JP2009059377A - Product development process support system and product development processing support method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To easily reduce useless repeating work in a process for developing a complicated product. <P>SOLUTION: This product development process support system 10 is a system for analyzing a dependence relation between a plurality of essential conditions in a product development process, which belongs to any of a plurality of hierarchies is provided with an input receiving part 12 for receiving inputs of information showing a dependence relation between two essential conditions belonging to respective adjacent hierarchies and information showing the degree of influence of the essential conditions on product development, and a dependence relation deriving part 13 for deriving a dependence relation between two optional essential conditions belonging to the same hierarchy from information showing a dependence relation between the two essential conditions received by the input receiving part 12, the other essential conditions and information showing the degree of influence of the two essential conditions on the basis of a preset dependence relation derivation rule. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a product development process support system and a product development process support method that analyze dependencies among a plurality of requirements in a product development process that belong to any of a plurality of layers.

  In the product development process, there is a Quality Function Deployment (QFD) method that breaks down the top development requirements (customer requirements, system requirements) in marketing into the requirements of each product design item. . For example, in the development of industrial products such as automobiles and digital copiers, products are deployed in many modules and parts in order to achieve higher development requirements. In the QFD method, the dependency between the upper and lower requirements (between the higher level development requirements and the requirements of the design items of modules and parts) is arranged, and the contents of the requirements of the design items of each module and parts are determined based on this arrangement. Is done. Based on this determination, the design of each module or part is performed by a number of designers and verifiers for each design item.

On the other hand, there is a DSM (Design Structure Matrix) method as a method for organizing the relationship between the design items of the developed modules and parts. According to the DSM method, it is possible to grasp how to cooperate (collaborate) between design items (designers and verifiers) of modules and parts (for example, Patent Document 1 below). reference).
JP 2004-280249 A

  In the QFD method, if the upper requirements are appropriately developed and there is no risk in each design, design problems do not occur. However, in general, it is often the case that a breakdown of requirements cannot be achieved by any module or component because there is a contradiction in the development of higher-level requirements or the elements of each design item have risks. To happen.

  In this case, it is necessary to adjust the requirements of modules and parts that cannot be achieved with the design of other modules and other parts, and to review and modify the design so that the target can be achieved. As described above, in the case of the QFD method, there is a possibility that wasteful repetitive work such as re-designing the content once designed by the own factor and other factors frequently occurs.

  In order to avoid this, it is necessary to smoothly coordinate the work with the design items (designers and verifiers) of the developed modules and parts. However, with the QFD method, it is difficult to grasp the relationship between the requirements of the design items of each developed module and component even if the dependency relationship between the upper and lower requirements can be grasped.

  On the other hand, in the DSM method described above, the relationship between the requirements of the design items of each developed module or part can be organized, but it is necessary to describe the brute force dependency between the requirements. Once the brute force dependency between requirements can be described once, it becomes possible to grasp the necessary cooperation and avoid unnecessary repeated work. However, it is very difficult to describe the brute force dependency between requirements, and the more complicated the product is, the more difficult it is to actually do this.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and a product development process support system and product development process support that can easily reduce useless repetitive work in the process of developing a complex product. It aims to provide a method.

  The product development process support system according to the present invention is configured by a computer system and includes a plurality of product development processes belonging to either the first hierarchy or the second hierarchy that is an upper hierarchy of the first hierarchy. A product development process support system for analyzing a dependency relationship between requirements, and for each requirement belonging to the first layer and the second layer, the dependency relationship of the requirement belonging to the first layer to the requirement belonging to the second layer Is input as a numerical value of the QFD table, input receiving means for receiving an input of a numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the requirement on product development, and the first hierarchy and the second level using the numerical values received by the input receiving means. Deriving numerical values indicating dependencies between multiple requirements belonging to one of the two hierarchies and storing them in the DSM table format to indicate the retained dependencies A dependency relationship deriving unit that outputs a numerical value, and the dependency relationship deriving unit includes (A) all of the arbitrary first requirement belonging to the first hierarchy and the arbitrary second requirement belonging to the first hierarchy. For all the third requirements in which the numerical value indicating the dependency relationship of the first requirement and the second requirement with respect to the third requirement belonging to the second hierarchy is equal to or greater than a predetermined strength, (Numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the first requirement), (Numerical value indicating the dependency of the first requirement on the third requirement), (Numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the third requirement), and (Influence of the second requirement) DSM table format in which the largest numerical value among the obtained numerical values is calculated as a numerical value indicating the dependency of the first requirement on the second requirement. (B) in any first requirement and second hierarchy belonging to the first hierarchy For all combinations with the optional third requirement, (numerical value indicating the dependency of the first requirement on the third requirement) and (numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the first requirement) in advance A numerical value obtained by calculation using the stored expression is held in the form of a DSM table as a numerical value indicating the dependency of the first requirement on the third requirement, and (C) an arbitrary belonging to the second hierarchy For all combinations of the third requirement and any fourth requirement belonging to the second hierarchy, for all the first requirements belonging to the first hierarchy (the influence of the third requirement is (Numerical value), (numerical value indicating dependency of first requirement on third requirement), (numerical value indicating influence of first requirement) and (numerical value indicating dependency of first requirement on fourth requirement) Is the largest of the obtained numerical values. A numerical value is held in the form of a DSM table as a numerical value indicating the dependency of the third requirement on the fourth requirement, and (D) an arbitrary third requirement belonging to the second hierarchy and an arbitrary belonging to the first hierarchy For all combinations with the first requirement, (numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the third requirement), (numerical value indicating the dependency of the first requirement on the third requirement) and (first requirement) And the obtained numerical value is held in the form of a DSM table as a numerical value indicating the dependency of the third requirement on the first requirement. It is characterized by that.

  Here, the hierarchy indicates the level of specificity in the product development process, such as system requirements and module function requirements. Requirements are specifications to be achieved at each level. The QFD table and the DSM table are tables including matrices used in the analysis of the QFD method and the DSM method, respectively. According to this configuration, an analysis method such as a QFD method or a DSM method can be applied, and the present invention can be implemented more reliably.

  In addition, a product development process support system according to the present invention is configured by a computer system in a product development process belonging to either a first hierarchy or a second hierarchy that is an upper hierarchy of the first hierarchy. A product development process support system for analyzing a dependency relationship between a plurality of requirements, for each requirement belonging to the first hierarchy and the second hierarchy, to a requirement belonging to the second hierarchy of the requirements belonging to the first hierarchy A numerical input indicating a dependency relationship is received as a numerical value of the QFD table, and an input receiving unit for receiving an input of a numerical value indicating the degree of influence of product requirements on product development, and a first hierarchy using the numerical value received by the input receiving unit And a numerical value indicating a dependency relationship between a plurality of requirements belonging to one of the second hierarchies is derived and stored in the form of a DSM table, and the stored dependency relationship A dependency relationship deriving unit that outputs a numerical value indicating: (A) an arbitrary first requirement belonging to the first hierarchy and an optional second requirement belonging to the first hierarchy; With respect to all combinations of the above, all the third requirements in which the numerical values indicating the dependency relationship of the first requirement and the second requirement with respect to the third requirement belonging to the second hierarchy are both equal to or greater than a predetermined strength , (Number indicating the degree of influence of the first requirement), (number indicating the dependency of the first requirement on the third requirement), (number indicating the degree of influence of the third requirement) and (second requirement) The largest numerical value among the obtained numerical values is calculated as a numerical value indicating the dependency of the first requirement on the second requirement, using the DSM table. It is characterized by holding in the form of

  The dependency relationship deriving means (A) performs the first requirement and the second requirement for all combinations of the arbitrary first requirement belonging to the first hierarchy and the optional second requirement belonging to the first hierarchy. For all the third requirements in which the numerical values indicating the dependency relationship of the requirements to the third requirement belonging to the second hierarchy are both equal to or higher than the predetermined strength, (the numerical value indicating the influence degree of the first requirement) × ( Obtained by calculating the numerical value indicating the dependency of the first requirement on the third requirement) × (the numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the third requirement) × (the numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the second requirement) It is desirable to hold the largest numerical value in the form of a DSM table as a numerical value indicating the dependency of the first requirement on the second requirement.

