A parallel disassembly method for green product design

Due to growing concern for the environment, green design has become a major part of the product development process. Most methods attempt to maximize energy efficiency, minimize use of high impact materials, and maximize product reuse, remanufacturing, and recycling. To maximize product reuse, remanufacturing, and recycling, products must be easy to disassemble. As a result, disassembly planning is now a major part of the green design process. The goal of this study is to create a selective parallel disassembly planning method. The method uses modular design theory to group parts into modules and uses recursive rules to simultaneously remove grouped parts from products, for product, module, or part reuse, remanufacturing, or recycling. The method can simultaneously remove two or more parts in parallel from products. The method groups parts into modules to remove occluded or interlocked parts. The method can be used to maximize product quality, minimize product cost, and minimize environmental impacts.