Strategies in Re-purposing
Graphics for Intelligent Delivery
Berlin 24 May 2001
Martin Jackson,
Bombardier Aerospace
Jeremiah Woolsey,
Interactive Documents International
Strategies in Re-purposing
Graphics for Intelligent Delivery
•
•
•
•
•
•
Business issues
Standards, goodness, and style
Delivering efficiency to the customer
Internal efficiencies
Engineering interfaces
Summary
Strategies in Re-purposing
Graphics for Intelligent Delivery
•
•
•
•
•
•
Business issues
Standards, goodness, and style
Delivering efficiency to the customer
Internal efficiencies
Engineering interfaces
Summary
Aviation Industry Paradoxes
• Aircraft need support over 30 years
– the older the aircraft the more customers and configurations to support
• Myriad of publications systems and formats
– the older the system the more expensive it is to migrate
• Engineering data is authority for revisions
– The older the engineering system the greater the disconnect to
publications
• Modern aircraft are increasingly complex
– The experience age of technicians is declining
• Aircraft grounded are huge cost burdens
– Customers require ever more efficient information retrieval
IETM stagnation
dynamic text - static graphics
Graphics are created, stored and
35% increase in
presented as static visuals
trouble shooting
efficiency via
Usability of manuals have stagnated
interactive
(interactivity is text based)
documents
No links available from manuals to
not achievable
additional data on the web
without dynamic
graphics
Customers print wiring manuals from
electronic version to be usable
No interfaces from IPC to parts ordering
What is a Technical Illustration?
understanding by senses
90
80
70
60
50
%
40
30
20
10
0
visual
hearing
smell
touch
It is not:
• strictly engineering data
• art for art’s sake
It is:
• a communicator of technical information
• the most efficient means of passing on spatial information
An intelligent graphic is also:
• a navigation tool
• the most efficient means of passing on spatial and textual
information
Technological Convergence
why the time is right for intelligent graphics
• Web CGM
– Vector intelligent technical graphics viewable via browsers
• ATA CGM
– Vector technical graphic data interchange proven to be reliable
across applications and platforms
• Industry graphic style guide
– The industry accepts visual communication standards
• e-Business
– Provides opportunities to link to / from customer information
processes
• Human issues
– The modern mechanic has less time, is relatively inexperienced but
more computer literate
4 Key Business Strategies
• Quality Controls
– from 14 to 26 secondary and 50 tertiary vendors per program
• reliable digital data and quality controls
• Change Process Management
– 4 revisions per year 50,000 revisions to illustrations during
publications life
• structured graphic data and efficient change process
• Engineering Synergies
– 50% of all publications work is research
• synergy between publications and engineering
• Single Source Graphics
– Each illustration tells a unique story
– Each illustrated component is the same
• component based illustrating
Strategies in Re-purposing
Graphics for Intelligent Delivery
•
•
•
•
•
•
Business issues
Standards, goodness, and style
Delivering efficiency to the customer
Internal efficiencies
Engineering interfaces
Summary
Why CGM?
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Platform independent
ISO standard
Web enabled
Industry profiles available
Efficient data sizes
Conformance test suites established
Large existing legacy data sets
CGM Standard (ISO/IEC 8632)
Version 1
• The original 1992 standard -vector data including polygons, lines,
rectangles, circles, arcs, text plus uncompressed raster data.
Version 2
• Corrections to v1 and some minor improvements
Version 3
• Advanced curves support (Bezier, conic arcs, B-splines), improved text
handling, line attributes, raster compression, more colour models.
Version 4
• Application structures that enable intelligent graphics, more precise
line type support
CGM Profiles
• ATA - Air Transport Association
GREXchange Graphics Exchange standard for version 1and 3 metafiles - Aerospace
industry profile
IGEX Intelligent Graphics Exchange standard for version 4 metafiles - Aerospace
industry profile
• WebCGM
The intelligent web-enabled profile
January 99 - recommended for use by W3C
• CALS - (Continuous Acquisition & Life-Cycle Support)
– MIL-D-28003A
Standards for the exchange of military graphics for technical publications
• PIP - Petroleum Industry Profile
Geophysical and trace mapping usage with extensive use of colour and patterning.
