畢業(yè)論文英文翻譯-信息時(shí)代的機(jī)械工程

MechanicalEngineeringintheInformationAgeIntheearly1980s,engineersthoughtthatmassiveresearchwouldbeneededtospeedupproductdevelopment.Asitturnsout,lessresearchisactuallyneededbecauseshortenedproductdevelopmentcyclesencourageengineerstouseavailabletechnology.Developingarevolutionarytechnologyforuseinanewproductisriskyandpronetofailure.Takingshortstepsisasaferandusuallymoresuccessfulapproachtoproductdevelopment.Shorterproductdevelopmentcyclesarealsobeneficialinanengineeringwouldinwhichbothcapitalandlaborareglobal.Peoplewhocandesignandmanufacturevariousproductscanbefoundanywhereintheworld,butcontaininganewideaishard.Geographicdistanceisnolongerabarriertoothersfindingoutaboutyourdevelopmentsixmonthsintotheprocess.Ifyou’vegotashortdevelopmentcycle,thesituationisnotcatastrophic－aslongasyoumaintainyourlead.Butifyou’reinthemidstofasix-yeardevelopmentprocessandacompetitorgetswindofyourwork,theprojectcouldbeinmoreserioustrouble.Theideathatengineersneedtocreateanewdesigntosolveeveryproblemisquicklybecomingobsolete.ThefirststepinthemoderndesignprocessistobrowsetheInternetorotherinformationsystemstoseeifsomeoneelsehasalreadydesignedatransmission,oraheatexchangerthatisclosetowhatyouneed.Throughtheseinformationsystems,youmaydiscoverthatsomeonealreadyhasmanufacturingdrawings,numericalcontrolprograms,andeverythingelserequiredtomanufactureyourproduct.Engineerscanthenfocustheirprofessionalcompetenceonunsolvedproblems.Manyengineershaveastheirfunctionthedesigningofproductsthataretobebroughtintorealitythroughtheprocessingorfabricationofmaterials.Inthiscapacitytheyareakeyfactorinthematerialselection-manufacturingprocedure.Adesignengineer,betterthananyotherperson,shouldknowwhatheorshewantsadesigntoaccomplish.Heknowswhatassumptionshehasmadeaboutserviceloadsandrequirements,whatserviceenvironmenttheproductmustwithstand,andwhatappearancehewantsthefinalproducttohave.Inordertomeettheserequirementshemustselectandspecifythematerial(s)tobeused.Inmostcases,inordertoutilizethematerialandtoenabletheproducttohavethedesiredform,heknowsthatcertainmanufacturingprocesseswillhavetobeemployed.Inmanyinstances,theselectionofaspecificmaterialmaydictatewhatprocessingmustbeused.Atthesametime,whencertainprocessesaretobeused,thedesignmayhavetobemodifiedmaydictatewhatprocessingmustbeused.Atthesametime,whencertainprocessesaretobeused,thedesignmayhavebemodifiedinorderfortheprocesstobeutilizedeffectivelyandeconomically.Certaindimensionaltolerancescandictatetheprocessing.Inanycase,inthesequenceofconvertingthedesignintoreality,suchdecisionsmustbemadebysomeone.Inmostinstancestheycanbemademosteffectivelyatthedesignstage,bythedesignerifhehasareasonablyadequateknowledgeconcerningmaterialsandmanufacturingprocesses.Otherwise,decisionsmaybemadethatwilldetractfromtheeeffectivenessoftheproduct,ortheproductmaybeneedlesslycostly.Itisthusapparentthatdesignengineersareavitalfactorinthemanufacturingprocess,anditisindeedablessingtothecompanyiftheycandesignforproducibility—thatis,forefficientproduction.Manufacturingengineersselectandcoordinatespecificprocessesandequipmenttobeused,orsuperviseandmanagetheiruse.Somedesignspecialtoolingthatisusedsothatstandardmachinescanbeutilizedenproducingspecificproducts.Theseengineersmusthabeabroadknowledgeofmachineandprocesscapabilitiesandofmaterials,sothatdesiredoperationscanbedoneeffectivelyandeffi8cientlywithoutoverloadingordamagingmachinesandwithoutadverselyaffectingthematerialsbeingprocessed.Thesemanufacturingengineersalsoplayanimportantroleenmanufacturing.Arelativelysmallgroupofengineersdesignthemachinesandequipmentusedenmanufacturing.Theyobviouslyaredesignengineersand,relativetotheirproducts,theyhavethesameconcernsoftheinterrelationshipofdesign,materials,andmanufacturingprocesses.Howevertheyhaveanevengreaterconcernregardingthepropertiesofthematerialsthattheirmachinesaregoingtoprocessandtheinterrelationsofthematerialsandmachines.Stillanothergroupofengineers—thematerialsengineers—devotetheirmajoreffortstowarddevelopingnewandbettermaterials.They,too,mustbeconcernedwithhowthesematerialscanbeprocessedandwiththeeffectstheprocessingwillhaveonthepropertiesofthematerials.Althoughtheirrolesmaybequitedifferent,itisapparentthatalargeproportionofengineersmustconcernthemselveswiththeinterrelationshipbetweenmaterialsandmanufacturingprocesses.Low-costmanufacturedoesnotjusthappen.Thereisacloseandinterdependentrelationshipbetweenthedesignofaproduct,selectionofmaterials,selectionofprocessesandequipment,andtoolingselectionanddesign.Eachofthesemustbecarefullyconsidered,planned,andcoordinatedbeforemanufacturingstarts.Thisleadtime,particularlyforcomplicatedproducts,maytakemonths,evenyears,andtheexpenditureoflargeamountofmoneymaybeinvolved.Typically,theleadtimeforacompletelynewmodelofanautomobileisabout2years,foramodernaircraftitmaybe4years.Intacklingsuchproblems,theavailabilityofhigh-poweredpersonalcomputersandaccesstotheinformationhighwaydramaticallyenhancethecapabilityoftheengineeringteamanditsproductivity.Theseinformationagetoolscangivetheteamaccesstomassivedatabasesofmaterialproperties,standards,technologies,andsuccessfuldesigns.Suchprotesteddesignscanbedownloadedfordirectuseorquicklymodifiedtomeetspecificneeds.Remotemanufacturing,inwhichproductinstructionsaresentoutoveranetwork,isalsopossible.Youcouldendupwithavirtualcompanywhereyoudon’thavetoseeanyhardware.Whentheproductiscompleted,youcandirectthemanufacturertodrop-shipittoyourcustomer.Periodicvisitstothecustomercanbemadetoensurethattheproductyoudesignedisworkingaccordingtothespecifications.Althoughallofthesedevelopmentswon’tapplyequallytoeverycompany,thepotentialisthere.Customdesignusedtobelefttosmallcompanies.Bigcompaniessneeredatit－theyhatedtheideaofdealingwithnichemarketsorsmall-volumecustomsolutions.“Hereismyproduct,”O(jiān)neofthebigcompanieswouldsay.