Collaborative engineering uses the Internet to provide access to technology that facilitates the exchange of ideas and information needed to move a product from design concept to the assembly plant.
Collaborative engineering encompasses a variety of process-enabling technologies. At its most basic level, it should include the capabilities for some forms of project management and online meet-ings. The particulars of the technology vary by product. Keep in mind that the purpose behind all the technology discussed in this section is to provide the depth of communication and data access neces-sary to collaborative engineering. Business value increases as these capabilities increase. Ultimately, through these rich means of communication, designing, sharing, and managing data become a unified collaborative process, as indicated in Fig. 8.1.
This section discusses the range of collaborative engineering technologies and how they con-tribute to the collaborative engineering process.
8.4.1 Project Management
Project management is central to collaborative engineering. Project management, not to be confused with software applications that simply track employee schedules, lets team members organize and access all data related to a project. This capability in collaborative engineering products ranges from
none, to nonintegrated, companion products, to full integration with other collaborative technology.
Ideally, the project management system is browser-based, meaning that team members both inside and outside of a company network can access it through a Web browser.
Project management tools may also include methods for creating and storing other project infor-mation such as discussion threads and electronic reports documenting what occurred in an online meeting. Project members who use these tools can access this project information online, at will, in addition to attending online meetings when needed, as discussed below.
8.4.2 Online Meetings
An online collaborative engineering meeting usually combines simultaneous use of two technolo-gies: a conference call and a meeting held in a virtual, online space. Because the meeting is online, team members from multiple locations come together virtually rather than having to travel. This ease of communication results in more frequent consultations throughout the team and throughout the product cycle. As a consequence, teams find that misunderstandings and mistakes are reduced.
The range of capabilities available in online meeting technology is discussed below.
Application Sharing. Application sharing uses the Internet to let a meeting member show the contents of his or her computer display to others in the meeting. With this technology, the meeting member can share bitmapped images of an application window, such as an FEA analysis tool or a word-processing program. This person can also choose to let another meeting member take control of the application remotely.
Certain online technologies are limited strictly to application-sharing technology. In this case, any meeting attendee can view and, given permission, work in an application installed on one user’s computer. However, no tools specific to the collaborative process, such as project management or documentation features, are included.
Because it does not support active, two-way communication, this type of online meeting func-tions best as a training or presentation mechanism, where one or more meeting members take turns presenting data to the group from their computer desktops.
The richest application-sharing environments for collaborative engineering are fine-tuned for three-dimensional graphics applications such as CAD programs. Ideally, these environments also contain tools designed specifically for collaborative engineering, such as tools to create engineering-style markups, notes, and reports. In this type of environment, meeting attendees work together in a combination of the collaboration-specific environment and any application installed on the desktop of a meeting member, as shown in Fig. 8.2.
Other Integrated Capabilities. Online meeting capabilities may include an integrated tool for instant messaging (“chatting” with other meeting members by exchanging real-time, typed-in mes-sages that are displayed on a common window in the meeting). These integrated capabilities also can include the exchange of real-time voice and video communications.
Design
FIGURE 8.1 Unified collaborative process in communication, designing, sharing, and managing data.
Synchronous and Asynchronous Use. Online collaboration technology is often used synchronously, meaning that users attend an online meeting at the same time, usually in conjunction with a conference call. The members examine a variety of data together to facilitate exchange of information and ideas, troubleshooting, decision making, and the like.
For example, a design engineer and a manufacturing engineer meet online synchronously to clarify a set of assembly instructions. The manufacturing engineer has several questions about the instructions.
The manufacturing engineer talks these over with the designer while together they inspect the design of the product to be manufactured. They take screenshots and make markups (drawings and text on the screenshot images) as needed, incorporating the images and markups as part of a clear, new set of instructions in their online meeting notes. When both attendees are satisfied that all questions are addressed, they save their meeting data and end the online meeting.
Online collaboration technology also may be used asynchronously, meaning that users work in a project and/or meeting space sequentially rather than concurrently. In this case, each team member works in the project and/or meeting space individually. Asynchronous use is particularly helpful when team members work in different parts of the world and need round-the-clock progress on a project.
For example, a project manager in Asia needs to know how proposed design changes to a prod-uct’s housing would impact the prodprod-uct’s electronics design. He accesses the online collaboration technology, placing three-dimensional design data, notes, and marked-up screenshots showing where the change would be made. He saves the electronic summary file in a company repository and sends a request to the electronics engineer in the United States to access this information. While it’s night for the project manager, the electronics engineer starts his own work day and inspects the posted data. He documents needed modifications to the electronics design with three-dimensional data, screen shots, and notes, and then saves the electronic summary file. In Asia the next morning, the manager opens the updated electronic summary file to access the electronic engineer’s input.
FIGURE 8.2 Meeting attendees use applcation sharing to work together online and avoid travel for a face to face meeting.
