The role of this chapter is to provide a description of how products will be modelled for use in subsequent sections of the thesis. The representation is similar to other approaches, but has some subtle differences to support the subsequent planning process. This is not to say that the method is a replacement of previous methods, in fact it may be used to imitate many of the other methods available.
The description begins with a review of solid modelling as it applies to product modelling. This is followed by some discussion of how to incorporate not only solid modelling, but other aspects of product design, into an algebraic form. Software implementations were used for verification of the method. These include capabilities for storage of arbitrary sets, and storage and manipulation of Boolean equations.
If the reader requires more background in solid modeling, they are directed to Requicha and Rossignac [1992] and Stewart [1990].