  In addition, a product development process support system according to the present invention is configured by a computer system in a product development process belonging to either a first hierarchy or a second hierarchy that is an upper hierarchy of the first hierarchy. A product development process support system for analyzing a dependency relationship between a plurality of requirements, for each requirement belonging to the first hierarchy and the second hierarchy, to a requirement belonging to the second hierarchy of the requirements belonging to the first hierarchy A numerical input indicating a dependency relationship is received as a numerical value of the QFD table, and an input receiving unit for receiving an input of a numerical value indicating the degree of influence of product requirements on product development, and a first hierarchy using the numerical value received by the input receiving unit And a numerical value indicating a dependency relationship between a plurality of requirements belonging to one of the second hierarchies is derived and stored in the form of a DSM table, and the stored dependency relationship A dependency relationship deriving unit that outputs a numerical value indicating: (C) an optional third requirement belonging to the second hierarchy and an optional fourth requirement belonging to the second hierarchy; For all the combinations of, for all the first requirements belonging to the first hierarchy, (the numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the third requirement), (indicating the dependency of the first requirement on the third requirement Obtained by calculation using an expression stored in advance using (numerical value), (numeric value indicating the degree of influence of the first requirement), and (numerical value indicating the dependency of the first requirement on the fourth requirement). The largest numerical value among the numerical values is held in the form of a DSM table as a numerical value indicating a dependency relationship of the third requirement to the fourth requirement.

  The dependency relationship deriving means (C) is for all combinations belonging to the first hierarchy for all combinations of any third requirement belonging to the second hierarchy and any fourth requirement belonging to the second hierarchy. (The numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the third requirement) × (the numerical value indicating the dependency of the first requirement on the third requirement) × (the numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the first requirement) X (Numerical value indicating the dependency of the first requirement on the fourth requirement) is calculated, and the largest numerical value among the obtained numerical values is set as a numerical value indicating the dependency of the third requirement on the fourth requirement. It is desirable to keep it in the form of a DSM table.

  In the product development process support system according to the present invention, it is possible to easily input information from information indicating dependency between two requirements belonging to adjacent hierarchies as input and information indicating the degree of influence of the requirement on product development. , A dependency relationship between any two requirements belonging to the same hierarchy can be derived. Therefore, a dependency relationship between any two requirements belonging to the same hierarchy can be derived from easily input information. The user can make a decision regarding requirements in the product development process that can prevent unnecessary repeated work by referring to the dependency. As a result, it is possible to easily reduce unnecessary repeated work in the process of developing a complex product.

  The product development process support system determines the priority of each requirement in the product development process by changing the order of the matrix of the DSM table by using the numerical value indicating the dependency output by the dependency relationship deriving means. It is desirable to further include analysis means for partitioning so as to hold down the dependency loops between them. According to this configuration, it is possible to make a determination regarding requirements in the product development process in a desirable order and division in terms of preventing unnecessary repeated work.

  By the way, the present invention can be described as an invention of a product development process support system as described above, and can also be described as an invention of a product development process support method as follows. These are substantially the same inventions only in different categories, and have the same operations and effects.

  The product development process support method according to the present invention includes any one of a first hierarchy and a second hierarchy that is an upper hierarchy of the first hierarchy by a computer system including an input receiving unit and a dependency relationship deriving unit. A product development process support method for analyzing a dependency relationship among a plurality of requirements in a product development process, wherein the input receiving means has a first hierarchy for each requirement belonging to the first hierarchy and the second hierarchy. Receiving a numerical value indicating a dependency relationship of the requirement belonging to the requirement belonging to the second hierarchy as a numerical value of the QFD table, receiving an input of a numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the requirement on product development, and deriving a dependency relationship Dependency relationship between a plurality of requirements belonging to either the first layer or the second layer using the numerical value received in the input receiving step. A dependency relationship deriving step for deriving a numerical value indicating the dependency relationship and outputting the numerical value indicating the retained dependency relationship. In the dependency relationship deriving step, (A ) For all combinations of any first requirement belonging to the first hierarchy and any second requirement belonging to the first hierarchy, the first requirement and the second requirement second hierarchy For all the third requirements whose numerical values indicating the dependency relation to the third requirement to which they belong are both equal to or greater than a predetermined strength, (the numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the first requirement), (the third of the first requirement) It is obtained by calculating using an expression stored in advance using (numerical value indicating dependency on requirement), (numeric value indicating influence of third requirement) and (numerical value indicating influence of second requirement). The largest number among the two numbers for the first requirement to the second requirement (B) for all combinations of any first requirement belonging to the first hierarchy and any third requirement belonging to the second hierarchy. , (Numerical value indicating the dependency of the first requirement on the third requirement) and (numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the first requirement) And a numerical value indicating the dependency of the first requirement on the third requirement in the form of a DSM table, and (C) any third requirement belonging to the second hierarchy and any second requirement belonging to the second hierarchy For all combinations with the requirement of 4, for all the first requirements belonging to the first hierarchy, (numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the third requirement), (for the third requirement of the first requirement) (Numerical value indicating dependency), (numerical value indicating influence of first requirement) and (fourth of first requirement) The numerical value indicating the dependency of the third requirement on the fourth requirement is calculated as the numerical value indicating the dependency of the third requirement on the fourth requirement. (D) for all combinations of any third requirement belonging to the second hierarchy and any first requirement belonging to the first hierarchy (the third requirement). The numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the first requirement), (the numerical value indicating the dependency of the first requirement on the third requirement), and (the numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the first requirement) Thus, the obtained numerical value is held in the form of a DSM table as a numerical value indicating the dependency of the third requirement on the first requirement.

  In addition, the product development process support method according to the present invention includes a first hierarchy and a second hierarchy that is an upper hierarchy of the first hierarchy by a computer system including an input receiving unit and a dependency relationship deriving unit. A product development process support method for analyzing a dependency relationship among a plurality of requirements in a product development process belonging to any of the above, wherein the input receiving unit is configured to perform the first for each requirement belonging to the first hierarchy and the second hierarchy. An input receiving step of receiving a numerical value indicating a dependency relationship of a requirement belonging to the second hierarchy with respect to a requirement belonging to the second hierarchy as a numerical value of the QFD table and receiving a numerical value indicating an influence degree of the requirement on the product development; The relationship deriving means uses a numerical value received in the input receiving step to connect a plurality of requirements belonging to either the first hierarchy or the second hierarchy. A dependency derivation step for deriving a numerical value indicating the existing relationship and holding it in the form of a DSM table, and outputting a numerical value indicating the stored dependency relationship, wherein the dependency relationship deriving means includes: (A) For all combinations of an arbitrary first requirement belonging to the first hierarchy and an optional second requirement belonging to the first hierarchy, the second of the first requirement and the second requirement For all the third requirements whose numerical values indicating the dependency relationship with the third requirement belonging to the hierarchy are both equal to or higher than a predetermined strength, (the numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the first requirement), (the first requirement (3) a numerical value indicating the dependency on the requirement 3), (numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the third requirement) and (numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the second requirement). The largest number obtained is the second requirement of the first requirement. Held in the form of a DSM table as a number indicating the dependencies that, characterized in that.

  In the dependency relationship deriving step, the dependency relationship deriving means performs (A) a first operation for all combinations of an arbitrary first requirement belonging to the first hierarchy and an arbitrary second requirement belonging to the first hierarchy. For all the third requirements in which the numerical value indicating the dependency of the first requirement and the second requirement on the third requirement belonging to the second hierarchy is equal to or higher than a predetermined strength (the influence degree of the first requirement) (Number indicating the dependency of the first requirement on the third requirement) × (number indicating the degree of influence of the third requirement) × (number indicating the degree of influence of the second requirement) Then, it is desirable to hold the largest numerical value obtained in the form of a DSM table as a numerical value indicating the dependency of the first requirement on the second requirement.

