Abstract

To capitalise on digital product design’s capability of producing any shape, designers will need to think in new ways, with more imagination, increased creativity and ‘direct’ customer input. New design tools and methods will have to be developed for data capture and design inputs. It will be necessary to have CAD systems that can interpret design intent and are completely user friendly for customer-led design. Ultimately, our role will be to develop a hybrid designer that would be skilled in aesthetics, design and technology as well as rapid manufacturing techniques. Today, at Bournemouth University we are developing innovative techniques to efficiently and accurately assess digital product design. The aim is to develop the designers of the future. This paper presents the techniques that overcome the challenges of assessing digital design from concept to prototype. Some of these methods are derived from industrial practices. The paper covers digital concepts both in two-dimensional and three-dimensional form as well as models generated from point clouds (i.e. scanned data). The challenges of assessing CAD models are investigated and solutions presented. The importance of design quality in engineering simulation is highlighted. Methods of assessment are suggested for different simulations such as structural, thermal, dynamics, fluid and multiphysics.