Design tool

About: Design tool is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 3864 publications have been published within this topic receiving 46401 citations.

PAD: A New Interactive Knowledge-Based Analog Design Approach

Abstract: This paper presents a new Procedural Analog Design tool called PAD. It is a chart-based design environment dedicated to the design of analog circuits aiming to optimize design and quality by finding good tradeoffs. This interactive tool allows step-by-step design of analog cells by using guidelines for each analog topology. Its interactive interface enables instantaneous visualization of design tradeoffs. At each step, the user modifies interactively one subset of design parameters and observes the effect on other circuit parameters. At the end, an optimized design is ready for simulation (verification and fine-tuning). The present version of PAD covers the design of basic analog structures (one transistor or groups of transistors) and the procedural design of transconductance amplifiers (OTAs) and different operational amplifier topologies. The basic analog structures' calculator embedded in PAD uses the complete set of equations of the EKV MOS model, which links the equations for weak and strong inversion in a continuous way [1, 2]. Furthermore, PAD provides a layout generator for matched substructures such as current mirrors, cascode stages and differential pairs.

Design, simulation, and stability of a hexapedal running robot

Abstract: The ability of animals to navigate rough terrain is currently unmatched by their man-made counterparts. Recent studies by biologists have begun to demonstrate some of the principles behind their remarkable capabilities. In particular, studies of cockroaches have shown that they use a feed-forward motor actuation pattern and considerable structural compliance to run quickly over very rough terrain. Their sprawled posture and tuned impedance in their musculoskeletal system enable an instantaneous or ‘preflex’ response to disturbances. This allows for rapid response to the large perturbations experienced when interacting with irregular terrain. Consideration of these principles has led to the design of the Sprawl family of robots, which features one active thruster and one entirely passive rotary joint on each leg. Without these spring elements the robots would not be able to run. With them, they can easily overcome hip-height obstacles without any alteration of their open-loop controller. This thesis describes the development, calibration, and analysis of a three-dimensional dynamic simulation of the Sprawl robots. This simulation was developed as a design tool to investigate the effects of parameter variation, and to gain understanding about how to tune the leg configuration and hip impedance which constitute the self-stabilizing posture of the robot. The simulation is used to characterize the sensitivity of the system's performance to changes in the robots' physical parameters. The key parameters that influence speed and stability are identified, and their effects and the nature of their coupling are investigated. While speed is easy to measure, no universal metric for running stability exists. This thesis discusses four distinct steady-state measures of stability that are applicable to a simulated running robot. The effect of modifying the posture of the robot on stability is investigated for each of these measures. As a demonstration of its utility as a design tool, the simulation is used to tune the performance of one of the Sprawl robots. Changing the leg design according to the model's predictions resulted in a two-fold increase of the robot's speed.

Illumination Aesthetics: Light as a Creative Material within Computational Design

Abstract: Recent digital fabrication tools have enabled new form-giving using a wide range of physical materials. However, light as a first class creative material has been largely ignored within the design of our electronic objects. Our work expands the illumination design space by treating light as a physical material. We introduce a digital design tool that simulates and visualizes physical light interactions with a variety of materials for creating custom luminaires. We further develop a computational design and fabrication process for creating custom secondary optics elements (SOEs), which provides additional handles for users to physically shape and redirect light to compose, fill, and evenly diffuse planar and volumetric geometries. Through a workshop study with novice electronic designers, we show how incorporating physical techniques to shape light alters how users view the role and function of LEDs and electronics. We produce example pieces that showcase how our approach expands the electronics aesthetic and discuss how viewing light as material can engender novel, expressive artifacts.

Computer graphics and architecture: state of the art and outlook for the future

Abstract: During the three decades since Ivan Sutherland introduced the Sketchpad system [7], there has been an outpouring of computer graphics systems for use in architecture [3, 5]. In response to this development, most of the major architectural firms around the world have embraced the idea that computer literacy is mandatory for success. We would argue, however, that most of these recent developments have failed to tap the potential of the computer as a design tool. Instead, computers have been relegated largely to the status of drafting instruments, so that the "D" in CAD stands for drafting rather than design. It is important that future architectural design systems consider design as a continuous process rather than an eventual outcome.The advent of computer graphics technology has had an impact on the architectural profession. Computer graphics has revolutionized the drafting process, enabling the rapid entry and modification of designs (see Figure 1). In addition, modeling and rendering systems have proven to be invaluable aids in the visualization process, allowing designers to walk through their designs with photorealistic imagery (see Figure 2) [6, 2, 3]. Computer graphics systems have also demonstrated utility for capturing engineering information, greatly simplifying the analysis and construction of proposed designs. However, it is important to consider that all of these tasks occur near the conclusion of a larger design process. In fact, most of the artistic and intellectual challenges of an architectural design have already been resolved by the time the designer sits down in front of a computer. In seeking insight into the design process, it is generally of little use to revisit the various computer archives and backups. Instead, it is best to explore the reams of sketches and crude balsa models that fill the trash cans of any architectural studio.In architecture, as in most other fields, the initial success of computerization has been in areas where it frees humans from tedious and mundane tasks. This includes the redrawing of floor plans after minor modifications, the generation of largely redundant, yet subtly different engineering drawings and the generation of perspective renderings.We believe that there is a largely untapped potential for computer graphics as a tool in the earlier phases of the design process. In this essay, we argue that computer graphics might play a larger role via applications that aid and amplify the creative process.