  In addition, the product development process support method according to the present invention includes a first hierarchy and a second hierarchy that is an upper hierarchy of the first hierarchy by a computer system including an input receiving unit and a dependency relationship deriving unit. A product development process support method for analyzing a dependency relationship among a plurality of requirements in a product development process belonging to any of the above, wherein the input receiving unit is configured to perform the first for each requirement belonging to the first hierarchy and the second hierarchy. An input receiving step of receiving a numerical value indicating a dependency relationship of a requirement belonging to the second hierarchy with respect to a requirement belonging to the second hierarchy as a numerical value of the QFD table and receiving a numerical value indicating an influence degree of the requirement on the product development; The relationship deriving means uses a numerical value received in the input receiving step to connect a plurality of requirements belonging to either the first hierarchy or the second hierarchy. A dependency derivation step for deriving a numerical value indicating the existing relationship and holding it in the form of a DSM table, and outputting a numerical value indicating the stored dependency relationship, wherein the dependency relationship deriving means includes: (C) For all first requirements belonging to the first hierarchy for all combinations of any third requirement belonging to the second hierarchy and any fourth requirement belonging to the second hierarchy , (Numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the third requirement), (numerical value indicating the dependency of the first requirement on the third requirement), (numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the first requirement) and (first requirement) The numerical value indicating the dependency relationship with respect to the fourth requirement) is calculated using a formula stored in advance, and the largest numerical value among the obtained numerical values is determined as the dependency relationship with respect to the fourth requirement of the third requirement. It is retained in the form of a DSM table as a numerical value to indicate That.

  In the dependency relationship deriving step, the dependency relationship deriving means performs (C) for all combinations of the optional third requirement belonging to the second hierarchy and the optional fourth requirement belonging to the second hierarchy. For all the first requirements belonging to one hierarchy, (numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the third requirement) × (numerical value indicating the dependency of the first requirement on the third requirement) × (first requirement The numerical value indicating the degree of influence) × (the numerical value indicating the dependency of the first requirement on the fourth requirement) is calculated, and the largest numerical value is obtained with respect to the fourth requirement of the third requirement. It is desirable to store the numerical value indicating the dependency in the form of a DSM table.

  The computer system further includes an analysis unit for analyzing, and the analysis unit changes the order of the matrix of the DSM table by using the numerical value indicating the dependency output in the dependency relationship deriving step. It is desirable to further include an analysis step for determining the priority of each requirement in the process and partitioning it so as to constrain the dependency dependency loop between requirements.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to derive a dependency relationship between any two requirements belonging to the same hierarchy from information that can be easily input. The user can make a decision regarding requirements in the product development process that can prevent unnecessary repeated work by referring to the dependency. As a result, it is possible to easily reduce unnecessary repeated work in the process of developing a complex product.

  Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of a product development process support system and a product development process support method according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In the description of the drawings, the same elements are denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant description is omitted.

  FIG. 1 shows a product development process support system 10 according to this embodiment. The product development process support system 10 is a system that supports the product development process by analyzing the dependency among a plurality of requirements in the product development process. The product development process here refers to determining the functional requirements of the module of the product to be developed from the top marketing development requirements (customer requirements, system requirements), and then determining the design elements from the functions of the determined modules. It is a series of processes. As shown in FIG. 2, the product development process is divided into a plurality of hierarchies such as “system requirements”, “module function requirements”, and “module design elements”, and each individual requirement belongs to one of the hierarchies. Yes. In addition, the requirements of the “Module Functional Requirements” hierarchy are the breakdown of the requirements of the “System Requirements” hierarchy, and the requirements of the “Module Design Elements” hierarchy are the breakdown of the requirements of the “Module Functional Requirements” hierarchy. There is an adjacent relationship between the hierarchies.

  Specifically, for example, in the printer development process, the above requirements are as follows. The requirements of the hierarchy of “system requirements” correspond to “print quality is good” and “printing is fast”. More specifically, for example, the requirement that “print quality is good” is a target specification for how much satisfaction regarding the print quality is to be obtained from the user of the printer. The requirements of the “module function requirement” hierarchy are defined for each module, for example, and specifically correspond to “warm-up time” and “fixability” for the print module. More specifically, for example, the requirement “warm-up time” is a target specification of the time required for the module to warm up. The requirements of the hierarchy of “module design elements” correspond to “heater of heat roller unit” and “pressure roller of pressure unit”. More specifically, for example, the requirement “heater” is a target specification that the heater may have any specific size or material.

  The product development process support system 10 analyzes dependencies among a plurality of requirements in the product development process. More specifically, the information indicating the dependency between two requirements belonging to two adjacent hierarchies and the information indicating the degree of influence of the requirements on product development are inputted as input between any two requirements belonging to the same hierarchy. Dependency is derived.

  The product development process support system 10 includes a workstation, a PC (Personal Computer), and the like, and includes hardware such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit) and a memory. The processing in the product development process support system 10 is performed by executing a product development process support method as information processing by the product development process support system 10. In the product development process support system 10, the above-described hardware is operated by a program or the like, whereby the functions described below of the product development process support system 10 are exhibited and the above information processing is executed. In the present embodiment, the product development process support system 10 is realized by a single device, but a plurality of information processing devices in which the functions of the product development process support system 10 are distributed are connected to each other via a network. It may be realized by an information processing system.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the product development process support system 10 includes an input / output interface 11, an input reception unit 12, a dependency relationship derivation unit 13, and an analysis unit 14. The input / output interface 11 includes an input interface and an output interface. The input interface is composed of a keyboard and the like, and is used by the user to input data used for arithmetic processing in the product development process support system 10. The output interface is composed of a monitor or the like, and displays an output or the like so that the user can refer to the output of the product development process support system 10.

  The input receiving unit 12 is an input receiving unit that receives input of information input by the input / output interface 11. Information received by the input receiving unit 12 is information indicating a dependency relationship between two requirements belonging to adjacent hierarchies in the product development process, and information indicating an influence degree of the requirements on the product development. More specifically, it will be described later. Information received by the input receiving unit 12 is transmitted to the dependency relationship deriving unit 13.

  The dependency relationship deriving unit 13 is dependency relationship deriving means for deriving a dependency relationship between two requirements belonging to the same hierarchy. The derivation of the dependency relationship is performed using information indicating the dependency relationship between two requirements belonging to adjacent hierarchies received by the input receiving unit 12 and information indicating the degree of influence of the requirement on product development. Further, the dependency relationship is derived based on a dependency relationship deriving rule set in advance. This dependency relationship derivation rule is stored in the dependency relationship derivation unit 13 in advance. The derivation of the dependency relationship will be described more specifically later. Information indicating the derived dependency relationship is transmitted to the analysis unit 14.

  The analysis unit 14 is an analysis unit that analyzes the dependency relationship derived by the dependency relationship deriving unit 13. This analysis includes determining the priority order of requirements belonging to the same hierarchy and classifying the requirements. The analysis by the analysis unit 14 will be described more specifically later. The result of analysis by the analysis unit 14 is transmitted to the input / output interface 11.

  Subsequently, a product development process support method (a process executed in the product development process support system 10) according to the present embodiment will be described using the flowchart of FIG. First, a description will be given of an analysis of the dependency relationship between the module functional requirements and the module design element hierarchy shown in the range 21 of FIG. 2 (the dependency relationship between the requirements of the two layers). Then, what analyzes the dependency of each requirement of the whole product development process shown by the range 22 in FIG.

  In the following, the analysis of the dependency relationship between the module function requirement hierarchy and the module design element hierarchy shown in the range 21 of FIG. 2 will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. First, in the product development process support system 10, information input by the user using the input / output interface 11 is received by the input receiving unit 12 (S01, input receiving step). Information input by the user is information indicating the dependency between the module function requirements and the module design elements, and information indicating the degree of influence of these requirements on product development. The input is performed according to a form in the form of a QFD table as shown in FIG. Information on this form is stored in advance in the product development process support system 10 and displayed on the input / output interface 11. Further, it is also possible to accept input of information (item name, etc.) related to each requirement item and generate form information from the input information.

  As shown in FIG. 4, each item of the module function requirements is described in the vertical direction in the form in the QFD table format (corresponding to the range 31, each row data). In addition, each item of the module design element is described in the horizontal direction (range 32, corresponding to each column data). In the matrix 33 of the QFD table, information indicating the dependency between each module function requirement and each module design element can be input. Note that the QFD table shown in FIG. 4 has already been input with information indicating the dependency relationship, and all the QFD tables before input are blank.

  Here, the information indicating the dependency relationship is information indicating the degree to which the module design element affects the achievement of the module function requirement, and is specifically expressed by a numerical value. For example, as shown in FIG. 4, four values “9”, “6”, “3”, and “none” can be input as the numerical value indicating the degree of dependency. The larger the numerical value, the stronger the dependency. It shows that there is. Each numerical value has the meaning shown in the table of FIG.

