From Auxiliary Design Tools to Intelligent Collaborative Partners: The Transformation of the Relationship Between Design and Computing

Artificial intelligence, empowered by computing, has surpassed auxiliary design tools, fostering deep collaboration between human-machine intelligence in contemporary design. Advanced computing technologies and design trends shape the integration of design tools in the information age, influencing design methodology. The developmental history of design tools demonstrates that it undergoes four stages. This article analyzes the impact of calculation on design by studying tools, products, methods, processes, and concepts in each stage, exploring the evolving relationship between design and computation. Designers divide the transformation of the design-computation relationship, which progressively permeates design, transitioning from digitization and automation to parameterization and intelligence. It evolves from improving efficiency to assuming both subject and object roles in the design process and becoming an active partner in collaborative design.