Strategic knowledge in design: a compositional approach

In interactive design processes, strategic decisions are made at different levels. To support designers, design support systems need to include corresponding strategic knowledge at these levels. In this paper three levels of strategic interaction and strategic knowledge are identified within a compositional model of design. These levels are identified in reasoning about the manipulation of requirements and their qualifications, reasoning about the manipulation of design object descriptions and reasoning about design process co-ordination. Instances of strategic knowledge illustrate the different levels.