In the columns of the ranges 34 and 35 in the QFD table of FIG. 4, information indicating the degree of influence of each corresponding module function requirement on product development can be input. Specifically, information indicating the degree of influence includes functional importance (corresponding to the range 34 column) and unreached risk (corresponding to the range 35 column). As shown in FIG. 4, the function importance level and the unreached risk are input as numerical values in five levels (5 is the strongest) from 1 to 5. The function importance indicates the impact on product planning (product appeal) when the module functional requirements cannot be satisfied. Unreasonable risk indicates the possibility that the module functional requirement cannot be realized by the design concept (it cannot be realized without adjustment). There is a priority as the degree of influence obtained from information indicating the degree of influence on the development of these two products. The priority is calculated by the following formula, and takes a numerical value from 0 to 1 (1 is the strongest).
Priority = Functional importance / Unachieved risk / 25
This calculation is performed after the function importance and the unreached risk are input in the input receiving unit 12. In FIG. 4, the priority corresponds to the numerical value in the range 36 column. In subsequent calculations, this priority value is also used as the degree of influence of each system requirement on product development.

In the columns of the ranges 37 and 38 in the QFD table of FIG. 4, information indicating individual degrees of influence of the corresponding module design elements on product development can be input. Specifically, information indicating the degree of influence includes element risk (corresponding to the column of the range 37) and freedom of change (corresponding to the column of the range 38). The element risk and the degree of freedom of change are input as numerical values in five stages (5 is the strongest) from 1 to 5, as shown in FIG. The element risk indicates an evaluation of how much the module design element is designed from the conventional design. The degree of freedom of change indicates an evaluation of how many design options are available from the current design plan. For example, if the module design element is a common part and cannot be changed, the degree of freedom of change is low. Further, when the module design element has no other option as a part, the degree of freedom of change is low. There is an adjustment degree as an influence degree obtained from information indicating an individual influence degree with respect to these two product developments. The degree of adjustment is calculated by the following formula, and takes a numerical value from 0 to 1 (1 is the strongest).
Degree of adjustment = element risk / degree of freedom of change / 25
This calculation is performed after the element risk and the degree of freedom of change are input in the input receiving unit 12. In FIG. 4, the degree of adjustment corresponds to the numerical value in the range 39 column. In the subsequent calculations, the numerical value of this adjustment degree is also used as the degree of influence of each module functional requirement on product development.

  In the input receiving step, information indicating the dependency relationship between the module function requirement and the module design element is received by the input receiving unit 12 as a numerical value input by the user to the matrix in the range 33 in FIG. In addition, information indicating the degree of influence of these requirements on product development is received by the input receiving unit 12 as numerical values input by the user in the fields of the ranges 34, 35, 37, and 38 in FIG. The received information is transmitted to the dependency relationship deriving unit 13. In addition, information indicating each calculated degree of influence is also transmitted to the dependency relationship deriving unit 13.

  Subsequently, the dependency relationship deriving unit 13 determines whether the two module function requirements are obtained from the information indicating the dependency relationship received by the input receiving unit 12 and the information indicating the degree of influence received and calculated by the input receiving unit 12. And a dependency relationship between the two module design elements is derived (S02, dependency relationship deriving step). This relationship is derived according to the DSM table. The dependency relationship deriving unit 13 holds the calculated data in the form of a DSM table. Specifically, this is performed based on the dependency relationship derivation rule shown below.

  The DSM table is a table as shown in FIG. 6, in which the same elements are arranged in rows and columns of the table and their bidirectional dependencies are described (in FIG. 6, already derived by this processing). Dependency values in the DSM table are entered). When attention is paid to the row data of the DSM table, it is described which element of the row depends on (how much) other element. When attention is paid to the column data of the DSM table, the element of the column describes which other element depends (how much). In the present embodiment, all the module functional requirement items and all the module design element items correspond to the row and column elements in the DSM table. In FIG. 6, the module function requirement items correspond to a range 41 (column data) and a range 42 (row data). Module design element items correspond to a range 43 (column data) and a range 44 (row data).

  The matrices 45 to 48 store the dependency relationships between the items derived by the dependency relationship deriving unit 13. As shown in FIG. 6, the matrix 45 stores numerical values indicating the degree of dependency of module design elements (module design elements → module design elements) with respect to module design elements. The matrix 46 stores numerical values indicating the degree of dependency of module design elements (module design elements → module function requirements) with respect to module function requirements. The matrix 47 stores numerical values indicating the degree of dependency of module function requirements (module function requirements → module function requirements) with respect to the module function requirements. The matrix 48 stores numerical values indicating the degree of dependency of module function requirements (module function requirements → module design elements) on the module design elements. Hereinafter, the contents of the dependency relationship stored in each of the matrices 45 to 48 and the derivation method will be described.

As shown in FIG. 7, the dependency of the module design element on the module design element, in which numerical values are stored in the matrix 45, is a relationship that affects the same module function requirement, and each module design element is another module design element. This shows how much the design conditions should be considered. A numerical value indicating the degree of dependency of module design element a on module design element b (a → b) is derived using information in the QFD table received in S01. Specifically, in the QFD table, each of the module design element a and the module design element b is calculated using the following formulas for the dependency relationship through each module functional requirement, and the maximum value of the dependency is determined as the dependency A numerical value indicating the degree of the relationship.
(Dependency calculation formula)
<When the numerical value of the dependency relation between the module design element a and the module design element b with respect to the module function requirement A is 1 or more>
= (Element risk of module design element a) / 5 (dependence between module design element a and module function requirement A) (priority of module function requirement A) (degree of freedom of module design element b) / 5
* Numbers are rounded down.

  The above equation expresses the following phenomenon. (I) Module design elements that have a strong influence on the degree of achievement of module functional requirements (those with higher element risk and strong dependency on QFD) are assumed to be other module design elements (in the dependency relationship) Dependent source). (Ii) The higher the degree of freedom of module design elements, the more module design elements that affect the same module functional requirements can be considered. (Iii) Dependencies occur through module function requirements with high priority.

As shown in FIG. 8, the dependency of the module design element on the module function requirement, in which numerical values are stored in the matrix 46, is a relationship in which the achievement level of the module function requirement is influenced by the module design element. A numerical value indicating the degree of dependency (a → A) on the module function requirement A of the module design element a is derived using the information in the QFD table received in S01. Specifically, the numerical value of the dependency relationship between the module design element a and the module functional requirement A in the QFD table is converted into the numerical value of the dependency relationship considering the element risk of the module design element a. Specifically, it is calculated according to the following formula.
(Dependency calculation formula)
= (Dependency between module design element a and module function requirement A)-(element risk of module design element a) / 5
* Numbers are rounded down.

  The above equation expresses the following phenomenon. (I) The module design element to be noted in the achievement degree of the module function requirement is a module design element that is strongly influenced, and it should be noted that the module design element has a higher element risk.

The dependency relationship of the module function requirements with respect to the module function requirements whose numerical values are stored in the matrix 47 is a relationship influenced by the same module design requirements as shown in FIG. It is necessary to proceed with product development while checking the achievement level of each other's module function requirements between the module function requirements having such dependency relations. It shows how much the achievement status of other module functional requirements should be considered. A numerical value indicating the degree of dependency of module function requirement A on module function requirement B (A → B) is derived using information in the QFD table received in S01. Specifically, in the QFD table, the module function requirement A and the module function requirement B are calculated using the following formulas for the dependency relations via the module design requirements, and the maximum value of the dependence relation is calculated. A numerical value indicating the degree of.
(Dependency calculation formula)
= (Priority of module function requirement A)-(Dependency between module design element a and module function requirement A)-(Adjustment degree of module design element a)-(Module design element a and module function requirement B Dependency between) / 9
* Numbers are rounded down.

  The above equation expresses the following phenomenon. (I) The higher the priority of the module function requirement (the higher the function importance and the higher the unreached risk), the more modifications to the module design elements that are affected by the unfulfillment. (Ii) When the modification to the module design element occurs because the module function requirement has not been achieved, the modification to the module design element having a high degree of adjustment among the module design elements receiving a strong dependency relationship occurs more frequently. (Iii) It should be noted that other module function requirements that are strongly influenced by the modified module design element are more strongly affected by the modification.

