Freeing information in engineering design

1) Introduction

Throughout our species existence, technological and social development have been based upon information¹. The creation of an artefact is the transformation of raw materials into a product using information. A consequence of this constructive use is that information can be seen has having value. This idea is at the core of the phrase:

Knowledge is power (Sir Francis Bacon)

Before the advent of writing, information was held in the form of knowledge and transferred verbally (in the most part), since then it has been possible for information to be 'stored' separate from any one individual and as our society has developed, more advanced means of storing and exchanging information have been invented. Today information can be created and stored anywhere, and instantly accessed an infinite number of times from anywhere else (almost).

The value of information and its increasing availability has led companies to seek to control knowledge through the use of 'Intellectual Property Law' (IP).

IP rights [apply] to intangible things - to ideas, as expressed (copyrights), or as embodied in a practical implementation (patents) (2)

The increasing availability of information has led to much tighter control over IP. With companies such as IBM who current holds over 40,000 patents world wide (3), making in the order of $1000 million per annum from licensing (4). This trend towards ever increasing control over IP has led to many groups claiming that this control on information has significant negative consequences and that society would benefit from reversing this trend by freeing² much of this information.

2) Aim

This essay will examine the potential benefits of freeing information within engineering by examining existing projects and the current extent of intellectual property management within the engineering community. An outline of the requirements of freeing information will be produced.

The economic counter-arguments to freeing information are beyond the scope of this essay.

3) Design as information

Before examining existing projects and the current state within industry it is worth exploring how information is used within engineering.

Within engineering, information is bound up in knowledge. A knowledge base has been developed over many years which is separate from that of the sciences and humanities (although grounded in both) (5). It is this knowledge which is called upon to develop concepts and design solutions (6). This knowledge is seen as having great value and traditionally is to be protected at all costs, however, in recent years this idea has been challenged. Many streams of thought have converged on the idea that restricting access to and use of information holds back the advancement of society (7).

4) Defining freedom

Using the free software definition³ as a guide the following points outline what might be considered free design/idea in an engineering context. Freedom to:

1. Use the design for any purpose
2. Study and modify the design
3. Distribute the design

and a similar condition on distribution must be applied to prevent exploitation:

• If distributing or re-releasing a modification of the design then the original freedoms must be maintained

Clauses such as the condition above to prevent patenting (or closed licensing) of something which has been released on a free basis. (8)

5) Existing projects

A number of projects based on the concepts of freeing design already exist in varying forms, the following section will identify and examine some of these projects in a qualitative manner.

6) Within industry

As commercial ventures engineering companies do not make their designs freely available. However, they do employ collaborative design methods to develop their products. Collaboration can involve teams within one company (but separated geographically) working together, and increasingly it can involved many companies collaborating in a typical supply chain manner or risk sharing partnerships.

Airbus works collaboratively with an extensive chain of direct suppliers, as well as risk sharing partners to develop major subsystems such as the undercarriage (Goodrich) and engines (Rolls Royce). A tool used by Airbus during the development of the A380 was a common 3D digital model of the aircraft, designers were able to make changes which would then be reflected in the models of other teams around the world⁴. This idea of pooling information has become widely used within industry and is known as Knowledge Based Engineering (KBE).

The design tools used within industry are appropriate to their function, and are used by professionals familiar with their operation, these design suites, such as Dassault's CATIA are very powerful and very complex.

7) Discussion

From the existing projects and trends within industry (§5 & 6) the following principles have been identified as being important the process of freeing design.

Using the points examined above it is possible to gain an idea of a development model upon which a free design system might be built (Figure 1).

Conclusion

The potential benefits of freeing information in engineering have been examined. An analysis of existing projects and the methods currently used within industry have yielded valuable insights into the steps necessary for the development of free engineering design and a potential model for such a system has been outlined.

There are still some technical and social barriers to overcome before a free design system can be created. Were a free design movement to be tried today, it would have to rely upon conventional manufacturing systems for anything more than the simplest items, and that system can not be expected to support the process of its own downfall. A project would be most likely to succeed if, initially, it tackled problems for the developing world, thereby catering for those most in need and not threatening existing manufacturing companies.

End notes

1. ^ For the purposes of this essay 'Information' is taken to be: the result of processing, manipulating and organizing data in a way that adds to the knowledge of the person receiving it. (1)
2. ^ 'free' is meant in terms of liberty rather than price i.e. free as in speech.
3. ^ Free software definition
4. ^ Information gathered during a site visit at Filton (14/03/06)

Figures

Figure 1

Figure 1: A diagram of a collaborative design process. (also available in odg format - 13KB)

Notes:

• User - design and domain experts and the end users
• 3D design - simple, free tools to aid visualisation
• Website - stores all information and designs
• Feedback - refinement loops allow for continuous improvement
• Design - the design process is based on a generic process

References

1. Wikipedia. Information. In: Wikipedia: the free encyclopaedia. St Petersburg, Florida: Wikimedia Foundation. Available from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Information [Accessed 13/11/2006]
2. Kinsella, N. S., 2001. Against Intellectual Property. Journal of Libertarian Studies, Volume 15, no. 2 (Spring 2001): 1-53
3. IBM., 2006. Patents Portfolio.
4. Schofield J., 2006. Why has IBM taken so long to sue Amazon. The Guardian, Thursday November 2.
5. Vincenti, W., 1990. What engineers know and how they know it : analytical studies from aeronautical history. Johns Hopkins University Press.
6. Hatchuel, A. & Weil, B., 2003. A New Approach of Innovative Design: An Introduction to C-K Theory. ICED 03, Stockholm, August 19-21, 2003.
7. Steffen A., 2006. Open source design. WorldChanging.[Accessed 15/11/06]
8. GNU Project. Philosophy of the GNU Project [Accessed 15/11/2006]
9. Steffen A., 2006. Developing world license. WorldChanging. [Accessed 15/11/06]
10. Shaprio, C. and Varian, H., 1999. Information Rules. Harvard Business School
11. Thinkcycle: Open Source Design. MIT. [Accessed 15/11/06]
12. Honey Bee Network. [Accessed 17/11/06]
13. Instructables: Step-by-step collaboration. [Accessed 18/11/06]
14. The RepRap Project. Bath: The University of Bath. [Accessed 15/11/2006]
15. Raymond, E.. The Cathedral and the Bazaar. [Accessed 15/11/2006]