Knowledge Based Engineering

KBE stands for Knowledge Based Engineering.

KBE is a technique which enables, amongst other things, automation of design and analysis processes. It is a computer programming technique and toolset which enables expert knowledge, acknowledged best-practice and engineering rules to be encapsulated in a model of an engineering process. The model can then be run automatically to either generate product geometry or run analysis.

At its most fundamental, CAD models product geometry whereas KBE models the process used to create that product geometry. But KBE can go much further than this by embedding cost models inside the product model, performing analysis automatically during the geometry creation process and generating non-geometric output such as Bill-of-Materials, Bill-of-Process and Costs and Mass estimations.

Because design processes can be automated, KBE can free the engineer from repetitive and often tedious design tasks, enabling them to concentrate on the real issues.

Many of the practitioners of KBE report time savings of up to 95% when generating designs using KBE. This means that either the product can be delivered much faster to the market or that some of the time savings can be used to perform further design optimisation, delivering a much more highly optimised design to the market in the same time as traditional design techniques.

No, these applications have been developed to run very fast manufacturing feasibility assessments of existing designs. Some elements of design can be included such as the design of an optimum prebend for a given finished component geometry, or the design of the manufacturing addenda required between the finished component geometry and the tube.

These are really first sight manufacturing feasibility analysis tools. Hydroform KBE can be used during the earliest part of the design development phase to enable the basic component geometry to be designed such that tube and materials solutions are readily available. With a more complete design these applications give the design engineer valuable information on basic manufacturing feasibility, without the design engineer having to understand the manufacturing process in detail. The main benefit is that these analyses do not require special models to be created and they run very quickly, typically in less than 2 hours for a complete analysis.

It is also worth noting that a KBE analysis does not require the product model to be filleted, which means that initial design iterations can be performed significantly faster. Our recommendation to anyone considering using these tools as part of their design development process would be to work initially with unfilleted geometry to obtain a basically sound design and then to do the filleting prior to a final KBE analysis to confirm final feasibility.

Hydroform KBE carries out its analysis by examining the product geometry whereas most FEM tools carry out their analysis by simulating the process used to manufacture the supplied geometry. KBE analysis is not as accurate as FEM analysis but runs much faster and does not require any special models to be generated. Its main benefit is that it is very fast and can be used as the first gateway in a structured manufacturing feasibility analysis process, ensuring that all basic design for manufacture requirements have been addressed prior to commencing more accurate, but more costly, process simulation analyses.

No. We see these two technologies as complementary. KBE should be used to ensure the component is basically suitable for manufacture. Following a successful KBE analysis, process simulation analysis should be carried out since this is more accurate than the KBE analysis. Whilst parts passing the KBE analysis may still fail an FEM analysis and require some detail design changes, parts failing the KBE analysis are guaranteed to fail an FEM analysis. We feel that the relatively low overhead of KBE analysis is worthwhile in ensuring that time and resource are not wasted in a detailed FEM analysis of a part design which is basically unsuitable for manufacture.