• SAE (Society of Automotive Engineers) SAE J2008 Profile
The quality triangle
Squeezing through the quality loop
Goodness
NIST &
syntax checkers
Industry Profile
ISO 8632
Goodness
How can a syntactically correct CGM not be good?
•
•
•
•
Line styles
Q
Text alignment
Circles and curves
Layers - corporate
handshakes
• Colour precision
• Line continuation
• Inherited quality
issues
LOSS
CGM
A
CGM
B
A
Supplier Graphic Data
Typical problems
•
•
•
•
•
CGM
differing visual clues
• fonts
• scaling
uncertain locations
• colour maps
confusing detail
• line fonts
huge fragmented CAD
• ellipses
files
• masks
different layering
• fragmentation
• huge CAD files
schemes
Graphic Style
About 50% of supplier errors are style related
• Why does it matter?
–
–
–
–
Visual communication
Goodness controls
Visual coding
Use of illustration fragments
• Cost versus Quality
– $2m+/ yr in Aerospace spent reworking graphics for style purposes
(1997 ATA Survey)
– Limits reuse of illustration fragments
• ATA Graphics Style Standard
– Recommended for use in 2000
– Created by all major manufacturers and component vendors with
input from AECMA.
– In use now within Aerospace community
Colour Standards
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Video display units
Training courses
Single source graphics
Exchanging colour graphics
Reliable results
Print and display
ATA Colour standard
Web safe colours
Color Name
Pantone
Matching
System
R
G
B
Yellow
Yellow
255 255
Orange
1585
255 116 66
Red
Warm Red 255
Lilac
701
233 511 173
Violet
513
141 33
141
Magenta
238
255
255
Light Blue
290
191 226 247
Cyan
3245
0
Blue
266
0
0
255
Dim Blue
647
60
86
110
Beige
465
195 172 130
Amber
1385
216 128
Olive
416
141 151 122
Green
375
375
Dark Green
362
White
0
0
0
0
0
0
255 255
255
255
0
0
0
48 150 66
255 255 255
Black
Black
Gray 70%
Black 70% 99
Gray 50%
Black 50% 149 149 149
Gray 30%
Black 30%
0
0
0
0
99
99
20
0
Strategies in Re-purposing
Graphics for Intelligent Delivery
•
•
•
•
•
•
Business issues
Standards, goodness, and style
Delivering efficiency to the customer
Internal efficiencies
Engineering interfaces
Summary
An e-Business model
SPARES
dBase
ENGINEERING
DIGITAL
MOCK UP
AS MAINTAINED
AS DELIVERED
M BOM
EBOM
SPARES
INVENTORIES
ORDERING
3D VIRTUAL AIRCRAFT
PUBLISH & SUBSCRIBED
ATA VIEW
AS MAINTAINED CONFIGURATION
WEB BROWSER INTERFACE
FLEET SUPPORT
FSR
HOT TIPS
CUSTOMER RECORD
ACCOUNT REPS
TRAINING
PUBLICATIONS
TECH SERVICES
MANUALS
INFO SERVICE
SERVICE BULLETINS
COURSE SCHEDULES
ANIMATIONS
VIDEOS
COURSE ORDERING
PARTS
MAINTENANCE
PLANNING
PARTS
WARRANTY
ORDERING
ORGANIZATIONS
CUSTOMER SUPPORT
FIREWALL
ENGINEERING
FIREWALL
WORKFLOW TOOLS SUPPORTS
CONTRACTS
FIREWALL
FIREWALL
INVENTOR
Y LEVELS
SPARE PARTS
IPC
ORDERING
EMP
CHAT
FAQ
EHUMP
HUMP
SERVICES
MARKETING
ONBOARD
LAP
CUSTOMERS
FIREWALL
MANUALS
3D MODELS
MM
SBS
FAULT
DIAGNOSTIC
VIDEO
ANIMATION
REMOVALS &
INSTALLATIONS
TRAINING
CUSTOMER INFORMATION CENTRE
INTEGRATED SERVICES
PRODUCT & SERVICES INTEGRATED
INTER LINKED TO RELATED DATA
TO PROVIDE UP TO DATE DATA
www.cic.bombardier.com
PROFILE FILTERING
PC
WORKFLOWS
CMM
PARTS
CIMMS
FIREWALL
INTRANET
SALESINTRANET AND FLOW TO C.I.C.
