ID106 - PRODUCT DESIGN LECTURE SERIES Reading material -compiled by Alamelu Pasupathy - visiting faculty MEASI

Syllabus
Chapter 1 Orientation Communication model making, free hand drawing, technical drawing a engineering convention for products, product photography basics of photographic equipments and rendering representation of concepts and detailed designs Chapter 2 Materials and Technology Experience of physically working with various materials and comprehending their physical characteristics. General forms of materials available commercially. Material working technologies and processes. Ferrous and non ferrous metals, plastics, wood, board, composites, alloys, paints and coating , finishes, treatments, hardening, stone and glass | An over view of relationship between technological progress and design issues, through an analysis of current technological trends and their effects on culture, society and industrial production Chapter 3 - Design studies and criticism The objective is to look at the myriad forms of the past and contemporary artistic expression. Through the examination of film, music, photography, painting sculpture and dance | The student is required to do directed research the student would be required to select a particular subject or product. He/she then defines a specific narrow topic and objective of the paper. He/she would pursue readings and discussions till he/she develops a personal perspective to inform or comment upon the topic would then write a paper. Chapter 4 Workshop Scale project abridge course that enables student architects interior designers of buildings to shift their perspective from large sized artefacts to small atrefacts using their existing methodologies of design and process of decision making | Concept of human interface, object man interaction | Ergonomics basic principles, anthropometry, scale models and testing | Techniques of exploring unfamiliar perspectives, brain storming and other established strategies of idea generation. Chapter 5 project Design of an object from the perspective of individual expression and design intervention. Total design, information collection, existing product analysis, market research, development of brief, concept generation as an audit of possibilities, ergonomic studies, cost analysis, value engineering, product improvement.

CHAPTER 4 - Work shop

WHAT IS ERGONOMICS? The word ergonomics is derived from the Greek words ergon (work) and nomos (law). In several countries, the term human factors is also used. A succinct definition would be that ergonomics aims to design appliances, technical systems and tasks in such a way as to improve human safety, health, comfort and performance. The formal definition of ergonomics, approved by the IEA, reads as follows: Ergonomics (or human factors) is the scientific discipline concerned with understanding of the interactions among humans and other elements of a system, and the profession that applies theory, principles, data and methods to design, in order to optimize human well-being and overall system performance. In the design of work and everyday-life situations, the focus of ergonomics is man. Unsafe, unhealthy, uncomfortable or inefficient situations at work or in everyday life are avoided by taking account of the physical and psychological capabilities and limitations of humans. A large number of factors play a role in ergonomics; these include body posture and movement (sitting, standing, lifting, pulling and pushing), environmental factors (noise, vibration, illumination, climate, chemical substances), information and operation (information gained visually or through other senses, controls, relation between displays and control), as well as work organization (appropriate tasks, interesting jobs). These factors determine to a large extent safety, health, comfort and efficient performance at work and in everyday life. Ergonomics draws knowledge from various fields in the human sciences and technology, including anthropometrics, biomechanics, physiology, psychology, toxicology, mechanical engineering, industrial design, information technology and management. It has gathered selected and integrated relevant knowledge from these fields. In applying this knowledge, specific methods and techniques are used. Ergonomics differs from other fields by its interdisciplinary approach and applied nature. The interdisciplinary character of the ergonomic approach means that it relates to many different human facets. As a consequence of its applied nature, the ergonomic approach results in the adaptation of the workplace or environment to fit people, rather than the other way round.

Product design for interior designers

An interior designer crafts spaces. And a product designer crafts products. Irrespective of what they design, their approach to design they share is similar. For interior designers to design all you need is a change in perspective of the scale, along with understanding of more materials, processes and concepts like ergonomics etc. The subject aims at shifting the focus of the interior designers from big spaces and arte facts to small arte facts

ERGONOMICS
Ergonomics developed into a recognized field during World War II, when for the first time, technology and the human sciences were systematically applied in a coordinated manner. Physiologists, psychologists, anthropologists, medical doctors, work scientists and engineers together addressed the problems arising from the operation of complex military equipment. The results of this interdisciplinary approach appeared so promising that the cooperation was pursued after the war, in industry. Interest in the approach grew rapidly, especially in Europe and the U.S., leading to the foundation in England of the first ever national ergonomics society in 1949, which is when the term ergonomics was adopted. This was followed in 1961 by the creation of the International Ergonomics Association (IEA), which represents ergonomics societies that are active in more than 40 countries or regions, with a total membership of some 19,000 people. The discipline which eventually emerged sought to amalgamate the knowledge and philosophies of such diverse subjects as psychology, biology, and engineering in order to understand better the ways in which humans interact with their surroundings, and thus how the surroundings can be engineered to suit the humans.