As shown in FIG. 10, the dependency relationship of the module function requirements with respect to the module design elements whose numerical values are stored in the matrix 48 is a relationship in which the achievement status of the module function requirements affects the modification of the module design elements, etc. It shows how much it leads to a change in the design conditions of the module design elements that are affected by the confirmation result of the functional requirements. The design condition of the module design element needs to be modified depending on the achievement status of the module function requirement that affects it. A numerical value indicating the degree of dependency of module function requirement A on module design element a (A → a) is derived using information in the QFD table received in S01. Specifically, based on the numerical value of the dependency relationship between the module design element a and the module function requirement A in the QFD table, the degree to which the module function requirement A is not satisfied and the module design element a must be returned to readjustment. Calculate numerical values. Specifically, it is calculated according to the following formula.
(Dependency calculation formula)
= (Priority of module function requirement A)-(Dependency between module design element a and module function requirement A)-(Adjustment degree of module design element a)
* Numbers are rounded down.

  The above equation expresses the following phenomenon. (I) The higher the priority of the module functional requirement (the higher the function importance and the higher the unreached risk), the more modifications to the module design elements that are affected by the failure to achieve the module functional requirement. (Ii) When the module functional requirement is not achieved and the modification to the module design element occurs, the modification to the module design element having a high degree of adjustment occurs more frequently in the module design element receiving the strong dependency relationship.

  As described above, when the numerical value of each dependency relationship is derived by the dependency relationship deriving unit 13, the matrices 45 to 48 (containing numerical values) shown in FIG. 6 are obtained. The numerical value of the obtained dependency relationship is output to the analysis unit 14. Note that the derivation of the above numerical values is a representative example, and the handling of the priority level and the adjustment level may be corrected and executed according to circumstances.

  Subsequently, the analysis unit 14 determines the module function requirements and the priority order to be considered for the module design elements in the product development process from the dependency relationship derived by the dependency relationship deriving unit 13 according to the DSM table, and also the module function requirements. And partition the module design elements (S03, analysis step). These processes are performed in accordance with preset analysis rules as shown below. The analysis rule is stored in the analysis unit 14 in advance.

  Determination of the priority order of each element of the requirement (rearrangement of the order of the elements) and partitioning may be performed based on a well-known analysis method (partition analysis) in the DSM method. When the concept of order is brought into the DSM table, the order is the previous one (more dependent), the row is upward, and the column is left.

  Determination of priority (rearrangement of the order of elements) and partitioning are performed as follows. Although the order of the row examples of the DSM table is changed, the elements constituting the DSM table and the dependency between the elements are not changed. The partition analysis of the DSM table rearranges the matrix order of the DSM table in order to constrain the dependency loop between elements into as small a unit as possible (called a loop chain or block). This rearrangement results in organizing the dependencies between the elements to be analyzed, organizing which elements should be premised on other elements, and leading the order of the elements that minimize the loop (= redo). It will be a thing. Hereinafter, an example of partition analysis will be described. This analysis method is a known method described in, for example, “Systems Analysis and Management (STRUCTURE, STRATEGY AND DESIGN)” (Donald V. Steward).

  In order to make the explanation easy to understand, a sample DSM table shown in FIG. 11 is used. As shown in FIG. 11, the sample DSM table has 10 elements. Hereinafter, partition analysis will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

  First, the analysis unit 14 initializes a dependency threshold value (s = 1) used in the following partition analysis (S11). The threshold value s is stored as data in the analysis unit 14. Subsequently, the analysis unit 14 determines whether or not there is an element whose rank has not been confirmed or provisionally determined (S12). Here, since there is no element that has been confirmed or provisionally determined, it is determined that there is such an element.

  If so, the analysis unit 14 determines whether or not there are a dependency source and a dependency destination in all the elements whose rank has not been determined (S13). Here, the dependency relationship relating to the determination is limited to only those having a numerical value equal to or greater than the threshold value. Here, it is determined that “element 1” and “element 9” do not have both the dependency source and the dependency destination, and all have no dependency source and dependency destination. If so, the analysis unit 14 determines whether there is an element having no dependency source (S14). Here, since there is no dependency source of “element 1”, it is determined that there is an element having no dependency source. Here, the fact that there is no dependency source means that there is no dependency relationship in the row direction in the DSM table.

  If so, the analysis unit 14 moves the element without the dependency source (here, “element 1”) to the top (S15). Subsequently, the analysis unit 14 determines whether there is an element having no dependency destination (S16). Here, since there is no dependency destination of “element 9”, it is determined that there is an element having no dependency destination. Here, the absence of the dependency destination means that there is no dependency relationship in the column direction in the DSM table. If so, the analysis unit 14 moves an element that does not depend on (here, “element 9”) to the lowest level (S17).

  Subsequently, the analysis unit 14 determines whether or not the element moved in S15 or S17 has degenerated the dependency that exceeds the threshold (S18). Since the moved “element 1” and “element 9” have not been degenerated, it is determined that they have not been degenerated. If so, the analysis unit 14 determines the order of the moved elements (here, “element 1” and “element 9”) (S19). The elements for which the order has been determined and the dependencies related to these elements are excluded from the subsequent consideration (S20). FIG. 13A shows a state in which the processes so far are performed from the initial state shown in FIG. The elements whose ranks are determined or not tentatively determined at this stage are “elements 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10”. All of these elements have a dependency source and a dependency destination.

  Subsequently, the analysis unit 14 performs the determinations of S12 and S13 again. Here, in the determination of S13, all the elements whose ranks are not fixed or tentatively determined have a dependency source and a dependency destination, and thus are determined as such. Subsequently, the analysis unit 14 selects the highest element among the elements whose rank has not been determined (S21). Here, “element 2” is selected. Subsequently, the analysis unit 14 searches for the dependent elements from the selected elements in a chained manner until the same element is searched twice (S22). At this time, as the dependency used for the search, a value whose dependency is greater than or equal to a threshold value (that is, 1 or more in this case) is used. Here, the analysis unit 14 can identify a loop returning to “element 2”, which is “element 2” → “element 3” → “element 2”. Subsequently, the analysis unit 14 selects the first searched element among the elements constituting the loop (S23). Here, “element 2” is selected.

  Subsequently, the analysis unit 14 reduces the elements included in the loop to the elements selected in S23 (S24). Specifically, the degeneration means performing the following processing. First, degenerate source elements (elements included in a loop) are not considered once. Next, the matrix data of the reduction source is temporarily copied to the reduction destination (the element selected in S23). Here, if a numerical value is entered in the copy destination, copying is not performed. FIG. 13B shows a state after the processing so far. The elements whose ranks are determined or not tentatively determined at this stage are “elements 2 (3), 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10”. All of these elements have a dependency source and a dependency destination.

  Subsequently, returning to the determination of S12 again, the same processing as above (S12, S13, S20 to S24) is performed, and “element 7”, “element 6”, “element 4”, “element 5”, “element 8” are performed. ”,“ Element 10 ”are sequentially reduced to“ element 2 ”. FIG. 13C shows a state where the processing so far is performed. Here, the only element to be considered is “element 2”. Here, “element 2” has no dependency source in the range of elements to be considered. Here, through the determinations of S12, S13, and S14, “element 2” is moved to the top in the rank-undecided range, but is not moved because it is already the top. Subsequently, the analysis unit 14 determines whether or not the moved element (strictly speaking, the element to be moved, that is, “element 2” in this case) degenerates the threshold value (S18). . “Element 2” is judged as such because each element is degenerated as described above. When such a determination is made, the analysis unit 14 provisionally confirms the rank of the element (“element 2”) (S25). In this state, all elements were determined or provisionally determined at the threshold value s = 1.

  Subsequently, the analysis unit 14 returns to the determination of S12 and determines that there is no element that has not been determined or provisionally determined. If it judges so, the analysis part 14 will reset the element which the order provisional decision was carried out (S26). Subsequently, the analysis unit 14 generates a loop chain that partitions the elements determined with the threshold value s = 1 and the undefined elements (S27). Specifically, as schematically shown in FIG. 13D, a loop chain is generated as shown by a frame in the dependency matrix. Subsequently, the analysis unit 14 adds 1 to the dependency threshold value (s = s + 1), and updates the threshold value (S28). Subsequently, the analysis unit 14 determines whether or not the dependency threshold value is within the maximum value of the dependency relationship included in the DSM table (S29). When it is determined that the value is within the maximum value, the analysis unit 14 performs the above-described processing of S12 to S29 again using the threshold value updated in S28. Here, the updated threshold value s is 2, which is within the maximum value 3 of the dependency relationship included in the DSM table, so the process is performed again.

