Reverse Engineering

Reverse engineering: A strategy used to find answers to questions about an existing product that are used in the design of another product.
Invention: Design work that results in something unique or novel
Innovation: Process of improving or modifying an existing product

Readings:

Reasons for reverse engineering

The reverse engineering process starts when a design team or management team identifies a need or concern that could be addressed through reverse engineering inquiry. Typically, designers use reverse engineering for one or more of the following reasons:

To research similar products in an effort to discover possible ways to make a more competitive product.
To test a product or design to determine what is failing or causing a failure.
As part of a company's continuous product improvement policy.
To provide documentation for product components when original drawings are no longer available or accurate
To educate design professionals on the topics of function, structure, manufacturing, and aesthetics.
For equipment repair, through the design of replacement parts, for products no longer in production.
To develop CAD and CNC electronic data (Digital Models) for computer-enhanced manufacturing processes.

Reverse engineering Step by step:

STEP 1: Identify the purpose:

What do you want to learn about your product? What are the areas of research you want to focus on?

STEP 2: Develop a Hypothesis

Because reverse engineering is most appropriately used to determine how something functions and how the components work together to achieve that function this step involves describing your hypothesis about the product function.
A hypothesis is a statement that suggests a possible, unproven answer to a question. Scientists often develop hypotheses (predictions or unproven ideas) that require thorough research and evaluation. Technologists and engineers have adapted that process to engineering design: They conduct laboratory experiments, testing, and observations to confirm or disprove their hypotheses.

STEP 3: Disassembly

The technical name for this step is Teardown. During this step, it is important to thoroughly document all parts, relationships, and connections using conceptual sketches, labels, and notes. It is important not to lose any part. Record any serial numbers or codes.

STEP 4: Analyze the Elements

This step involves:
- - - Functional analysis (what is the function of the different parts, how do they work together, what are the underlying scientific principles behind their functioning?) Simply put, how does the product work? Usually, functional analysis answers questions about a mechanical system or how an electronic circuit works, nearly all mechanical systems contain at least one of the following elements: Lever or crank, Wheel or gears, Cam, Screw. Objects that transmit tension or compression, such as a pulley, belt, chain) spring, or hydraulic fluid line. Objects that transmit intermittent motion, such as the ratchet Look for these elements when analyzing a product's mechanical function. During analysis, an engineer will take measurements or perform tests on a product's components. Many tools have been developed to aid in measuring parts. Accurate measurements are important, and care must be taken to use each measuring tool correctly. Precise measurement and testing with quality instruments increase the reliability of the data collected during the reverse engineering process.
    - Structural analysis (How are the different parts connected together?) All structures, regardless of their purpose, must support internal and external loads and must hold parts in place. One of the first steps in structural analysis is to determine the purpose of each part and how it interacts with the other parts. The Structural analysis addresses all or some of these properties (interactions). The way a product is constructed must provide support for internal parts, Housing, Containment, Protection, Transportability, etc... Then Structural analysis involves principles of mechanics and material properties. In the reverse engineering process, it is important to research and identify the material strength of the structural component and decide if those properties match the structural purpose.
    - Material analysis (What materials are used, what are their properties?) The choice of material greatly affects a part's performance, and the material's properties must be correctly matched to the part's application. At a most basic level, we can identify a material by its common name. Materials are usually identified by type, such as wood, metal, plastic, ceramic, or composite. Designers need to understand material properties and how these properties contribute to performance and durability. It is also useful to know what kind of manufacturing processes are used to manipulate materials into desired forms. Analyzing materials requires understanding basic material properties because materials are also identified by scientific properties. These properties are Mechanical, Electrical, Thermal, Chemical, Optica, Acoustical. Material properties are measured in various units. For example, modulus is a mechanical property that describes dimensional change in a material as it is subjected to an applied load (pressure or weight). The values are measured in pounds per square inch (lbs/in^2 or psi) or in newtons per square centimeter (N/cm^2). Material property values are determined through standardized tests. The values of these material properties are compared for design purposes. For example, structural steel has Young's modulus value of 30,000,000 psi. The value for aluminum is approximately 10,000,000 psi. Therefore, an engineer can look at these values and recognize that steel is three times stronger than aluminum. This is one reason why builders construct the skeletal structures of skyscrapers with steel instead of aluminum. The following items are helpful when testing material properties: Digital force scale or balance, Laser temperature gun or thermometer, heat gun, or oven, Stopwatch or timer, Small flashlight, and mirror, for visual inspection, material properties chart, etc... When engineers analyze a product, they add careful notes in the engineer's notebook about the material characteristics of each part. As engineers examine the parts, they also look for signs of wear or other indicators of potential failure.
    - Manufacturing analysis (How was the product made?) Manufacturing is a broad term used to describe the application of tools and processes to the transformation of raw materials into finished goods. Designers always consider manufacturing processes during the design process. Professionals who help design the most efficient way to produce a new product are manufacturing engineers. Manufacturing engineers are either part of the design team or act as consultants during the design process. Many different systems to produce products are available. The reverse engineering process determines how the product was manufactured. though it may be difficult to determine the actual production system used for the parts, the manufacturing processes are relatively easy to identify. Materials are manipulated mainly by three different methods—forming, separating, and joining: Forming methods use heat and/or pressure to reshape a material into the desired form. Separation methods carve the desired form from an existing block of material. Joining methods combine two or more objects together.

IMPORTANT! Step 4 requires extensive research using all available resources (Internet, Books, Experts, Mentors, etc...)

STEP 5: Prepare the report

In the report stage of the reverse engineering process, you will present your findings.

Start out by confirming that you have addressed the purpose of the reverse engineering inquiry by revisiting Step l: For example, if the purpose of the reverse engineering process was to develop CAD drawings for conversion to compute numerical code (CNC), ask yourself have you gathered the information necessary to create them?

Answer these kinds of questions (these are examples modify according to your case study):

If you reverse-engineered a product to determine the durability of the internal mechanisms, what did you discover?
Did any parts show wear? Were you able to determine the cause of the wear and how to correct it?
If your purpose was product improvement or evolution, how did the information gathered about the production lead to a new understanding?

In preparation for your report, remember to revisit your hypothesis.

Were your assumptions correct?

What information did discover most helpful in addressing the purpose of inquiry?

Once you answer the questions, you are ready to prepare your report for the presentation. Communicating the results of your reverse engineering process in a clear and concise way requires careful consideration and planning. Determine which method of delivery will be most effective in presenting the relevant information. Sometimes teams use a poster session to graphically present information on a series of poster panels. Other support documentation might include charts, graphs, photographs, video, or a combination of these.

STEP 6: Product redesign

Examples of reports:

Rubrics:

Reversing engineering Grading Rubrics

Report abuse