OBJECT MAN INTERACTION AND THE CONCEPT OF HUMAN INTERFACE The focus of ergonomics is on the interaction between the person and the machine and the design of the interface between the two . Every time we use a tool or a machine we interact with it via an interface (a handle, a steering wheel, a computer keyboard and mouse, etc.). We get feedback via an interface (the dashboard instrumentation in a car, the computer screen, etc.) The way this interface is designed determines how easily and safely we can use the machine. When faced with productivity problems, engineers might call for better machines, personnel management might call for better-trained people. Ergonomists call for a better interface and better interaction between the user and the machine better task design. APPLICATION OF ERGONOMICS Ergonomics is applied is almost every domain where there is a object man interaction. It is applied is industries to improve the working conditions making them more user friendly. With the extensive use of computers in offices, resulting in occupational hazards has increased the significance of office ergonomics. It forms an inherent part in products of ever day use, health equipments, electronic good, appliance, automobiles, and furniture and in any system that involves the interaction between object and man. It is also extended to soft interfaces and virtual realities that we interact with. ERGONOMICS A HISTORY Ergonomics came about as a consequence of the design and operational problems presented by technological advances in the last century. It owes its development to the same historical processes that gave rise to other disciplines such as industrial engineering and occupational medicine. Below is the list of events, theories and experiment in a chronological order, that gradually led to the evolution of ergonomics as a separate discipline

Scientific management and work study - Scientific management, developed by F. W. Taylor, and work study, developed by the Gilbreths, are precursors of ergonomics. Both were developed at the beginning of the twentieth century and were based on the realisation that productivity could be improved by redesigning the way work was done and not just by using better machines. Work study was developed by the Gilbreths at around the same time. They developed methods for analysing and evaluating the way tasks were performed. A task would be broken down into elements the basic movements and procedures required to perform it. Inefficient or redundant movements would be eliminated. By redesigning and reconfiguring the remaining elements, productivity was enhanced. The essence of Taylorism had been to regard the worker as an isolated individual whose output was determined by physical factors such as fatigue or poor job design and by economic incentives. A job would be redesigned to make it as simple as possible to learn and to perform. A production standard and rate of pay would be set and a bonus scheme introduced as an incentive for workers to produce more than the standard. It was assumed that rational economic men would maximise their productivity to maximise the bonus. The social context in which work took place was ignored. Human relations and occupational psychology- Occupational psychology developed in the 1920s and 1930s. In the 1920s and early 1930s a series of experiments were carried out over 12 years by Elton Mayo and his colleagues at the Hawthorne Works of the Western Electric Company in the USA. The experiments are of historical interest more for their influence, which was to draw attention to social factors at work, than for their findings. The investigators began by examining the effects of illumination, rest pauses and shorter hours on productivity and fatigue The experimenters began by manipulating the lighting levels to observe the effect on output. Unexpectedly, it was found that output increased even when the illumination was reduced. This result is the basis of belief in the Hawthorne effect and is used as evidence for the importance of social rather than physical factors in determining worker performance. The usual interpretation is that the changes in

lighting levels reminded workers that they were in an experiment, being observed, and that this motivated them to work harder. The Hawthorne experiments earned their place in history, ushering in a new era of research into Human Relations in the workplace and drawing attention to the importance of social and personal determinants of worker behaviour. Socio technical systems theory - Socio technical Systems Theory emerged in the UK after the Second World War. Trist and Bamforth (1951) investigated the social and psychological consequences of mechanized coal-mining in the context of a reportedly higher incidence of psychosomatic disorders among miners working under mechanized conditions. In coal mines, a different form of social organisation was necessary because of the intrinsically unpredictable nature of the working environment in a mine compared to a factory. The organisation of technology, the social organization and the local environment had to be seen as interconnected and designed to be mutually compatible if low productivity and pathological psychological stresses were to be avoided. Participation - The idea that workers should participate in decisions about work dates from the same era. Coch and French (1948) carried out an investigation of participation in a US pyjama factory staffed by young, unskilled women. In the experiments three kinds of groups were introduced. They are a control group, where change was introduced by management without the involvement of employees, a representative group, where change was introduced after discussions with employee representatives and a total participation group where all employees were involved. Production fell by 1020% in the control group immediately after the change, whereas it was maintained in the representative group, rising 1015% after a few weeks. In the participation group, production rose immediately and the gains were maintained for several months. Occupational medicine - Occupational medicine had its origins in the eighteenth century when Ramazzini (1717) wrote his Treatise on the Diseases of Tradesmen but became more formalized at the beginning of the twentieth century. Around the

period 19141918, a number of government institutions were founded in Britain as interest in working conditions spread to scientists and medical doctors. The Health and Munitions Workers Committee subsequently became the Industrial Health Research Board and its area of interest was fairly wide, covering ventilation, the effects of heat and shift work and training. Recommendations were made at about this time for a variety of aspects of industrial work including the types of food served in factory canteens, taking into account the likely nutritional deficiencies of the workforce and the demands of work. Vernon (1924) investigated postural and workspace factors related to fatigue and concluded that Any form of physical activity will lead to fatigue if it is unvarying and constant. Human performance psychology - Human performance psychology had its roots in the practical problem of how toreduce the time taken to train a worker to carry out a task. The cybernetic approach investigated the use of feedback (knowledge of results) and its effects on learning. The theoretical ideas of B. F. Skinner and the behaviourist school of psychology were implemented in the form of programmed learning. Behaviourism saw learning as the chaining together of stimulusresponse pairs under the control of reinforcing, or rewarding stimuli from the environment. In programmed learning, the material to be learnt was presented in a stepwise fashion and the order of presentation of information to be learnt was determined by whether the trainees previous responses were correct or incorrect. The pressure for the productive and efficient use of machines was amplified by the demands of the Second World War and brought psychologists into direct contact with the problems of humanmachine interaction. The famous Cambridge psychologist Sir Frederick Bartlett built a simulator of the Spitfire aircraft and investigated the effects of stress and fatigue on pilot behavior. Operations research - Operations research attempts to build mathematical models of industrial processes. It was also stimulated to grow by the demands for prediction and control brought about to satisfy the requirements of the military during the Second World War. It had become clear that further advances in system performance would depend on how well technology was used, not just how well it was designed. This shift of attention from the machine to the man-machine system gave birth to the subject of ergonomics.

FMJ versus FJM - Attempts to fit the man to the job (FMJ) were based on the idea that productivity or efficiency could be improved by selecting workers with the right aptitudes for a particular job. This approach, which forms one of the roots of modern occupational psychology, is based on the assumption that important aptitudes for any particular job really do exist and that they can be identified and objectively measured An alternative approach, which is the guiding philosophy of ergonomics, is known as fitting the job to the man (FJM). Much of the early human engineering and workspace design attempted to design tasks to suit the characteristics of the worker.

Attempts to humanise work - In the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s a number of largescale programmes were initiated in several European countries. These programmes were motivated by a variety of factors. For example, successive generations of school-leavers in the countries in question had increasingly higher levels of education and higher expectations of work. The programs attempted to provide higher-quality jobs through changes in work organisation. The British Quality of Working Life programme (Tynan, 1980) attempted to combine new approaches to job design with technological change under the premise that, since technological change forces job redesign anyway, the opportunities presented by new technologies could best be realised by optimising the work organisation and design of jobs. Management, trade unions and workers were to be included in a participatory approach towards job design. Success of work humanisation programmes - The modern workplace, according to this view, is characterised by flexibility and individual discretion over work elements. The extent to which this thinking has really penetrated organisations and replaced traditional styles of management has been investigated by Boreham (1992), who carried out an international comparative study of the organisation of work and the amount of discretion available to employees in a variety of organisations in the USA, Australia, Britain, Canada, Germany, Japan and Sweden. Boreham concluded that there was scant evidence to suggest that truly participative organisational practices had been implemented in the countries studied. In one sense, then, Taylorism lives on, alive and well in the call centres of modern computerised offices. Despite these reservations, participative practices have been accepted in some organisations and in some countries (e.g. Germany). Modern ergonomics - Modern ergonomics contributes to the design and evaluation of work systems and products. Unlike in earlier times when an engineer designed a whole machine or product, design is a team effort nowadays. The ergonomist usually has an important role to play both at the conceptual phase and in detailed design as well as in prototyping and the evaluation of existing products and facilities. Modern ergonomics contributes in a number of ways to the design of the work system . These activities should be seen as an integral part of the design and management of systems rather than optional extras.