  On the other hand, if it is determined that the value is not within the maximum value, the analysis unit 14 ends the process and outputs the DSM table that has been processed so far. FIG. 14 shows the output DSM table. The three frames in FIG. 14 are, from the outside, a frame with a threshold value of 1, a frame with a threshold value of 2, and a frame with a threshold value of 3, respectively. With the above processing, the priority order of each element and partitioning are performed.

  The above-described partition analysis is performed on the DSM table of FIG. 6 to determine priorities to be considered for the module function requirements and module design elements in the product development process, and the DSM table in which the module function requirements and module design elements are partitioned. Is shown in FIG. In the DSM table of FIG. 15, six loop chains are generated by partitioning.

  Returning to the flowchart of FIG. Subsequently, in the product development process support system 10, the analysis unit 14 converts the data into a QFD table using the DSM table on which the partition analysis has been performed (S04). This conversion is to enable the user to easily determine the analysis result. This is because it is easier for the user to see the QFD table in which the requirements are arranged for each layer than the DSM table in which all the requirements are arranged in the same manner. Conversion from the DSM table to the QFD table is performed by rearranging the original QFD table (shown in FIG. 4) according to the module function requirements and the order of the module design elements rearranged by the DSM table by the process of S03. . Also, the loop chain information obtained by the process of S03 is transferred to the QFD table. The converted QFD table is shown in FIG. The information in this table is output to the input / output interface 11.

  Subsequently, the input / output interface outputs the QFD table converted in S04 (S05). The image shown in FIG. 16 is also an output image. The user refers to the output and appropriately uses it in the product development process.

  The converted QFD table after analysis reflects the module function requirements and the priority of the module design elements obtained in the post-analysis DSM table, and the information of the loop chain identified in the DSM table. The meaning of this table is as follows. The basic order of fixing the design conditions of each module design element is the order from the left to the right of the table. Each module design element that is located to the left of the module design element must be hardened before that module design element (the module design element on the left is the other module design element on the right) That is, the module design element on the right side has a dependency on the module design element on the left side). In addition, in each module functional requirement, if the module functional requirement is located above the module functional requirement, it is necessary to confirm the achievement before the achievement of the module functional requirement. (The upper module functional requirement is a premise of the other lower module functional requirement. That is, the lower module functional requirement has a dependency on the upper module functional requirement).

  Further, the inner loop of the module function requirement and the module design element is a stronger loop, and it is necessary to efficiently proceed with trial and error within the loop. For example, more efficient functional verification means such as simulation should be used for the inner loop. For example, the verification of the plurality of module design elements identified by the loop and the plurality of module functional requirements should be performed at the same time (concurrent) and collating with each other. More specifically, it is possible to divide the development phase according to the information of the loop chain and use it as a guideline for items to be confirmed in design conditions and functions to be fixed in each phase.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, it is possible to derive information including a dependency relationship between any two elements belonging to the same hierarchy as a DSM table from information that can be easily input as a QFD table. Therefore, by referring to this dependency relationship, it is possible to make a determination regarding requirements to be considered in the product development process so as to avoid unnecessary repeated work. As a result, it is possible to easily reduce unnecessary repeated work in the process of developing a complex product. In the present embodiment, information indicating a directional dependency is derived according to the DSM table, and not only a dependency between elements in the same layer but a dependency between elements in adjacent layers is also a dependency having a direction. Since information indicating the relationship is derived, more detailed analysis is possible.

  In the present embodiment, if information indicating the dependency relationship of the DSM table is to be input, it is necessary to input a value about four times as large as the information indicating the dependency relationship of the QFD table. In general, information inconsistency is more likely to occur when a large amount of information is to be input, and this embodiment is superior to the conventional analysis method in this respect as well.

  In addition, as in this embodiment, partition analysis is performed on the DSM table derived from the QFD table, thereby preventing unnecessary repeated work. A decision can be made.

  Further, by performing processing according to the QFD table and the DSM table as in the present embodiment, the analysis method of the QFD method and the DSM method can be applied together with the method according to the present embodiment, and the analysis thereof. Conventional software related to the technique can also be used, and this embodiment can be implemented more reliably and easily.

  In the embodiment described above, the dependency relationship of the part indicated by the range 21 in FIG. Next, a description will be given of an analysis of the dependency of each requirement in the entire product development process indicated by a range 22 in FIG. In the case of three layers, the processing content is basically the same as that of the two layers described above, but there is an additional process for layer superposition.

  First, in S01 of the flowchart of FIG. 3, the input receiving unit 12 receives information input by the QFD table for each adjacent hierarchy. That is, in the present embodiment, information indicating the dependency relationship between the system requirement and the module function requirement (range 23 in FIG. 2), and information indicating the dependency relationship between the module A function requirement and the module A design element ( The range 21 in FIG. 2 (similar to the above-described two layers), information indicating the dependency relationship between the module B functional requirement and the module B design element (range 24 in FIG. 2) is input by a separate QFD table. Accept. FIG. 17A shows a QFD table (referred to as “QFD1”) corresponding to information (range 23 in FIG. 2) indicating the dependency relationship between the system requirements and the module function requirements. FIG. 17B shows a QFD table (referred to as “QFD3”) corresponding to information (range 24 in FIG. 2) indicating the dependency relationship between the module B functional requirements and the module B design elements. The QFD table (referred to as “QFD2”) corresponding to the information (range 21 in FIG. 2) indicating the dependency relationship between the module A functional requirement and the module A design element is the one described above (shown in FIG. 4). The same).

  Subsequently, the derivation of the dependency relationship in the DSM table by the dependency relationship deriving unit 13 in S02 of the flowchart of FIG. 3 is performed by generating each DSM table from the individual QFD tables. The derivation method is the same as in the above-described embodiment. Although there are portions where the names of influence levels differ depending on the hierarchy, the processing is performed in the same manner. A DSM table (referred to as “DSM1”) corresponding to “QFD1” is shown in FIG. FIG. 19 shows a DSM table corresponding to “QFD3” (referred to as “DSM3”). The DSM table corresponding to “QFD2” (referred to as “DSM2”) is the same as that described above (shown in FIG. 6).

  Subsequently, the dependency relationship deriving unit 13 generates a DSM table (referred to as “DSM4”) in which “DSM1 to 3” are integrated before the partition analysis of S03 in the flowchart of FIG. First, as shown in FIG. 20, a framework of “DSM4” is generated with all items of system requirements, module function requirements, and module design elements as elements of the matrix. The numerical values “DSM1”, “DSM2”, and “DSM3” are sequentially input to the generated “DSM4” framework. Note that the overlapping range is overwritten with what will be entered later. FIG. 21 shows “DSM4” in which numerical values are input. In “DSM4” of FIG. 21, the numerical value in the range 51 corresponds to the numerical value of “DSM1”. In “DSM4”, the numerical value in the range 52 corresponds to the numerical value of “DSM2”. The numerical value in the range 53 corresponds to the numerical value of “DSM3”.

  Subsequently, the partition analysis in the DSM table by the analysis unit 14 in S03 of the flowchart of FIG. 3 is performed using “DSM4” obtained by integrating “DSM1 to 3” shown in FIG. The partition analysis itself is performed in the same manner as the method of the above-described embodiment. FIG. 22 shows “DSM4” after partition analysis.

  Subsequently, the analysis unit 14 converts “DSM4” after the partition analysis into a QFD table. FIG. 23 shows a QFD table to be converted. In the QFD table at that time, items of system requirements and module function requirements are described in the vertical direction (range 61, corresponding to each row data). In addition, each item of the module design element is described in the horizontal direction (range 62, corresponding to each column data). Numeric values corresponding to “QFD 1 to 3” are input to the matrix of the QFD table. However, since the dependency relationship between the system requirements and the module design elements that are two layers apart is not input, that portion (for example, the row 63 shown in FIG. 23) is blank. The converted QFD table shown in FIG. 23 can be obtained by performing the conversion process from “DSM4” to the above-described QFD table for such a QFD table format.

