Paradigm Shift in Engineering Design Precipitated by the Advent of Miniaturized Systems

The issues involved in the design of miniaturized systems are reviewed. In several respects the design of miniaturized systems requires departure from traditional engineering design. The design has to cope with a host of uncertainties simultaneously. The sources of uncertainties are all associated with reduced physical size of components and systems. A methodology is proposed in that the knowledge base is developed well in advance of actual design work, and a fast-to-use design code is made ready by the time the design work starts. For the knowledge base development conventional numerical simulation tools are applied to ‘template models’.