FIREWALL
FRACAS
INFO SERVICE
FIREWALL
ENGINEERING
REMOTE
INTERNAL
EMPLOYEES
PUBS
VENDORS
PARTNERS
BAGD041001
CGM as e-Business enabler
ENGINEERING
DIGITAL
MOCK UP
GRAPHIC
dBase
CGM V1-4
Multimedia
Photos
Animations
WEB CGM
CUSTOMER SUPPORT
MANUFACTURING
LMS
WEB
SITE
ANALYSIS
ORDERING
MM SB
WM IPC
IETM
TRAINING MODULES
• PILOT
• MAINTENANCE
BASIC STATIC INTERFACE
CGM V1-4
Multimedia
Photos
Animations
WEB CGM
REMOTE
INTERNAL
EMPLOYEES
VENDORS
TECH. MANUALS
TRAINING
PROFILE ACCESS
CGM V3
BAGD0
BAGD041
Navigation by detail
and component
• Navigation by detail for
interactive delivery
• Navigation by static visual
clues by core paper
delivery
• Details reused in multiple
occurrences
• Locator controls
navigation relationships
Effectivity on the fly
• User login activates profile and
aircraft effectivity
• Effectivity recorded on XML
companion file
• Returns rendering of
component based on effectivity
and size, view parameters
• Parts list and ordering
mechanism synchronized from
companion file to return correct
meta data.
Variations in Paper and Digital
Delivery
• Paper delivery WILL still be required 10
years from now
• Intelligent content and paper incompatible
• Regulatory bodies need to synchronise all
media deliveries
• Concept of core data and extended data
Strategies in Re-purposing
Graphics for Intelligent Delivery
•
•
•
•
•
•
Business issues
Standards, goodness, and style
Delivering efficiency to the customer
Internal efficiencies
Engineering interfaces
Summary
Graphics Creation
new tools -- old methods
ATA graphics are primarily visualizations of
maintenance and operational tasks
Static depiction of optimal sequence of procedure
50% of creation time spent in search of
engineering drawings/models/change drivers
Orientation of 3D models and 2D orthographic
drawings to task-specific view
Graphics Creation
new tools -- old methods
ATA graphics are primarily visualizations of
maintenance and operational tasks
Static depiction of optimal sequence of procedure
50% of creation time spent in search of
engineering drawings/models/change drivers
Orientation of 3D models and 2orthographic
engineering drawings to task-specific view
Graphics Creation (con’t)
new tools -- old methods
Extraction of geometry 2D-3D & HLR, part
metadata is typically not captured
Context is not saved, re-used, must repeat process
- task configuration (BOM) and orientation
Illustrated components/fragments not reused -no
‘where-used’ of part in (SGML/XML) task
instance
 Intelligence in graphic is manually authored
Customer Support-specific attributes not at source
Intelligent Gfx Creation &
Revision
• Capturing component intelligence from:
– Engineering design data CAD/CAM/PDM
• Maintenance View of product structure needed
– subset of complete bill of materials - LRUs & SSIs
• Geometry (both 2D and 3D where existing) static &
kinematic visualizations
• Transport (via XML) metadata elements used by
Customer Support:
– e.g. part number, material spec, CAGE code, service