“Thisisthebestwecanmakeit－yououghttolikeit.Ifyoudon’t,there’ssmallercompanydownthestreetthatwillworkonyourproblem.”Today,nearlyeverymarketisanichemarket,becausecustomersareselective.Ifyouignorethepotentialfortailoringyourproducttospecificcustomers’needs,youwilllosethemajorpartofyourmarketshare－perhapsallofit.Sincethesenichemarketsaretransient,yourcompanyneedstobeinapositiontorespondtothemquickly.Theemergenceofnichemarketsanddesignondemandhasalteredthewayengineersconductresearch.Today,researchiscommonlydirectedtowardsolvingparticularproblems.Althoughthissituationisprobablytemporary,muchuncommittedtechnology,developedatgovernmentexpenseorwrittenoffbymajorcorporations,isavailabletodayatverylowcost.Followingmodestmodifications,suchtechnologycanoftenbeuseddirectlyinproductdevelopment,whichallowsmanyorganizationstoavoidtheexpenseofanextensiveresearcheffort.Oncethetechnologyisfreeofmajorobstacles,theresearcheffortcanfocusonovercomingthebarrierstocommercializationratherthanonpursuingnewandinteresting,butundefined,alternatives.Whenviewedinthisperspective,engineeringresearchmustfocusprimarilyonremovingthebarrierstorapidcommercializationofknowntechnologies.Muchofthiseffortmustaddressqualityandreliabilityconcerns,whichareforemostinthemindsoftoday’sconsumers.Clearly,areputationforpoorqualityissynonymouswithbadbusiness.Everythingpossible－includingthoroughinspectionattheendofthemanufacturinglineandautomaticreplacementofdefectiveproducts－mustbedonetoassurethatthecustomerreceivesaproperlyfunctioningproduct.Researchhastofocusonthecostbenefitoffactorssuchasreliability.Asreliabilityincreases,manufacturingcostsandthefinalcostofthesystemwilldecrease.Having30percentjunkattheendofaproductionlinenotonlycostsafortunebutalsocreatesanopportunityforacompetitortotakeyourideaandsellittoyourcustomers.Centraltotheprocessofimprovingreliabilityandloweringcostsistheintensiveandwidespreaduseofdesignsoftware,whichallowsengineerstospeedupeverystageofthedesignprocess.Shorteningeachstage,however,maynotsufficientlyreducethetimerequiredfortheentireprocess.Therefore,attentionmustalsobedevotedtoconcurrentengineeringsoftwarewithshareddatabasesthatcanbeaccessedbyallmembersofthedesignteam.AswemovemorefullyintotheInformationAge,successwillrequirethattheengineerpossesssomeuniqueknowledgeofandexperienceinboththedevelopmentandthemanagementoftechnology.Successwillrequirebroadknowledgeandskillsaswellasexpertiseinsomekeytechnologiesanddisciplines;itwillalsorequireakeenawarenessofthesocialandeconomicfactorsatworkinthemarketplace.Increasingly,inthefuture,routineproblemswillnotjustifyheavyengineeringexpenditures,andengineerswillbeexpectedtoworkcooperativelyinsolvingmorechallenging,moredemandingproblemsinsubstantiallylesstime.Wehavebegunanewphaseinthepracticeofengineering.Itoffersgreatpromiseandexcitementasmoreandmoreproblem－solvingcapabilityisplacedinthehandsofthecomputerizedandwiredengineer.Toassuresuccess,thecapabilityofourtoolsandtheunquenchedthirstforbetterproductsandsystemsmustbematchedbythejoyofcreationthatmarksallgreatengineeringendeavors.Mechanicalengineeringisagreatprofession,anditwillbecomeevengreateraswemakethemostoftheopportunitiesofferedbytheInformationAge.