Design systems that support automated reasoning and design generation demand more from design representations than traditional CAD systems. Those representations must capture aspects of the design, ranging from abstract, high-level specifications of design constraints to detailed descriptions of design geometry. They must support checking for errors and inconsistencies, and generating designs and design alternatives. Automated design systems cannot rely on a designer to make sense out of inadequate or disassociated representations. This paper presents an integrated set of design representations that support automated reasoning and design generation, paying careful attention to issues of scale and complexity. We have implemented these representations in our generative design system, Genesis, and used them in the design of aircraft systems.
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