In practice, collaborative engineering teams often use online collaboration technology both synchro-nously and asynchrosynchro-nously. Asynchronous use lets project members in different time zones make indi-vidual contributions, and synchronous use is important for making and documenting final decisions.
Data Viewing and Exchange. Data viewing capabilities vary across collaborative engineering prod-ucts. Some products let meeting attendees inspect or modify 2-dimensional and/or three-dimensional data during the meeting, while others only let attendees view the data.
Additionally, the products differ in their ability to process large, three-dimensional images, so graphics performance varies widely. In some cases, larger design files cause delays in image trans-mittal to meeting attendees who thus tend to work more with screen shots prepared prior to the meet-ing. Other online meeting products process large design files with minimal or no delay.
Finally, interoperability, the ability of two or more systems or components to exchange and use design data without extraordinary effort by the user, varies across online meeting products. Project teams may use an online meeting product that lets users load only three-dimensional designs created in the software parent company’s proprietary application. Any other native design data thus requires translation into IGES or STEP files before attendees can load it into the meeting software. This trans-lation can cause geometric data loss and affect model accuracy, impacting manufacturability. Thus, noninteroperable collaborative engineering applications are most useful when all team members work with a single CAD application.
Product teams that use a range of different CAD applications, on the other hand, benefit more from online meeting technology that provides a CAD-neutral environment. This environment accommodates file formats from all CAD applications. Thus, meeting attendees can load data from any CAD application into a common meeting space for viewing, inspection, and modification.
Data Inspection and Modification. Online meeting attendees’ power to work with three-dimen-sional design data also varies widely. Some products permit users only to view three-dimenthree-dimen-sional data. Others permit detailed geometric inspection of the data, as shown in Fig. 8.3 below. Finally,
FIGURE 8.3 Online collaboration working with three-dimensional design data.
capability to explore design changes by modifying 3-dimensional data in the meeting space is less common, but also available. Useful for brainstorming and troubleshooting, this lets users experi-ment with “what if” modification scenarios without needing to use the native CAD application that created a design.
Meeting Documentation. Capturing design issues, team decisions, action items, and other infor-mation from the online meeting is integral to the collaborative engineering process. This ability dif-fers by product. When the online meeting product ofdif-fers no integrated documentation features, meeting users capture meeting data by taking notes and screen captures manually or by using anoth-er application to capture them. Ideally, the information is then distributed across the team using an agreed-upon process and format.
Another online meeting technology integrates information-capturing capabilities. Meeting mem-bers work directly within the meeting environment to document the discussion and tasks arising from the meeting. Integrated information capture may include abilities to take notes and screen shots, make markups, create a copy of a 3D design to save as a reference file, and generate automatic meet-ing summary reports. They may also include capability for usmeet-ing a project workspace to store and update the tasks, as shown in Fig. 8.4.
FIGURE 8.4 Team members use collaboration to document project issues, capture markups, assign tasks, and record decisions when problems surface.
8.4.3 Data Protection
Users of collaborative engineering need to consider several aspects of data protection. These are dis-cussed here.
Firewall Protection. In the most secure collaborative engineering products, a firewall protects data in online meetings and in project spaces. The firewall grants access only to trusted systems through a specified port. If a product does not use a firewall, project members should avoid posting sensitive data in the project space or bringing it into an online meeting.
Data Transfer. Data transfer over the Internet must be protected. Some companies, such as those in the defense industry, also want to protect data transferred over their own intranets. The most secure collaborative engineering products use the industry standard for secure data transfer, the secure socket layer (SSL) protocol, which encrypts all the data being transferred over the SSL con-nection.
Data Persistence. In the most secure collaborative engineering products, data brought into online meetings does not remain in the caches on the computers of other meeting attendees. Otherwise, a meeting participant can unintentionally leave copies of proprietary data with other meeting members.
Application Security. At the most granular level, collaborative engineering technology lets a project manager adjust the level of data access by individual project members. In Fig. 8.3, for instance, a pro-ject has three different types of levels of data access (“roles”): propro-ject manager, who has both propro-ject control and full read and write access to project file; team member, who has full read and write access to project files; and guest, who has read-only access to the files.
8.4.4 Deployment Methods and System Requirements
Deployment methods and system requirements vary widely across collaborative engineering prod-ucts. Some technologies are available only as ownership purchases where applications, clients, and servers are locally installed and configured within the user’s internal network. Other technologies are available only as subscription-based services offered by application server providers (ASPs). Only a few technologies are available by both methods.
To add optimum value to the working environment, collaborative engineering technology should have as many of the following traits as possible:
• Client size. Local installations require minimal hard drive space.
• Memory requirements. Application performs smoothly with minimal memory requirements.
• Versatility. Technology functions on a variety of systems and allows use of multiple data formats.
• Distribution and deployment. Application can be made available quickly to any desired collabora-tion participant with minimal or no support from a company’s informacollabora-tion technology (IT) group.
• Security. Data can be seamlessly protected both with network security measures and within the public Internet. Online meeting data is not cached on local users’ machines to persist after the meeting.