信息時(shí)代的機(jī)械工程在80年代初期，工程師們?cè)?jīng)認(rèn)為要加快產(chǎn)品的研制開發(fā)，必須進(jìn)行大量的研究工作。結(jié)果是實(shí)際上只進(jìn)行了較少的研究工作，這是因?yàn)楫a(chǎn)品開發(fā)周期的縮短，促使工程師們盡可能地利用現(xiàn)有的技術(shù)。研制開發(fā)一種創(chuàng)新性的技術(shù)并將其應(yīng)用在新產(chǎn)品上，是有風(fēng)險(xiǎn)的，并且易于招致失敗。在產(chǎn)品開發(fā)過程中采用較少的步驟是一種安全的和易于成功的方法。對(duì)于資金和從略都處于全球性環(huán)境中的工程界而言，縮短產(chǎn)品研制開發(fā)周期也是有益的。能夠設(shè)計(jì)和制造各種產(chǎn)品的人可以在世界各地找到。但是，具有創(chuàng)新思想感情的人則比較難找。對(duì)于你已經(jīng)進(jìn)行了6個(gè)月的研制開發(fā)工作，地理上的距離已經(jīng)不再是其他人發(fā)現(xiàn)它的障礙。如果你的研制周期較短，只要你仍然保持領(lǐng)先，這種情況親不會(huì)造成嚴(yán)重后果。但是如果你正處于一個(gè)長達(dá)6年的研制開發(fā)過程的中期，一個(gè)競爭對(duì)手了解到你的研究工作的一些信息，這個(gè)項(xiàng)目將面臨比較大的麻煩。工程師們?cè)诮鉀Q任何問題時(shí)都需要進(jìn)行新的設(shè)計(jì)這種觀念很快就過時(shí)了。在現(xiàn)代設(shè)計(jì)中的第一步是瀏覽因特網(wǎng)或者其他信息系統(tǒng)，看其他人是否已經(jīng)設(shè)計(jì)了一種類似于你所需要的產(chǎn)品，諸如傳動(dòng)裝置或者換熱器等。通過這些信息系統(tǒng)，你可能發(fā)現(xiàn)有些人已經(jīng)有了制造圖紙，數(shù)控程序和制造你的產(chǎn)品所需要的其他所有東西。這樣，工程師們就可以把他們的職業(yè)技能集中在尚未解決的問題上。許多工程師的職責(zé)是進(jìn)行產(chǎn)品設(shè)計(jì)，而產(chǎn)品是通過對(duì)材料的加工制造而生產(chǎn)出來的。設(shè)計(jì)工程師在材料選擇——制造方法等方面起著關(guān)鍵的作用。一個(gè)設(shè)計(jì)工程師應(yīng)該比其他的人更清楚地知道他的設(shè)計(jì)需要達(dá)到什么目的。他知道他對(duì)使用荷載和使用要求所做的假設(shè)，產(chǎn)品的使用環(huán)境，產(chǎn)品應(yīng)該具有的外觀形貌。為了滿足這些要求，他必須選擇和規(guī)定所使用的材料。通常，為了利用材料并使產(chǎn)品具有所期望的形狀，設(shè)計(jì)工程師知道應(yīng)該采用哪些制造方法。在許多情況下，選擇了某種特定材料就可能意味著已經(jīng)確定了某種必須采用的加工方法。同時(shí)，當(dāng)決定采用某種加工方法后，很可能需要對(duì)設(shè)計(jì)進(jìn)行修改，以使這種加工方法能夠被有效而經(jīng)濟(jì)地應(yīng)用。某些尺寸公差可以決定產(chǎn)品的加工方法?？傊趯⒃O(shè)計(jì)轉(zhuǎn)變?yōu)楫a(chǎn)品的過程中，必須有人作出這些決定。在大多數(shù)情況下，如果設(shè)計(jì)人員在材料和加工方法方面具有足夠的知識(shí)，他會(huì)在設(shè)計(jì)階段作出最為合理的決定。否則，作出的決定可能會(huì)降低產(chǎn)品的性能，或者使產(chǎn)品變得過于昂貴。顯然，設(shè)計(jì)工程師是制造過程中的關(guān)鍵人物，如果他們能夠進(jìn)行面向生產(chǎn)（即可以進(jìn)行高效率生產(chǎn)）的設(shè)計(jì)，就會(huì)給公司帶來效益。制造工程師們選擇和調(diào)整所采用的加工方法和設(shè)備，或者監(jiān)督和管理這些加工方法和設(shè)備的使用。一些工程師進(jìn)行專用工藝裝備的設(shè)計(jì)，以使通用機(jī)床能夠被用來生產(chǎn)特定的產(chǎn)品。這些工程師們?cè)跈C(jī)床、工藝能力和材料方面必須具有廣泛的知識(shí)，以使機(jī)器在沒有過載和損壞，而且對(duì)被加工材料沒有不良影響的情況下，更為有效地完成所需要的加工工序。這些制造工程師們?cè)谥圃鞓I(yè)中也起到重要作用。少數(shù)工程師們?cè)O(shè)計(jì)在制造業(yè)中使用的機(jī)床和設(shè)備。顯然，他們是設(shè)計(jì)工程師。而且對(duì)于他們的產(chǎn)品而言，他們同樣關(guān)心設(shè)計(jì)、材料和制造方法之間的相互關(guān)系。然而，他們更多地關(guān)心他們所設(shè)計(jì)的機(jī)床將要加工的材料的性能和機(jī)床與材料之間的相互作用。這有另外一些工程師——材料工程師，他們致力于研制新型的和更好的材料，他們也應(yīng)該關(guān)心這些材料的加工方法和加工對(duì)材料性能的影響。盡管工程師們所起的作用可能會(huì)有很大差別，但是，大部分工程師們都必須考慮材料與制造工藝之間的相互關(guān)系。低成本制造并不是自動(dòng)產(chǎn)生的。在產(chǎn)品設(shè)計(jì)、材料選擇、加工方法和設(shè)備的選擇，工藝裝備選擇和設(shè)計(jì)之間都有著非常密切的相互依賴關(guān)系。這些步驟中的每一個(gè)都必須在開始制造前仔細(xì)地加以考慮、規(guī)劃和協(xié)調(diào)。這種從產(chǎn)品設(shè)計(jì)到實(shí)際生產(chǎn)的準(zhǔn)備工作，特別是對(duì)于復(fù)雜產(chǎn)品，可能需要數(shù)月甚至數(shù)年的時(shí)間，并且可能花費(fèi)很多錢。典型的例子有，對(duì)于一種全新的汽車，從設(shè)計(jì)到投產(chǎn)所需要的時(shí)間大約為2年，而一種現(xiàn)代化飛機(jī)則可能需要4年。在解決這類問題時(shí)，利用高性能微型計(jì)算機(jī)和進(jìn)入信息高速公路可以大大增強(qiáng)工程小組的能力和效率。這些信息時(shí)代的工具可以使工程小組利用大規(guī)模的數(shù)據(jù)庫。數(shù)據(jù)庫中有材料性能、標(biāo)準(zhǔn)、技術(shù)和成功的設(shè)計(jì)方案等信息。這些經(jīng)過驗(yàn)證的設(shè)計(jì)可以通過下載直接應(yīng)用，或者通