Attribution-Tracked Collaborative Design Under Manufacturing Constraints

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing computer-implemented collaboration applications for customizing physical products before manufacture are cumbersome, leading users to skip customization opportunities due to the complexity of navigating numerous attributes and clicks.

Innovation Solution

A role-based collaborative platform that tracks attribution and enforces manufacturing constraints, utilizing global-key-values pairs to manage contributions and generate manufacturing instructions for customized products, allowing users to collaborate efficiently through a graphical user interface.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Adaptability or versatility

If users navigate through countless sets of attributes to customize products, then product personalization capability is improved, but ease of operation deteriorates

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveproduct personalization capabilityVSAvoidease of operation

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSEase of operation

Solution Approach 1:

The patent segments the product customization interface into multiple hierarchical levels or categories (e.g., basic attributes, advanced attributes, manufacturer-specific attributes). Users can navigate through organized groups rather than a single overwhelming list, making the customization process more manageable while still accessing comprehensive personalization options.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The system performs preliminary actions by pre-organizing attributes into logical groups and categories before the user interacts with them. Default configurations and recommended attribute sets are prepared in advance, allowing users to start customization with a structured framework rather than facing a blank slate of countless options.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

2Adaptability or versatility

If the customization interface includes countless attributes and options, then product personalization capability is improved, but device complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveproduct personalization capabilityVSAvoidinterface complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The interface is segmented into modular components where attributes are divided into distinct sections (e.g., appearance, dimensions, materials, specifications). Each segment can be independently configured and collapsed/expanded, reducing the perceived complexity while maintaining full personalization capability.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The patent introduces additional organizational dimensions beyond simple attribute lists, such as hierarchical categorization, filtering mechanisms, and multi-view displays. Attributes can be organized by function, frequency of use, or manufacturing constraints, adding structural dimensions that reduce interface complexity.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #17Another dimension (Dimensionality change)

3Loss of information

If the system tracks attribution for each user contribution, then collaboration transparency is improved, but data processing complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvecollaboration transparencyVSAvoiddata processing complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

Loss of informationVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The system creates simplified copies or representations of attribution data (e.g., user avatars, contribution summaries, metadata tags) that capture essential collaboration information without requiring complex processing of full user profiles and interaction histories. These copies enable transparency while reducing computational overhead.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #26Copying

Solution Approach 2:

Attribution tracking is performed preliminarily by automatically assigning and recording user contributions as they occur during collaborative customization. The system pre-processes and stores attribution metadata in structured formats, eliminating the need for complex post-processing and enabling transparent collaboration tracking with minimal ongoing computational complexity.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Data Source

PatentUS12456138B2Method and computer readable storage media for role-based and attribution-tracking collaborative design of custom products based on manufacturing constraints

Publication Date: 2025.10.28 SPENGLER GMBH & CO KG

AI summary

In some embodiments, a computer-implemented method for role-based and attribution-tracking collaborative design based on manufacturing constraints is disclosed. A method comprises: receiving product description data for an interactive design; wherein the product description data for the interactive design comprises data for generating a graphical visual representation of a physical product that is capable of custom manufacture with a plurality of variable product attributes; parsing the product description data to identify a plurality of global-key-values pairs journaled within the product description data and associated with contributors; based on, at least in part, the plurality of global-key-values pairs, constructing an ownership-attribution tree; based on the ownership-attribution tree, generating manufacturing instructions for customizing the physical product and according to the plurality of variable product attributes; and transmitting the manufacturing instructions to a product customization server to cause a manufacturing entity to proceed with generating a customized product based on the manufacturing instructions.