TITLE:  A Future Computer Environment for Preliminary Design
AUTHORS: Westerberg, A., Piela, P., Subrahmanian, E., Podnar, G., and 
Elm, W.
PUBLICATION: Proceedings of the Third International Conference on 
Foundations of Computer Aided Process Design, J. Siirola, I. Grossmann, 
and G. Stephanopoulos (eds.)
DATE: 1989
ABSTRACT: In this paper we consider the creation of future
computer-based design environments to support a team-based preliminary
design process.  Adopting the view of Bucciarelli (1988), we see
design as a social process among the team members. Each team member
has his (or her) own view of the artifact to be designed, and each
operates in his own "object world." We list a set of attributes we see
as needed for a computer-based environment to support this process.
After suggesting that the activity of a design is a form of continual
evolutionary model development by the participants, we argue that it
can be captured by providing a support system to record and organize
models as they are developed, and shared. Based on our work with
creating the modeling language ASCEND, we propose a number of specific
concepts on which the design of such a support system can be based.