| Abstract | An Internet-based infrastructure is being developed inorder to provide designers with access to multiple layered-
manufacturing services. The design domain being addressed is
that of small mechanisms or electro-mechanical assemblies that
would be used in robots or other mechatronic devices. The
approach presented relies on the formalization of the data
exchange interface between designers and manufacturers. The
primary operatives in this system are Design Clients,
Manufacturing Services and Process Brokers. The Design
Client allows designers to submit completed designs for
algorithmic decomposition, or alternately, to compose a design
from primitives and library components that have been primed
with some process-related information. During this early phase,
the Manufacturing Service consists of a highly automated
machine that can be used to build ceramic parts, and the
associated software components for design decomposition,
process planning and machine control. In later phases, multiple
service providers will be made accessible. The Process Broker
implements a number of supporting services including process
selection and optimal part orientation. Future broker services
will include manufacturability analysis, directory services and
accreditation etc. Currently, this interface is being built and
evaluated internally at Stanford and CMU. It will be made available for use by other selected universities in the near
future.
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