Engineering environments in the information age: Research challenges and opportunities

This paper examines changes to the contemporary product engineering cycle resulting from the Information Age and identifies information-related obstacles that correspond to the human dimension of information overload in engineering. These obstacles may explain why increases in productivity have been disappointing and why information technology has not been able to satisfy the increasing demands placed on contemporary engineers. Three productivity impeding categories are discussed: (a) detail overload, (b) constraint overload, and (c) versatility overload. The authors suggest how new emerging paradigms and technologies can be harnessed to alleviate the identified difficulties. Three directions for improvement are discussed: (a) bringing computer tools into the engineering process earlier, permitting more extensive exploration and informed selection of alternatives, (b) improving human-computer interfaces towards in-context natural interaction, making information exchange more fluent and fast, and (c) transforming computers from passive to active self-initiated engineering aids that can suggest alternatives and convey relevant information. The paper discusses applications to areas such as design, manufacturing, simulation, quality assurance, and maintenance.