  Thus, the present invention can be applied to a product development process having factors of three or more layers, and the effects as described above can be obtained.

1 is a configuration diagram of a product development process support system according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is the figure which showed the hierarchy of the requirement in the product development process in embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows the product development process support method which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is the figure which showed the QFD table | surface used as the input form in embodiment. It is a figure explaining the numerical value which shows the degree of dependence. It is the figure which showed the DSM table | surface in the process in embodiment. It is the figure which showed typically the dependence relationship of the module design element with respect to a module design element. It is the figure which showed typically the dependence relationship of the module design element with respect to a module function requirement. It is the figure which showed typically the dependence relationship of the module function requirement with respect to a module function requirement. It is the figure which showed typically the dependence relationship of the module function requirement with respect to a module design element. It is the figure which showed the DSM table | surface of the sample used in order to demonstrate partition analysis. It is the flowchart which showed the process of partition analysis. It is the figure which showed transition of the DSM table in partition analysis. It is the figure which showed the DSM table after the partition analysis corresponding to the sample DSM table. It is the figure which showed the DSM table after the partition analysis corresponding to the DSM table of embodiment. It is the figure which showed the QFD table | surface converted using the DSM table | surface after a partition analysis. It is the figure which showed each QFD table | surface in case a hierarchy has three steps. It is the figure which showed each DSM table | surface when a hierarchy has three steps. It is the figure which showed each DSM table | surface when a hierarchy has three steps. It is the figure which showed the framework of the integrated DSM table | surface when a hierarchy has three steps. It is the figure which showed the DSM table | surface before a partition analysis in case a hierarchy has three steps. It is the figure which showed the DSM table | surface after a partition analysis in case a hierarchy is three steps. It is the figure which showed the QFD table | surface converted using the DSM table | surface after a partition analysis in case a hierarchy has three steps.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Product development process support system, 11 ... Input / output interface, 12 ... Input reception part, 13 ... Dependency derivation part, 14 ... Analysis part.

Claims (12)