Human factors and ergonomics - In 1857, Jastrzebowski produced a philospohical treatise on An Outline of Ergonomics or the Science of Work but it seems to have remained unknown outside Poland, until recently. In Britain, the field of ergonomics was inaugurated after the Second World War. The name was reinvented by Murrell in 1949 despite objections that people would confuse it with economics. The emphasis was on equipment and workspace design and the relevant subjects were held to be anatomy, physiology, industrial medicine, design, architecture and illumination engineering. In Europe, ergonomics was even more strongly grounded in biological sciences. In the USA, a similar discipline emerged (known as Human Factors), but its scientific roots were grounded in psychology (applied experimental psychology, engineering psychology and human engineering).

Modern work systems and Neo-Taylorism - Margulies (1981) complained that few designers of the then modern computer systems felt responsible for ergonomic issues, nor did they feel the need to consult users about anything other than minor issues. New designs were justified by claiming that the constraints imposed on users were enforced by the requirements of implementing the technology. Margulies called for a change in outlook based on the fact that computer systems are not intrinsically deterministic and that people have a need for a satisfying work over which they have some control a need for psychological ownership of the job. This was to be achieved by means of participation between employees and their representatives, computer systems designers and social scientists

ERGONOMICS THE VALUE AND BENEFITS Ergonomics is the science of adopting a job or an equipment and the human to each other for optimal safety and productivity. Also termed as human factors it focuses on how humans behave physically and psychologically in relation to a particular environment. The inferences of the study are applied to create better products systems and environment promoting health and efficiency. By definition, ergonomics serves both social goals (well-being, health , optimal safety) and economic goals (performance, efficiency, productivity). THE SOCIAL VALUE OF ERGONOMICS Ergonomics can contribute to human well-being in terms of safety, health, and comfort. Daily occurrences such as accidents at work, in traffic and at home, as well as disasters involving cranes, airplanes and nuclear power stations can often be attributed to human error resulting from poor relationship between operators and their task. The probability of accidents can be reduced by taking better account of human capabilities and limitations when designing work and everyday-life environments. In the design of complex technical systems such as process installations, aircraft and (nuclear) power stations, ergonomics has become one of the most important design factors in reducing operator error. Many work and everyday-life situations are hazardous to health. In many countries, diseases of the musculoskeletal system (mainly lower back pain) and psychological illnesses (for example, due to stress) constitute the most important causes of absence due to illness, and of occupational disability. These conditions can be partly ascribed to poor design of equipment, technical systems and tasks. Here, too, ergonomics can help reduce the problems by improving the working conditions. Finally, ergonomics can contribute to the realization of user-friendly products. For example, many consumer products (e.g., input devices for computers) are being promoted as ergonomical, suggesting comfort and pleasure during the use of the product.

THE ECONOMIC VALUE OF ERGONOMICS At society level, ergonomics can contribute to the reduction of costs due to preventable health problems such as work-related musculoskeletal disorders by improving working conditions. The societal costs include health care costs for the treatment of disorders and costs related to the loss of labor productivity due to absence from work. At company level, ergonomics can contribute to the competitive advantage of a company. With ergonomically designed production processes, a company can increase human performance in terms of productivity and quality, and can realize important cost-reductions. At a product level, with ergonomically designed products, a company can deliver benefits to its customers, which exceed those of competing products. ANTHROPOMETRY While designing products for human use, the external body dimensions are of importance and the anthropometry has to be considered. While designing individual items or products, one has to take into consideration the dimensions of the product items, their layout pattern in a given space, the ease of reach, their use, etc., to match with the anthropometry of the users. Anthropometry is the subject which deals with the measurements of the human external body dimensions in static and dynamic conditions. These include measurements of the body parts, their strength, speed and their ranges of motion. Anthropometry is the science that measures the range of body sizes in a population. When designing products it is important to remember that people come in many sizes and shapes. Anthropometric data varies considerably between regional populations. For example, Scandinavian populations tend to be taller, while Asian and Italian populations tend to be shorter.

