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In addition to research papers, the Design Society is developing several valuable resources for those interested in the study of design. These include a repository of PhD theses, a library of case studies and transcripts of design activities, and an archive of our newsletters. Please note that these resources are accessible exclusively to Design Society members.

Automated quantitative functional decomposition in product design

Rosenthal, Philipp; Heesch, René; Niggemann, Oliver

Type:
Papers
DS 145: Proceedings of the DESIGN2026 19th International Design Conference
Year:
2026
Editor:
Štorga, M.; Škec, S.; Martinec, T.; Marjanović, D.; Pavković, N.
Author:
Rosenthal, Philipp; Heesch, René; Niggemann, Oliver
Series:
DESIGN
Institution:
Helmut Schmidt University, Germany
Page(s):
787-796
DOI number:
10.1017/pds.2026.10437
ISSN:
2732-527X (Online)
Abstract:
Functional decomposition shapes early design decisions but is largely qualitative, leaving units and measures implicit. This work introduces the Quantitative Functional Decomposition Problem, which formalizes functions and interfaces with measurable quantities, making decomposition solvable as a quantified planning problem. Two case studies show that the approach gives immediate feedback on the admissibility of functions and their connections. Design engineers get consistent quantified structures, which speed up iteration, reduce work and set targets for subsequent steps in the design process.
Keywords:
functional modelling, functional reasoning, design automation, early design phase, artificial intelligence (AI)
DESIGN2026 - The 19th International Design Conference
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