| This research focuses on a computer representation of building structures, for design. The representation is intended to reflect the designer's evolving mental model. A general computational object, termed design object, is sought to represent the individual conceptual elements, which the designer uses in constituting the model. The model is represented in the computer as a network of design objects. The links of the network represent semantic relations of the objects.;The correctness of interactions/relations of the design objects within the model is attributed to local knowledge that the designer uses for their maintenance. The classes of design objects, extend the object oriented formalism with further internal structure, which allows the localization of knowledge governing the relations of design objects.;Such a representation is believed to be significant for the conceptual phase of structural design, and useful for the drafting board, the knowledge engineering and the design theory levels. A prototypic system was built, within which a simple structural synthesis example was developed as a proof of concept. |