A product development process configured by a computer system and analyzing a dependency relationship between a plurality of requirements in a product development process belonging to either the first hierarchy or the second hierarchy that is an upper hierarchy of the first hierarchy A support system,
For each requirement belonging to the first hierarchy and the second hierarchy, an input of a numerical value indicating a dependency relationship of the requirement belonging to the first hierarchy to the requirement belonging to the second hierarchy is accepted as a numerical value of the QFD table. , Input receiving means for receiving an input of a numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the requirement on product development;
Using a numerical value received by the input receiving means, derive a numerical value indicating a dependency relationship between a plurality of requirements belonging to either the first hierarchy or the second hierarchy, and hold it in the form of a DSM table, Dependency relationship deriving means for outputting a numerical value indicating the held dependency relationship,
The dependency derivation means includes:
(A) For all combinations of any first requirement belonging to the first hierarchy and any second requirement belonging to the first hierarchy,
For all the third requirements in which the numerical values indicating the dependency relationship of the first requirement and the second requirement with respect to the third requirement belonging to the second hierarchy are both greater than or equal to a predetermined strength,
(Numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the first requirement), (Numerical value indicating the dependency of the first requirement on the third requirement), (Numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the third requirement) and ( Number indicating the degree of influence of the second requirement)
The largest numerical value among the obtained numerical values is stored in the form of a DSM table as a numerical value indicating the dependency of the first requirement on the second requirement. ,
(B) For all combinations of any first requirement belonging to the first hierarchy and any third requirement belonging to the second hierarchy,
(Numerical value indicating the dependency of the first requirement on the third requirement) and (Numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the first requirement)
A numerical value obtained by performing a calculation using a pre-stored expression using and storing a numerical value indicating a dependency relationship of the first requirement with respect to the third requirement in the form of a DSM table,
(C) For all combinations of the optional third requirement belonging to the second hierarchy and the optional fourth requirement belonging to the second hierarchy,
For all the first requirements belonging to the first hierarchy,
(Numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the third requirement), (Numerical value indicating the dependency of the first requirement on the third requirement), (Numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the first requirement) and ( (Numerical value indicating the dependency of the first requirement on the fourth requirement)
The largest numerical value among the obtained numerical values is stored in the form of a DSM table as a numerical value indicating the dependency of the third requirement on the fourth requirement. ,
(D) For all combinations of any third requirement belonging to the second hierarchy and any first requirement belonging to the first hierarchy,
(Numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the third requirement), (Numerical value indicating the dependency of the first requirement on the third requirement) and (Numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the first requirement)
A numerical value obtained by performing a calculation using an expression stored in advance using and holding the third requirement in the form of a DSM table as a numeric value indicating a dependency relationship of the third requirement with respect to the first requirement.
Product development process support system characterized by that. A product development process configured by a computer system and analyzing a dependency relationship between a plurality of requirements in a product development process belonging to either the first hierarchy or the second hierarchy that is an upper hierarchy of the first hierarchy A support system,
For each requirement belonging to the first hierarchy and the second hierarchy, an input of a numerical value indicating a dependency relationship of the requirement belonging to the first hierarchy to the requirement belonging to the second hierarchy is accepted as a numerical value of the QFD table. , Input receiving means for receiving an input of a numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the requirement on product development;
Using a numerical value received by the input receiving means, derive a numerical value indicating a dependency relationship between a plurality of requirements belonging to either the first hierarchy or the second hierarchy, and hold it in the form of a DSM table, Dependency relationship deriving means for outputting a numerical value indicating the held dependency relationship,
The dependency derivation means includes:
(A) For all combinations of any first requirement belonging to the first hierarchy and any second requirement belonging to the first hierarchy,
For all the third requirements in which the numerical values indicating the dependency relationship of the first requirement and the second requirement with respect to the third requirement belonging to the second hierarchy are both greater than or equal to a predetermined strength,
(Numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the first requirement), (Numerical value indicating the dependency of the first requirement on the third requirement), (Numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the third requirement) and ( Number indicating the degree of influence of the second requirement)
The largest numerical value among the obtained numerical values is stored in the form of a DSM table as a numerical value indicating the dependency of the first requirement on the second requirement. ,
Product development process support system characterized by that. The dependency derivation means includes:
(A) For all combinations of any first requirement belonging to the first hierarchy and any second requirement belonging to the first hierarchy,
For all the third requirements in which the numerical values indicating the dependency relationship of the first requirement and the second requirement with respect to the third requirement belonging to the second hierarchy are both greater than or equal to a predetermined strength,
(Numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the first requirement) × (Numerical value indicating the dependency of the first requirement on the third requirement) × (Numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the third requirement) × (the above Number indicating the degree of influence of the second requirement)
And holding the largest numerical value among the obtained numerical values in the form of a DSM table as a numerical value indicating the dependency of the first requirement on the second requirement.
The product development process support system according to claim 2. A product development process configured by a computer system and analyzing a dependency relationship between a plurality of requirements in a product development process belonging to either the first hierarchy or the second hierarchy that is an upper hierarchy of the first hierarchy A support system,
For each requirement belonging to the first hierarchy and the second hierarchy, an input of a numerical value indicating a dependency relationship of the requirement belonging to the first hierarchy to the requirement belonging to the second hierarchy is accepted as a numerical value of the QFD table. , Input receiving means for receiving an input of a numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the requirement on product development;
Using a numerical value received by the input receiving means, derive a numerical value indicating a dependency relationship between a plurality of requirements belonging to either the first hierarchy or the second hierarchy, and hold it in the form of a DSM table, Dependency relationship deriving means for outputting a numerical value indicating the held dependency relationship,
The dependency derivation means includes:
(C) For all combinations of the optional third requirement belonging to the second hierarchy and the optional fourth requirement belonging to the second hierarchy,
For all the first requirements belonging to the first hierarchy,
(Numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the third requirement), (Numerical value indicating the dependency of the first requirement on the third requirement), (Numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the first requirement) and ( (Numerical value indicating the dependency of the first requirement on the fourth requirement)
The largest numerical value among the obtained numerical values is held in the form of a DSM table as a numerical value indicating the dependency of the third requirement on the fourth requirement. ,
Product development process support system characterized by that. The dependency derivation means includes:
(C) For all combinations of the optional third requirement belonging to the second hierarchy and the optional fourth requirement belonging to the second hierarchy,
For all the first requirements belonging to the first hierarchy,
(Numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the third requirement) × (Numerical value indicating the dependency of the first requirement on the third requirement) × (Numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the first requirement) × (the above (Numerical value indicating the dependency of the first requirement on the fourth requirement)
And the largest numerical value among the obtained numerical values is held in the form of a DSM table as a numerical value indicating the dependency of the third requirement on the fourth requirement.
The product development process support system according to claim 4.   The priority of each requirement in the product development process is determined by changing the order of the matrix of the DSM table using the numerical value indicating the dependency outputted by the dependency derivation means, and the dependency between the requirements The product development process support system according to any one of claims 1 to 5, further comprising analysis means for partitioning the loop so as to hold the loop in a small unit. Between a plurality of requirements in the product development process belonging to either the first hierarchy or the second hierarchy that is an upper hierarchy of the first hierarchy by the computer system having the input receiving means and the dependency relationship deriving means A product development process support method for analyzing the dependency of
The input receiving means inputs, for each requirement belonging to the first hierarchy and the second hierarchy, a numerical value indicating a dependency relationship of the requirement belonging to the first hierarchy to the requirement belonging to the second hierarchy. An input receiving step of receiving a numerical value indicating a degree of influence on product development of the requirement, as well as receiving a numerical value of the table;
The dependency relationship deriving means derives a numerical value indicating a dependency relationship between a plurality of requirements belonging to one of the first hierarchy and the second hierarchy using the numerical value received in the input reception step to obtain a DSM. A dependency relationship deriving step that holds in the form of a table and outputs a numerical value indicating the retained dependency relationship,
The dependency relationship deriving means includes the dependency relationship deriving step,
(A) For all combinations of any first requirement belonging to the first hierarchy and any second requirement belonging to the first hierarchy,
For all the third requirements in which the numerical values indicating the dependency relationship of the first requirement and the second requirement with respect to the third requirement belonging to the second hierarchy are both greater than or equal to a predetermined strength,
(Numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the first requirement), (Numerical value indicating the dependency of the first requirement on the third requirement), (Numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the third requirement) and ( Number indicating the degree of influence of the second requirement)
The largest numerical value among the obtained numerical values is stored in the form of a DSM table as a numerical value indicating the dependency of the first requirement on the second requirement. ,
(B) For all combinations of any first requirement belonging to the first hierarchy and any third requirement belonging to the second hierarchy,
(Numerical value indicating the dependency of the first requirement on the third requirement) and (Numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the first requirement)
A numerical value obtained by performing a calculation using a pre-stored expression using and storing a numerical value indicating a dependency relationship of the first requirement with respect to the third requirement in the form of a DSM table,
(C) For all combinations of the optional third requirement belonging to the second hierarchy and the optional fourth requirement belonging to the second hierarchy,
For all the first requirements belonging to the first hierarchy,
(Numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the third requirement), (Numerical value indicating the dependency of the first requirement on the third requirement), (Numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the first requirement) and ( (Numerical value indicating the dependency of the first requirement on the fourth requirement)
The largest numerical value among the obtained numerical values is stored in the form of a DSM table as a numerical value indicating the dependency of the third requirement on the fourth requirement. ,
(D) For all combinations of any third requirement belonging to the second hierarchy and any first requirement belonging to the first hierarchy,
(Numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the third requirement), (Numerical value indicating the dependency of the first requirement on the third requirement) and (Numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the first requirement)
A numerical value obtained by performing a calculation using an expression stored in advance using and holding the third requirement in the form of a DSM table as a numeric value indicating a dependency relationship of the third requirement with respect to the first requirement.
A product development process support method characterized by the above. Between a plurality of requirements in the product development process belonging to either the first hierarchy or the second hierarchy that is an upper hierarchy of the first hierarchy by the computer system having the input receiving means and the dependency relationship deriving means A product development process support method for analyzing the dependency of
The input receiving means inputs, for each requirement belonging to the first hierarchy and the second hierarchy, a numerical value indicating a dependency relationship of the requirement belonging to the first hierarchy to the requirement belonging to the second hierarchy. An input receiving step of receiving a numerical value indicating a degree of influence on product development of the requirement, as well as receiving a numerical value of the table;
The dependency relationship deriving means derives a numerical value indicating a dependency relationship between a plurality of requirements belonging to one of the first hierarchy and the second hierarchy using the numerical value received in the input reception step to obtain a DSM. A dependency relationship deriving step that holds in the form of a table and outputs a numerical value indicating the retained dependency relationship,
The dependency relationship deriving means includes the dependency relationship deriving step,
(A) For all combinations of any first requirement belonging to the first hierarchy and any second requirement belonging to the first hierarchy,
For all the third requirements in which the numerical values indicating the dependency relationship of the first requirement and the second requirement with respect to the third requirement belonging to the second hierarchy are both greater than or equal to a predetermined strength,
(Numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the first requirement), (Numerical value indicating the dependency of the first requirement on the third requirement), (Numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the third requirement) and ( Number indicating the degree of influence of the second requirement)
The largest numerical value among the obtained numerical values is stored in the form of a DSM table as a numerical value indicating the dependency of the first requirement on the second requirement. ,
A product development process support method characterized by the above. The dependency relationship deriving means includes the dependency relationship deriving step,
(A) For all combinations of any first requirement belonging to the first hierarchy and any second requirement belonging to the first hierarchy,
For all the third requirements in which the numerical values indicating the dependency relationship of the first requirement and the second requirement with respect to the third requirement belonging to the second hierarchy are both greater than or equal to a predetermined strength,
(Numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the first requirement) × (Numerical value indicating the dependency of the first requirement on the third requirement) × (Numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the third requirement) × (the above Number indicating the degree of influence of the second requirement)
And holding the largest numerical value among the obtained numerical values in the form of a DSM table as a numerical value indicating the dependency of the first requirement on the second requirement.
The product development process support method according to claim 8. Between a plurality of requirements in the product development process belonging to either the first hierarchy or the second hierarchy that is an upper hierarchy of the first hierarchy by the computer system having the input receiving means and the dependency relationship deriving means A product development process support method for analyzing the dependency of
The input receiving means inputs, for each requirement belonging to the first hierarchy and the second hierarchy, a numerical value indicating a dependency relationship of the requirement belonging to the first hierarchy to the requirement belonging to the second hierarchy. An input receiving step of receiving a numerical value indicating a degree of influence on product development of the requirement, as well as receiving a numerical value of the table;
The dependency relationship deriving means derives a numerical value indicating a dependency relationship between a plurality of requirements belonging to one of the first hierarchy and the second hierarchy using the numerical value received in the input reception step to obtain a DSM. A dependency relationship deriving step that holds in the form of a table and outputs a numerical value indicating the retained dependency relationship,
The dependency relationship deriving means includes the dependency relationship deriving step,
(C) For all combinations of the optional third requirement belonging to the second hierarchy and the optional fourth requirement belonging to the second hierarchy,
For all the first requirements belonging to the first hierarchy,
(Numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the third requirement), (Numerical value indicating the dependency of the first requirement on the third requirement), (Numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the first requirement) and ( (Numerical value indicating the dependency of the first requirement on the fourth requirement)
The largest numerical value among the obtained numerical values is held in the form of a DSM table as a numerical value indicating the dependency of the third requirement on the fourth requirement. ,
A product development process support method characterized by the above. The dependency relationship deriving means includes the dependency relationship deriving step,
(C) For all combinations of the optional third requirement belonging to the second hierarchy and the optional fourth requirement belonging to the second hierarchy,
For all the first requirements belonging to the first hierarchy,
(Numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the third requirement) × (Numerical value indicating the dependency of the first requirement on the third requirement) × (Numerical value indicating the degree of influence of the first requirement) × (the above (Numerical value indicating the dependency of the first requirement on the fourth requirement)
And the largest numerical value among the obtained numerical values is held in the form of a DSM table as a numerical value indicating the dependency of the third requirement on the fourth requirement.
The product development process support method according to claim 10. The computer system further comprises analysis means for analyzing,
The analysis unit determines the priority of each requirement in the product development process by changing the order of the matrix of the DSM table using the numerical value indicating the dependency output in the dependency relationship deriving step. The product development process support method according to any one of claims 7 to 11, further comprising an analysis step of partitioning so as to suppress a dependency relationship loop between requirements into a small unit.

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