Mechanical Design Process

The design process can be broken down into four key stages as per the flow diagram on the right.

Initiate

Propose a layout of parts and a description of parts that conceptually (has the capacity to) meets design requirements.

Substantiate and Elaborate

Introduce accurate dimensions and constraints.  Holes should be sized as per the standard, locate them such that they have sufficient clearance, etc. Gears should be placed with the pitch circles tangent to one another. 

To Elaborate in the design is the process of starting from a simple representation of the design, such as a sketch and then to extrude that sketch

Criticize

Does the design meet all the requirements? Challenge the design, how can it fail, where? Though not most enjoyable the criticize stage is one of the most important stages as the success of a design is not to fail.

Fix

Alter the design to meet the requirements previously unmet. When the design fails can it be fixed easily, will it happen often? Modifications should be made to ensure the failure doesn’t happen!!!