Communicating Ideas Product Design

Communicating Ideas Can be communicated in numerous ways Methods chosen will determine design stage. Most common is through sketches and drawings – Communicate to clients, end users, manufactures, retailers etc.. Designers often sketch to communicate to themselves. – Helps them visualise products fully and examine problem areas better. – Frees up minds, allowing to develop ideas further. Written notes, comments and observations are important methods of recording.

Idea Generation Techniques Brainstorming Mind MapsAnalysis Lifestyle boards Design stores Researching information Transfer and analogy Morphological analysis Mood boardsSynthesis

Brainstorming Best known technique Widely used throughout most areas where idea’s are needed to be generated Works best as a group exercise but good for initial thinking individually – Advantage: group members may begin to see topic from a different view point. – Disadvantage: chain reaction thinking can begin where different lines of thinking can be channelled into a limited number of ideas.

Morphological Analysis Structured way to generate ideas Good for someone working on their own Encourages individual problem solving Visual method of seeking solutions Best highlighting headings relating to design problem. By moving columns vertically creates different solutions and ideas for the product.

Lateral Thinking Encourages creativity and stimulates imagination. Helps them explore less obvious solutions. There is no wrong answer, there are only better or worse solutions. Five Stages to creative thinking: – Insight - Define a problem and identify needs and wants of the user. – Preparation – effort required to solve problems. All relevant information begins to be gathered and organised. – Incubation - creative process begins and you become immersed in the problem. – Illumination – sudden emergence of an idea that solve s the problem. Mind may be forced by an idea. – Verification – Idea is considered and evaluated against known criteria.

Lifestyle Boards

Mood Boards

Other options Design Stories Mind maps Researching Synthesising Model making

Question 1 In order to generate ideas rapidly, designers sometimes make use of idea generation techniques. – A Name and describe TWO techniques – B Describe how each of these techniques would be followed up by the designer.

Answer 1 A Brainstorming – group activity. Initially include all ideas no matter how silly. Word association Mind map/spider diagram – place problem in centre and work around connecting factors for the problem Morphological Analysis – uses key words relating to the subject to create a variety of solutions. Technology Transfer – define a problem to be solved. Identify problems to similar solutions re-design technology for new use. B Brainstorming would be followed up by selecting viable ideas by making reference to the specification and developing them further by sketching possible solutions.

Question 2 3. Companies produce a series of prototypes of their products before manufacture. (a) For the product shown above, name and justify two strategies that the company could use to evaluate the performance of their prototype before the product goes into production. (b) State the name of and justify two further strategies that the company could use to evaluate the potential success of this product.

Answer 2 (a) Test rigs – ability to test and measure performance issues such as durability, reliability and wear-and-tear over a variety of surfaces/ time lengths. User Trials – test and measure issues such as ease of use/ maintenance; ergonomic factors; accessibility (corners of rooms/ underneath furniture to get at dust traps); flexibility. Any other suitable statement. (b) Surveys through questionnaires – ability to evaluate current performance issues such as customer satisfaction, market needs and wants, and problems consumers have with the product and potential development opportunities to improve product. Product placements – ability for market researchers to observe customer reaction to the product when set against competitors’ products (wow factor). Opportunity to observe the product’s performance when used by a consumer in a typical home setting. Any other suitable statement.