Representation of standard mechanical components in a STEP-based product data management system
by Ping Yi Chao, Shen Chout Yeh
International Journal of Computer Applications in Technology (IJCAT), Vol. 12, No. 1, 1999

Abstract: A product data management system, PDMS, stores and manages complete information about all its products and related activities. With proper management of such information, product development can be made easier and more efficient. Together with widespread computer network applications, PDMS enables an enterprise to exercise its business activities in a more efficient way. However, the standard representation of product data and their communication are two major obstacles to be overcome. In this paper, we present a set of procedures to represent a standard mechanical component and propose a method for the data management and its communication within the PDMS. The Standard for the Exchange of Product Model Data, STEP, is used for the data representation. The object database management system, ODBMS, is used for the data management because of the object-oriented nature developed by STEP. The open database connectivity, ODBC, server is also introduced for connecting different databases on the network. With the proposed procedure and architecture, we demonstrate the way to implement STEP and the way to merge the object-oriented modelled data in the PDMS. As STEP matures and computer networks get faster and more popular, the networked PDMS will be a must for future enterprises.

Online publication date: Wed, 07-Jul-2004

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