Department of Mechanical Engineering
INTRODUCTION
If businesses are to thrive in today's competitive and global economy they must be able to react and respond to potential opportunities faster than their competitors. To be able to respond, companies must have a business plan that includes a strategy for supporting a product throughout its life cycle from initial concept, through design, analysis, manufacture, sale and support to final disposal. Such a strategy should contain three sub-strategies: 1) A tools strategy that considers which computer based design, manufacturing, analysis, simulation and rapid prototyping systems should be used and how best to use them; 2) An information strategy that considers how to model, gather, store, distribute and audit product information; and 3) A strategy for people which considers how to effect organisational and culture changes and to achieve the correct blend of skills within the teams that design, build and maintain the company's products.
The Computer-Aided Engineering (CAE) Research Group undertakes basic, strategic and applied research to enable industry to manage and control product information thereby making best use of computer tools and thus supporting their personnel. This research is undertaken in partnership with other research groups in the University of Leeds, with other academic institutions and with industry.
Since the late 1970s the Group has undertaken a number of major research projects supported by government agencies and industrial collaborators in areas related to the support of the product life-cycle. These projects include the development of a constructive solid geometry (CSG) modelling system that was incorporated into three commercial systems, the development of applications driven by solid modelling (including NC code and finite element mesh generation) and the development of computer systems to create and control product information (product modellers). Through these projects and the establishment of the CAD-CAM Data Exchange Technical Centre (CADDETC), a consulting company that offers impartial and authoritative advice in the area of product data exchange, the CAE Group has obtained a world-wide reputation for its work in geometric modelling, product data modelling and data exchange.
More recently the Keyworth Institute of Manufacturing and Information Systems Engineering has been established within the University by the Departments of Mechanical and Chemical Engineering and the Schools of Computer Studies and Business and Economic Studies. The Keyworth Institute gives members of the CAE Group another means of helping companies define, understand and solve problems related to product life-cycle support.
Involvement in a number of major research projects and relationships with CADDETC and the Keyworth Institute gives the CAE Group the ability to support research students in a large number of projects related to the provision of computer support for the product life cycle. The range of current and potential projects is given below. Students are encouraged to publish their research work in leading engineering journals and to present papers at national and international conferences.
The research is supported by the Science and Engineering Research Council (SERC) and the Department of Trade and Industry. The research group currently collaborates with over 20 industrial partners including British Gas, CarnaudMetalbox, Delcam, Digital Equipment Corporation, EDS, GEC, ICI, Ricardo Consulting Engineers, Rolls Royce, Sun Microsystems and Volkswagen. This enables the group to provide students with comprehensive computational facilities including Sun and Digital workstations.
STAFF INVOLVED
Professor Alan de Pennington, OBE MSc, PhD, Professor of Computer Aided Engineering
Dr M Susan Bloor, BSc, PhD, Senior Computing Officer
Dr Neal P Juster, BSc, PhD, CEng, MIMechE, Senior Lecturer
Dr Tim David, BSc, PhD, GIMA, Lecturer
Mr S Brad Harris, BSc, CEng, MIMechE, Lecturer
Ms Alison McKay, BEng, Lecturer
Dr Martin Ashworth, BScm PhD, Research Engineer
Dr Jon Owen, BSc, PhD, Senior Fellow
Dr Joanna Brown, BSc, PhD, Research Engineer
Mr Pete Dawson, BSc(Eng), Research Engineer
Mr Brian Henson, BEng, Reserch Engineer
CURRENT RESEARCH PROJECTS
Design and Manufacturing Processes
FUTURE AREAS OF RESEARCH
In addition to the research listed above, all of which the CAE Group are keen to see enhanced by new research students, there are a number of other areas that the Group and industrial collaborators wish to develop.
The above list of research areas does not preclude you from obtaining a research degree in other fields of computer aided engineering at Leeds. If you have interests in other areas of computer aided engineering please write to Dr Neal Juster, Department of Mechanical Engineering, The University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT with an outline of your research proposal together with a copy of your Curriculum Vitae, or telephone for an informal discussion on (0113) 2332205. The CAE Group will endeavour to find a suitable project supervisor.