Forecasting Environmental Profiles in the Early Stages of Product Development by Using an Ontological Approach

Considering environmental aspects in early product development stages is a complex endeavor. Product life cycle data are fuzzy and subject to changes. Additional workload due to data handling is a common reason why it is withdrawn by engineering designers. Some studies suggest parameterization of products in order to gain a limited set of parameters to handle, some others suggest integration of Life Cycle Assessment into CAD or Product Data Management systems. However, the handling of heterogeneous data from multiple sources is not paid much attention. This paper suggests an ontological approach that allows considering data from multiple sources to set up an environmental profile of the product and allow for adaptations in the product concept.