This article presents an overview of the state-of-the art in modeling and simulation, and studies to which extent current simulation technologies can effectively support the design process. For simulation-based design, modeling languages and simulation environments must take into account the special characteristics of the design process. For instance, languages should allow models to be easily updated and extended to accommodate the various analyses performed throughout the design process. Furthermore, the simulation software should be well integrated with the design tools so that designers and analysts with expertise in different domains can effectively collaborate on the design of complex artifacts. This review focuses in particular on modeling for design of multi-disciplinary engineering systems that combine continuous time and discrete time phenomena.

During conceptual design of systems, the emphasis is on generating the system architecture: the configuration of sub-systems and the interactions between them. Ports, as locations of intended interaction, play an important role at this stage of design. They are convenient abstractions for representing the intended exchange of signals, energy or material; they can be applied at different levels of detail, across different energy domains, and to all aspects of design: form, function, and behavior. But to play this versatile role, ports need to be represented in an unambiguous yet flexible fashion, accommodating the differences in vocabulary and approach across different disciplines and perspectives. In this article, we introduce the semantic structure for such an unambiguous representation: a port ontology. The ontology formalizes the conceptualization of ports such that engineers and computer aided design applications can reason about component connections and interactions in system configuration. It defines ports in terms of form, function and behavior attributes and further includes axioms that can be used to support a variety of engineering design tasks, such as port refinement, port compatibility checking, and the instantiation of interaction models. A LEGO example is used to illustrate the ontology and its applications in conceptual design.

Mechanical assemblies are systems composed of modules that are either subassemblies or parts. Traditionally an assembly information model contains information regarding parts, their relationships, and its form. But it is important that the model also represent the function and behavior. This report describes the development of an Ontological Assembly Model in the broader context of Product Lifecycle Management (PLM).

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