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solving. In his cooperative design model, design agents can be viewed as being
made up of a design component that can update and critique designs, as well as
a conflict resolution component that resolves design agent conflict [Klein 1995].
Dunsus tried to use many small, cooperating, and limited-function expert systems
to build an integrated system to investigate conflict. It provides ways of discovering
and testing the components of negotiation, patterns of communication, functional
primitives of design, and the types of knowledge needed [Dunskus 1995]. Wong
proposed a cooperative problem-solving approach to handle the conflicts among
distributed design agents [Wong 1997]. He classified conflicts into schema con-
flicts, data conflicts, and knowledge conflicts, and proposed four modes of conflict
resolution (Inquiry, Arbitration, Persuasion, and Accommodation).
Other research works focus on the negotiation strategies of conflict resolution
based on economic or behavioral theory. Bahler introduced a protocol of evaluating
compromise solutions to conlicts in collaborative negotiations [Bahler 1995]. he
protocol is based on the notions of economic utility by which design advice systems
can recognize conlict and mediate negotiation fairly. he basic idea is to allow
expressed preferences of design teams to be qualitative as well as quantitative. Several
approaches are proposed to handle conflicts in design by modeling conflict as the
multi-objective decision problem [Kannapan and Taylor 1994, Kraus, Wilkenfeld,
and Zlotkin 1995, Petrie et al. 1995, Lewis and Mistree 1997, Wellman 1995]. One
of them is concerned with global metrics for optimization, decision support, and
negotiation. he coordination function is supported by some optimization meth-
odology, such as Pareto optimality and multi-attribute utility [Petrie et al. 1995].
Game theory has been used as a typical method for generating compromise solu-
tions in many research approaches. Vincent examined the role of game theory in the
engineering design process in 1983. He examined the multi-criteria optimization
task from the perspective of team design [Vincent 1993]. A modified game theory
approach to multi-objective optimization has been used in conflict resolution as a
combination of optimization steps [Rao and Freiheit 1991].
he engineering design models also have some mechanisms applicable to resolv-
ing design conflict. For instance, QFD (Quality Function Deployment) is a struc-
tured process that establishes customer value using the “voice of the customer”
and transforms that value to design, production, and supportability process char-
acteristics [Hauser and Clausing 1988]. he result of QFD analysis is a systems
engineering process that ensures product quality as deined by the customers. his
is essentially a methodology to solve/mitigate the conflicts among the diversified
customer needs, which mainly exist in the early phases of engineering design. he
Independence Axiom in Axiomatic design [Suh 1990] states that the independence
of Functional Requirements must be always maintained to reduce the random
search process and minimize the iterative trial-and-error process. It claims that a
product design that ignores this axiom will face substantial conflicts.
To summarize the above, we now discuss the contributions and limitations of the
previous works on conlict resolution. he AI-based approaches and the economic/
