Interoperation of STEP application protocols for product data management

A crucial issue in concurrent engineering (CE) is the information communication between the heterogeneous computer based systems. STEP is an evolving international standard for the representation and exchange of product data in all phases of the product's lifecycle, that offers an efficient mechanism of information communication for CE. Application Protocols (APs) of STEP support the exchange of product data among different application domains such as CAD, CAE, CAPP, CAM. Therefore, in CE, there is a strong demand for interoperability between different APs through standardized exchange and sharing of data. This article introduces a systematic approach to implementing the interoperation between APs, which addresses the issue at three levels: Application Interpreted Constructs (AICs), Unit of Functionality (UoFs) and Concept. This paper describes the methodology and illustrates an example of interoperation between AP 203 and AP209 of STEP to demonstrate how to implement the interoperation at the above three levels.