ABSTRACT
Attendant processes such as fixture and die design are often a necessary but time-consuming and expensive component of a production cycle. Coupling such attendant processes to product design via feature-based computer-aided design (CAD) will lead to more responsive and affordable product design and redesign. In the context of ongoing research in automating fixture con figuration design, this chapter presents a fundamental study of automated fixture planning with a focus on geometric analysis. The initial conditions for modular fixture assembly are established together with the necessary relationships between fixture components and the workpiece to be analyzed. Of particular focus is the design of alternative locating points and compo nents, together with example three-dimensional (3-D) fixture designs.
