EAGER: Advancing Understanding of Function Modeling, Reasoning, and Thinking in Design by Mapping Behaviors to Cognitive Explanations

在工程设计中，机械设计课程中教授的一种流行的表示法是“功能建模”。功能被定义为设备或系统的意图或从输入到输出的有意转换。功能不是产品是什么(形式)，产品如何做它所做的(行为)，或者产品为什么存在(目的)。然而，它确实与所有这些相关，因此允许工程师在问题空间和解决方案空间之间转换。许多设计工具都是基于功能建模开发的，但在整个行业中还没有随处可见。这个早期概念探索性研究奖助金(AGIRE)项目不是建议新的功能词汇表、工具或方法，而是试图通过研究工程师在创建模型时的行为来了解他们是如何思考功能的。为此，将记录设计工程师的建模行为，并使用认知模型来解释这些行为。有了这样的理解，未来就可以开发新的计算设计工具。此外，工程设计教育可以通过为学生提供更好的创建功能模型的策略来加强。了解工程师如何对功能建模元素进行思考、推理和操作，以及这些模型是如何连接问题定义和解决方案探索的，这一点很重要。通过实验协议研究，分析了具体的建模模式(前向链接、后向链接、成核)和暂停模式(元素实例化之前或之后的暂停)。建模模式将提供面向目标的思维(反向链接)或因果推理(正向链接)的证据。停顿模式和频率将被用来理解功能(转化的作用)和流(被转化的事物)的相对重要性。两个基本的研究问题将被探索：是否存在与所选表示不变的功能建模的建模行为模式？这些建模行为模式可以用来理解、预测和解释设计活动的认知模型吗？

In engineering design, a popular representation taught in mechanical design curricula is "functional modeling." Function has been defined as what a device or system is intended to do or the intentional transformation from inputs to outputs. The function is not what the product is (form), how the product does what it does (behavior), or why the product exists (purpose). However, it does relate to all of these, and thus allows engineers to transition between the problem space and the solution space. Many design tools have been developed based on functional modeling but are not yet ubiquitously found throughout industry. Rather than suggesting new function vocabularies, tools, or methods, this EArly-concept Grant for Exploratory Research (EAGER) project seeks to understand how engineers think about function by studying their behaviors in creating models. To do this, the modeling behaviors of design engineers will be recorded, and models of cognition will be used to explain these behaviors. With this understanding, new computational design tools can be developed in the future. In addition, engineering design education can be enhanced by providing students with better strategies for creating the function models.It is important to understand how engineers think, reason, and operate on function modeling elements and how these models bridge problem definition and solution exploration. Through experimental protocol studies, the specific modeling patterns (forward chaining, backward chaining, nucleation) and pause patterns (pause before or after elemental instantiation) will be analyzed. The modeling patterns will provide evidence of goal-oriented thinking (backward chaining) or causal reasoning (forward chaining). The pause patterns and frequencies will be used to understand relative importance of function (action of transformation) and flow (things being transformed). Two basic research questions will be explored: Are there modeling behavior patterns to function modeling that are invariant of chosen representation? And can these modeling behavior patterns be used to understand, predict, and explain cognitive models of design activities?