Reverse deduction of virtual chromosomes of manufactured products for their gene-engineering-based innovative design

With the similarity between living beings’ evolution and manufactured products’ development, gene-engineering techniques have been applied to develop a bionic design theory and methodology for product innovation. This design method is different from the conventional one and innovates products via artificial differentiation of products’ virtual chromosomes. It provides a logically structured process, which can reduce blindness to innovation. Since products have no physical chromosomes, their virtual chromosomes must be reverse deduced according to their function requirements so that the new design method can be applied. This paper introduces the gene-engineering-based innovative design method, and discloses the contents and data structure of products’ chromosomes and applies database techniques to edit and store products’ chromosomes. As an example, the virtual chromosome of ball bearings is reverse deduced and stored in a database according to the method developed in the paper; and its innovation is traced back using gene-engineering-based innovation method. q 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.