Managing Engineering Knowledge: MOKA Methodology for Knowledge Based Engineering Applications

A well run and structured system for Managing Engineering Knowledge can literally prevent engineers from having to re-invent the wheel, saving precious expert time and effort. Exploiting the capital associated with design knowledge has been shown to release considerable savings in the cost and lead times for detail design of new products. Until now there has been no common way of collecting, structuring, and formalizing the engineering knowledge associated with designs. This not only makes it hard to plan and organize the process of building knowledge based engineering applications, but also means that updating them and re-using modules is almost impossible. MOKA – methodology and software tools oriented to knowledge-based engineering applications – was created to fill this need. It is a practical tool to help those involved with building systems that represent knowledge, rather than a set of academic principles. Managing Engineering Knowledge is a comprehensive user guide to the methodology. Managing Engineering Knowledge caters for a wide range of people and backgrounds – including general managers operating at the strategic level, project managers, engineering designers, information technologists, system modellers, and technical analysts. COMPLETE CONTENTS: Knowledge based engineering MOKA: The KBE lifecycle Identify/justify steps Collecting knowledge Structuring knowledge ICARE forms Informal model charts Transferring raw knowledge Formalizing knowledge Product model Design process model Transferring knowledge between informal and formal models Using MOKA models in KBE systems Activating models Knowledge sharing and re-use The future of MOKA.

Table of Contents:
Part 1 Knowledge based engineering: what is knowledge based engineering?; what can KBE offer?; what is MOKA?; what does MOKA do that other methodologies don't?. Part 2 MOKA: what is MOKA?; what were the objectives for MOKA?; what were the inspirations for MOKA?; when should you use MOKA?; what do you need to use MOKA?; how does MOKA work?; MOKA lifecycle and route map; MOKA knowledge representation; MOKA software tools; MOKA case studies. Part 3 The KBE lifecycle: KBE lifecycle; IDENTIFY; JUSTIFY; CAPTURE; FORMALIZE; PACKAGE; ACTIVATE; how does MOKA represent the lifecycle?. Part 4 IDENTIFY/JUSTIFY steps: the early stages, KBE and MOKA; the IDENTIFY step; the JUSTIFY step. Part 5 Collecting knowledge: collecting knowledge - part of the CAPTURE step; preparation for collection; collect required knowledge; methods of eliciting knowledge; methods of analysis. Part 6 Structuring knowledge: why bother to "structure knowledge"?; what are the outputs from structuring knowledge?; the steps involved in structure; who should be involved with structuring knowledge. Part 7 ICARE forms: what are ICARE forms?; how do ICARE forms function within the MOKA informal model?; the "entity" form (E-form); the "activity" form (A-form); the "constraint" form (C-form); the "rule" form (R-form); the "illustration" form (I-form); navigating the forms; verifying the ICARE forms. Part 8 Informal model charts: what are MOKA charts?; why are charts optional in MOKA?; links between the ICARE forms; charts available in MOKA; using the charts to construct the informal model. Part 9 Transferring raw knowledge: the basic process; the output - elements of the informal model; the structuring process; the role of a software tool in transferring knowledge; dividing up the raw knowledge into objects; linking the ICARE elements; common methods of transferring the raw knowledge; checking the informal model; what can the informal model be used for?. Part 10 Formalizing knowledge: why bother to "formalize" knowledge; how does the formal model relate to the informal model?; the basis for the formal model; the role of MML in the construction of formal models; more about the formal model; the steps involved in formalizing; who should be involved in the FORMALIZE process?. Part 11 Product model: what is the product model?; the basis of the product model; handling constraints; the product meta-model; the structure view; the function view; the behaviour view; the technology view; the representation view; the relationship of the product model to the informal model. Part 12 Design process model: what is the design process model?; challenges for modelling the design process; an abstract model of the design process; the underlying concepts of the MOKA DPM; static and dynamic processes; UML activity diagrams; MML extensions to the UML activity diagram; strategy description; links between the design process and the product models; alternative ways to represent the design process model; relationship of