gain of multithreading.</p><p>Network processors are, traditionally, multiprocessor systems that share a lot of common resources, such as memories and coprocessors, so the potential gain of multithreading could be high for these applications. On the other hand, the increased hardware required will be relatively high since the rest of the processor is fairly small. Instead of having a multithreaded processor, higher performance gains could be achieved by using more processors instead.</p><p>As a solution, a simulator was built where a system can effectively be modelled and where the simulation results can give hints of the optimal solution for a system in the early design phase of a network processor system. A theoretical background to multithreading, network processors and more is also provided in the thesis.</p>

Multithreading is a processor technique that can effectively hide long latencies that can occur due to memory accesses, coprocessor operations and similar. While this looks promising, there is an additional hardware cost that will vary with for example the number of contexts to switch to and what technique is used for it and this might limit the possible gain of multithreading. Network processors are, traditionally, multiprocessor systems that share a lot of common resources, such as memories and coprocessors, so the potential gain of multithreading could be high for these applications. On the other hand, the increased hardware required will be relatively high since the rest of the processor is fairly small. Instead of having a multithreaded processor, higher performance gains could be achieved by using more processors instead. As a solution, a simulator was built where a system can effectively be modelled and where the simulation results can give hints of the optimal solution for a system in the early design phase of a network processor system. A theoretical background to multithreading, network processors and more is also provided in the thesis.

No description available.

No description available.

The AEC-industry need to respond to multiple requirements from regulations and clients, leading to that building projects are becoming increasingly complex to handle for designers. CAD or computer aided design is a way to handle these challenges, and within CAD a new method is emerging: Computational design enables users to generate and explore design solutions automatically. The purpose of this study was to investigate how computational design can be used and what limitations architects and engineers experience with it.   A qualitative research approach was chosen to get in depth understanding. To get variation 16 semi-structured interviews were conducted as primary data collection coupled with a literature review as theoretical framework. The thesis found that computational design applies both design thinking and computational thinking, it is an iterative process that generates design by altering parameters or algorithms and affects the intended design. In this thesis it also needs to be part of the AEC design process. Computational design was found to have most potential in early stage but can be useful for engineers in later stage as well.  Computational design can be used to increase workflow efficiency through automation and rapid feedback which can improve communication and collaboration. It can also increase solution performance by generating design based on multiple objectives. Furthermore, it enables users to expand their solution space and solve complex problems too difficult to solve otherwise. Computational design can be used to analyze early building concepts, analyze floorplans, to optimize material consumption, material choices, structural elements, energy efficiency, daylight, and acoustic requirements. Challenges found were on an individual level a steep learning curve, increased complexity, collection of trustworthy data and interpretation of data. Challenges on an organizational level were fear of automation, low support from leaders, low understanding of the subject from clients and colleges, unsuitable business models, and traditional processes. Furthermore, performance was found to be limited by computers and software capabilities.  Future research should focus on investigating solutions for the many challenges identified in this thesis. Additionally, further applications should be investigated in a narrower scope; a specific type of building or a general element, preferably avoiding repetition of applications in this study. It would also be of interest to investigate challenges of participants on an international scale, experienced with generative design and textual programming languages since these were found to be difficult to learn and apply. / Byggprojekt har blivit mer komplexa för projektörer och arkitekter att hantera då AEC branschen behöver uppfylla flera lagar och regler samt krav från beställare. En teknik för att möta detta behov är med CAD eller computer-aided-design, och inom CAD har en ny metod växt fram: Computational design möjliggör att automatiskt generera och utforska design lösningar. Syftet med den här studien är att undersöka hur computational design kan användas och vilka begränsningar arkitekter och ingenjörer upplever med det.  En kvalitativ metod valdes för att få en djupare förståelse. För att öka variationen av studien genomfördes 16 semi-strukturerade intervjuer som primär data kombinerat med en litteraturstudie som teoretiskt ramverk. Det framkom att computational design applicerar både designtänkande och computational thinking, är en iterativ process som genererar design genom att ändra parametrar eller algoritmer och påverkar den avsedda designen. I den här studien är computational design också en del av branschens design process. Det framkom också att Computational design har störst potential i tidigt skede men kan också vara användbar för ingenjörer i senare skede. Computational design kan användas till att öka arbetsflödets effektivitet genom automation och snabb feedback, vilket kan förbättra kommunikation och samarbete. Det kan också öka prestandan för lösningar genom att generera design baserat på flera kriterier. Vidare så möjliggör det för användare att öka antalet möjliga designlösningar och lösa komplexa problem som är för svåra att hantera traditionellt. Computational design kan användas till att analysera byggnadskoncept, analysera planlösningar, samt till att optimera materialanvändning, materialval, konstruktioner, energieffektivitet, dagsljus, och akustik. De utmaningar som hittades var på en individuell nivå: brant inlärningskurva, ökad komplexitet, hitta tillförlitliga data och tolka data. På organisationsnivå var utmaningarna: rädsla för automatisering, lågt stöd från ledningen, låg förståelse för ämnet av kunder och kollegor, olämpliga affärsmodeller, och traditionella processer. Prestanda begränsades även av förmågan hos datorer och mjukvaror. Framtida forskning bör fokusera på att undersöka lösningar på de utmaningarna som identifierades i den här studien. Ytterligare applikationer bör också undersökas i högre detalj till exempel som en kategori av byggnader eller ett specifikt byggnadselement som förekommer generellt, företrädesvis utan repetition av denna studie. Det vore också av intresse att undersöka utmaningar för deltagare internationellt som har erfarenhet av generativ design och textuell programmering, då dessa visades ha större svårighet.

19 Dec 2004. / Published through the Information Bridge: DOE Scientific and Technical Information. "IS-T 2626" Daniel Bryan Gazda. 12/19/2004. Report is also available in paper and microfiche from NTIS.

Generating ideas and creating prototypes of physical products is a highly non-linear and iterative process. Current tools divide this process into multiple discrete steps with different tools to support each of these steps such as CAD modelling, simulation and fabrication. We believe, design interfaces that combine different steps of the process and create different layers of abstraction depending on the type of the user and where they are in the process can support users in generating more creative ideas and creating better functioning prototypes more efficiently. In order to validate this, we developed three interfaces- a sketch-based ideation tool, a live programming interface to create IoT devices and a design tool to support design and fabrication of hand wearables. The foundation of these design interfaces is the layer of abstraction that allows users to focus on idea generation and converting it into a tangible prototype with little or no technical knowledge, and a continuous visual feedback that guides the user to make necessary changes to improve their design. The three tools were evaluated through user testing for supporting creation of different ideas and converting them into functional prototypes.

This master‘s thesis deals with problems of optimization of cooling in electrical machines. This work includes introduction to the theory of mathematical optimization and brief introduction to optimization problems. This thesis deals with using of program Ansys Workbench for the thermal analysis in electrical machines and optimization of their cooling. Thesis contains thermal analyse of specific asynchronous motor with the squirrel cage and optimization of its cooling.