MAS
secret
MAS 2.0
Guides
  Fab Processes
  Materials
  Facet Descriptions

  Interface Help
F.A.Q.
Tutorials
  Basic Use
  Advanced Search

  Cost Estimates
  Process Chains
Original MAS
4/14/99

 

 

F. A. Q. / Bug Reporting

Home - CyberCut - I.M.L.

Look through the known bugs below before reporting a bug!

Send mail to: smythe@kingkong.me.berkeley.edu to report a bug.

Questions:

WHAT IS THE MAS?

The Manufacturing Advisory Service (MAS) is a concept level tool for fabrication process and material selection. While entering values for a set of facets, or attributes, for a conceptual part, the user is given realtime feedback regarding plausible fabrication methods. Once a process is selected, process chains or cost estimates can be explored.

I CAN'T PRINT MY RESULTS!

This is a problem with your browser's implementation of JAVA, both netscape and microsoft seem unwilling to properly print java. You can do a screen capture, and paste it into any application that will print. To do a screen capture on a windows 95 based machine, select the window you are interested in, hold the 'alt' key, and then press the 'print-screen' key. You now have a bitmap in the clipboard that can be pasted into any graphics program, or word processor that supports graphics.

On a Macintosh, hold down Shift, Command and 4 and you will get a crosshair. Outline with the crosshair by clicking and dragging, starting at the upper left of the window you want to print, and going down to the lower right. You now have a SimpleText PICT on your clipboard that you can paste into any graphics compatible program with a print option.


IN THE RESULTS SURVEY MODE, MY MATERIALS AND PROCESSES ARE GIVEN DIFFERENT RANKS THAN IN THE MATERIAL/PROCESS SEARCH MODE!

You probably have specified the material facet in a process search, or the process facet in material search. When in result survey mode, each process is compared with every possible viable material with a process-material compatibility factor, and then ranked. In the other modes, each canditate is only compated to one material or process and then ranked. In order to discover new material / process combinations, the results survey ignores the material and process facets in both of the search modes!


WHEN USING THE SCROLL BAR TO MANIPULATE A FACET'S VALUE, THE SCREEN FLICKERS A LOT AND THE SCROLL BAR LAGS BEHIND.

Some versions of netscape's browser capture many more mouse events during a mouse than other versions. The MAS updates the ranks with every mouse event in the scroll bar area, which can result in a blinking screen. To avoid this, you may turn off 'dynarun' in prefernences, which means the rankings will only be updated every time you click the 'run calcs' button, or simply avoid dragging the scroll bar's box. Instead, use the scroll bar's arrows, or click in the region to the left and right of the scroll bar's box.



THE POSSIBILITIES LIST RUNS DOWN PAST THE BOTTOM OF THE LIST, AND DOESN'T LINE UP WITH THE RANKINGS.

Some implementations of java have not properly implemented all of their font libraries, and results in the improper sizing of fonts. Try using a machine running solaris or win95/NT -- this operating systems have been tested for font compatibility.

WHAT PROCESSES AND MATERIALS DOES THE MAS IGNORE?

The MAS was designed to address the manufacture of a large variety of commercial and industrial products. However, due to the expansive range of manufacturing, the MAS could not be designed to address every product. Instead it focuses on set of processes, and ignored the following special categories:

  • Glass, rubber, stone, or precious metals.

  • Chemical Machining.

  • Bent wire/rod shapes, such as springs, paper clips, Kryptonite(tm) locks, and chain link fences.

  • Paper products (cups, plates, cardboard boxes).

  • Hand crafted items (intricate jewelry, handmade pottery, blacksmith work).

  • Composite products (carbon fiber, a compact disc).

  • No sheet cutting processes other than those packaged in sheet metal forming. So laser cutting, abrasive water jet cutting, etc. are not included.

  • Joining Processes: Brazing, Arc Weld, Laser/Electron beam weld, ultrasonic weld, brazing/soldering, adhesive bond, mechanical fastening
     
     
     
     
     

     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     

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