effectivity, interchangeability (1 & 2-way)
Intelligent Gfx Creation &
Revision (con’t)
• Supplier data
– Supplier Engineering data
– Supplier Product Support (SGML/XML/CGM)
• Legacy illustrations - leverage
commonality of parts
– 30% for derivative programs
• Automating grobject creation for legacy Gfx
– Using scripts to find patterns (text/fonts/layers)
– Revisit CAD conversion process - extract
native entity attributes, serialize to XML
Opportunities for Efficiency
Gains
• Reduction of research activities (50% of
current efforts)
• Build task-specific views of product
structure automatically, save as context
– IPC becomes customer support Bill of Material
• Reusing detail views and components
– increases reuse by a factor of 200
– average of 2.5 locator views per sheet
– improves consistency and reliability of data
Strategies in Re-purposing
Graphics for Intelligent Delivery
•
•
•
•
•
•
Business issues
Standards, goodness and style
Delivering efficiency to the customer
Internal efficiencies
Engineering interfaces
Summary
Engineering Source
Graphic Data Extraction
GRAPHIC\
dBase
ENGINEERING
DIGITAL MOCK-UP
PUBLISHING
dBase
WIRING
DIAGRAM
XML
WIRING
LIST
WIRING
DIAGRAM
XML
WIRING
LIST
WIRING
DIAGRAM
GRAPHIC
STYLEGUIDE
XML
METADATA
AUTOEXTRACTION
XML
WIRING
LIST
CGM
CONVERSION
CGM V4
XML
CONTEXT
FILTERING
CORE
DESIGN
VIEW
CONTEXT
PUBLISH &
SUBSCRIBE
APPROVAL
WHERE USED
ANALYSIS
(AMTOSS)
EFFECTIVITY/
APPLICABILITY
CONDITIONS
PARSE
REPLICATE
PUBLISH
BAGD0301_001.cdr
Interfacing with Engineering
• Managing product change - impact analysis
– Individuals or Customer Support units can set change
notification rules based on specific: ATA systems,
aircraft zones, approval level, etc...
• Re-Use 3D Graphic Models
– for illustration and/or maintenance task simulation
• Customer Support view vs “best-so-far”
– All aircraft configurations need to be supported, not just
the most current design
Engineering to illustration process
- new illustrations
Analysis
Phase
Use Configured Digital
Mock-up search tools to
find the parts to include
in illustration
Orient Models to
one of 8
isometric views
Orientation
Phase
Extraction
Phase
Extract
Illustration (CGM
v4) or kinematics
Open models in
viewer
Close
unwanted
models
Create Axis, eliminate
extraneous data
Automatically Create
Task/Context with parts
in illustration
Filter by VIEWS /Work
area
Import CGM v4 into
illustration
application
Deliver illustration
(electronically and
on paper)
Product
Part
Document
Part
Part
Part
Standard Part
PC & THIN CLIENT
VPDM System
WORK STATION
Engineering to illustration process
- revising illustrations
Change
Notification
Engineering
changes the
product
Verification
of
Applicability
System identifies which
tasks/contexts are affected
by the change in near realtime
Check illustration(s)
using part to see if
they need to be
revised
System compares
revision with previous
task/context and
notifies owner by email
Consult change
documents
User receives and
acknowledges
Email notification
Update
illustration?
