A New Aesthetic Design Workflow -

A New Aesthetic Design Workflow -

Results from the European Project FIORES

C. Werner Dankwort and Gerd Podehl1

Styling design is becoming a crucial mark for the success of consumer

goods on the global market. Computer Aided Styling (CAS) and Computer

Aided Aesthetic Design (CAAD), but also manual work on physical models

are the methods for creating optimal aesthetic shapes. The Brite-

EuRam project FIORES covering 12 partners including automotive companies,

styling companies, system suppliers, and research institutes is

developing methods for optimizing the styling workflow. The goal is to

formalize evaluation criteria for aesthetic surfaces which can then be

used directly for modifying free-form surfaces in the sense of target driven

design or Engineering in Reverse (EiR). The styling processes in different

companies are analyzed, the concept of Engineering in Reverse is

introduced, the midterm results of the project are presented. This work is

the joint result of the project consortium.

Introduction

After having carefully considered the factors efficiency, quality, price,

and outer appearance, the customer decides for or against a product.

Market fields like the automotive branch or the consumer goods industry

with a crucial emotional connection between customer and product therefore

put a high emphasis on an appealing and aesthetic exterior of the

product. Styling is often the final differentiation criterion among products

competing on the market, since their functionality and quality have

more and more adjusted to one other - also at an international level - and

are thus taken for granted by the customer. The extraordinary position of

styling is of special importance to European manufacturers, because they

1Dept. of Mechanical and Chemical Engineering, University of Kaiserslautern, Germany

can hardly compete against countries with a lower wage level if competition

only aims at a reduced