No
End
Yes
Revise
Illustration
Load
task/context
Refresh task/context to
display variances
Load models from
Context and auto style
extract updated master
component or view
Product
Part
Document
Part
Part
Part
Standard Part
PC & THIN CLIENT
VPDM System
WORK STATION
Developing a ‘Customer Support’
Bill Of Material
• create “as-maintained” task-based view
(link parts to tasks)
• engineering validity vs production
effectivity vs service effectivity
• unified effectivity model
• operator input - updating in-service
configuration
– recording part removals and installations
Building Customer Support View of Product Structure
CONFIGURED DIGITAL
MOCK-UP
ILLUSTRATION FOR PRODUCTION VISUAL AIDS,
TECH PUB MANUALS, TRAINING MANUALS
FRAMEWORK FOR eBUSINESS LINKS
FS281.65
FS260.00
10
LBL30.00
FS240.00
LBL10.00
BL0.00
RBL10.00
10
RBL30.00
SAVED TASK/CONTEXT
•Graphical Mfg
Assembly/Fab aids
•On-line Spares
•eTask Cards
•Interactive Training
95
100
90
105
Global Express
85
GC219-1900-1
GC211-0039-1
80
110
145
GC211-0039 NC
GC211-0039-1
135
GC211-0039 NC
GC211-0046-1
GC211-0046 -A
GC211-0046-2
GC211-0046 -A
GC211-0047-1
120
130
90
130 125
GC211-0047 NC
GC211-0047-2
GC211-0047 NC
GC211-0048-5
GC211-0048 -B
GC211-0166-3
GC211-0166 -A
85
140
115
120
115
80
95
•Portable
Maintainance
Systems (CRDC)
Enabling Legacy Engineering
Data
• Enhance use of conversions - graphics, plus:
• Metadata extraction - XML can facilitate by:
– common structured data format
– support for external applications
– provide conversion bridge between CGM,
SGML, web and engineering systems.
Strategies in Re-purposing
Graphics for Intelligent Delivery
•
•
•
•
•
•
Business issues
Standards, goodness and style
Delivering efficiency to the customer
Internal efficiencies
Engineering interfaces
Summary
Organizational Change
• Process
–
–
–
–
–
authoring more rigorous
graphics much more structured
link resolution needs to be validated
revision cycle more complex
create once use many
• Human Issues
– are publications staff equipped and ready for change in work
process?
XML
the metadata key
• transporting engineering metadata from partners/suppliers
• transporting product support metadata from partners &
suppliers
• transporting data between de-coupled departmental
databases
Design ==> Manufacturing ==> Customer Support
• transforming SGML to XML and XSLT for Web
presentation
SGML-XML-WebCGM based IPC
SGML/XML
EDITOR
SUPPLIER
ILLUSTRATIONS
TEMPLATES
CGM v3 2100
TEMPLATES
PUBLISHING
dBase
GRAPHIC\
dBase
<SHEET GNBR=”gip1121000_001” SHEETNBR=”1” XNBR=”gip1121000_001”
INTERNAL
ILLUSTRATIONS
GRAPHIC
IDENTIFIER
SHEET 2
SHEET 3
IMPORT
PARSE
AUTO LINKING
SCRIPTS
LINK
RESOLUTION
STYLESHEETS
PARSE
PARSE
SHEET 1
PARSE
INTELLIGENT
GRAPHIC
AUTHORING
APPLICATION
V4
IMBEDDED
ON CALLOUTS
LINK
MANAGEMENT
INTERACTIVE
FORMAT
PUBLISH
WEB
CGM/XML
WEB
DOCUMENT
LINKS
META
DATA
STYLESHEETS
CGM v3 2100
CD-ROM
LIVE LINKING
SGML
PUBLICATIONS
DTD
WEB LINKS
EXTERNAL
LINKS
PARTS
ORDERING
CGM v4
XML
TRANSFORMATION
GRAPHIC
POOL
PARTS
LIST
PARSE
LINK
RESOLUTION
ENGINEERING
PSD or SAP
dBase
LEGACY
PUBLICATIONS
STYLESHEETS
PAPER
bagd022001_002.cdr
Summary
the time is right
• WebCGM as core graphic format
– supplemental formats: .avi, .mpeg, .jpeg, .svg etc..
• WebCGM can support static paper as well as interactive
media: Web-CD-ROM-DVD
• WebCGM and XML enable essential quality controls
– batch goodness checking possible on structured graphics
• XML facilitates metadata linking to graphic objects
• XML enables synergy between related standards:
– Maintenance Steering Group (MSG-DTD), Component Reliability Data
Collection (CDRC) Validate, STEP Engineering BOM
Summary
• Achieve most accurate, up-to-date snapshot of A/C
configuration in a highly dynamic change
• Design Customer Support authoring/delivery systems with
regard for end-user needs, provide the maintenance and
flight crews:
– right data
– at the right time
– in the media most appropriate to the task