PERCENTILE HUMANS Anthropometric dimensions for each population are ranked by size and described as percentiles. The anthropometric data, collected through direct and indirect measurement procedures for a particular population goes through a series of statistical treatment resulting in percentiles. It is common practice to design for the 5th percentile (5th%) female to the 95th percentile (95th%) male. The 5th% female value for a particular dimension (e.g. sitting height) usually represents the smallest measurement for design in a population. Conversely, a 95th% male value may represent the largest dimension for which one is designing. The 5th% to 95th% range accommodates approximately 90% of the population. To design for a larger portion of the population, one might use the range from the 1st% female to the 99th% male.

A CASE EXAMPLE IN FURNITURE - As an item of furniture is rarely used by only one individual; most furniture must accommodate the variations of a wide range of end users. The "average" person is a mythical creature. When measurements are taken from a target population for a particular design, a mid-point (termed the 50th "percentile") divides users into two groups - one above and one below the "average." It may be logical to use this mid-point/average number to determine the height of a chair seat but not the height for the top shelf in a storage cabinet. In the latter case, it is standard practice to use a dimension that accommodates 90 to 95 percent of users who can reach an object on the top shelf. The design ideal is to provide for adjustability and use anthropometric data to determine the upper and lower limits for the range of adjustments, e.g., for workstation chairs ERGONOMICS OF THE DESIGN OF PRODUCTS, EQUIPMENT AND ACCESSORIES The final outcome of any man-made article for human use with a definite form, shape and size required to perform a particular task may be termed as a product. The range of such products may extend from a small individual pin in a household, to a group of articles assembled together like machine tools, toys, a complex electronics article or a vehicle. It is easier to explain than to define the product and its design. Design means to plan and fashion the form and structure of an object to conceive in the mind, the work of art and the decorative scheme and also indicate how it will serve a purpose. Hence, product design may be defined as the process whereby, with the help of arts, science and technology together, a product of aesthetic acceptance and functional value is developed. Specific ranges of products each with their relevant developmental richness are described by means of specific terminology. In a limited sense, consumer goods may be considered as common product design. A range of products that structurally supports the human body in a comfortable posture allowing it to work comfortably, in a sitting, standing, supine, semi-lying and in any position that specific tasks may demand, may be termed as furniture. Special structure for storage and other items used for specific purposes can also be called furniture. A few consumer products that can be used as external hands and aids to human activities may be termed as equipment and a specific range may be called personal equipment, to assist the human body to act in a better way, e.g. spectacles to aid

Figure 1 shows comparisons of percentile males and females. External human body dimensional measurements taken when a man is placed in a rigid and static position, perhaps in any specified posture, i.e. standing or sitting or other adopted postures, e.g. heights, breadth, depths, and circumferences, are termed as static anthropometry. Dynamic anthropometry is required more than static body measurements in the field of designs. The human body is not rigid but rather, always dynamic. Even in sleep it has movement. The dimensional measurements of the human body with various movements taken into consideration in different adopted postures which the work context demands, are termed dynamic anthropometry.

vision. Similarly there are other products such as machine-tools, architectural components used in connection with housing requirements, decorative items for the body, medical products, and textile & apparel, etc.Man has assorted body sizes and it can be said that his body is designed for the past. Yet he has to adopt the new changes in the modern civilised lifestyle with the help if various aids. Ranges of products can be said to function as such aids to human beings. Quite often these do not appear to have good acceptance value with the users. Whatever innovative products we use, incorporating all the best scientific principles in them for functioning, if these are not comfortable for human use, they will serve no purpose, because man ultimately has to use the product. The product of the first generation in any innovation is normally restricted by the form follow function type of design process. In the beginning one develops the components and their links for getting a proper functional output, e.g. for any item of electo-mechanical complexity, the stress would be given at first to develop the functional principle and system and then give the shape of the cover in which the functional elements have to be housed. The second generation will improve upon it. That is, after getting confirmation about the details of the functional elements, design development is based on function follows form, i.e all functional elements are housed in a desired aesthetic form and then the shape and size of the elements and their functional links are modified accordingly. If an article of good functional value, does not match the human aesthetic perception or have a good aesthetic look it does not serve its intended function as demanded by human beings. Hence it will not be worth accepting. The form of an article should reveal aesthetics as well as its utility value in order to serve its intended function. At present, the design process may be looked at as an integration of form and function which should be ideally compatible with human needs. For, function and their needs of human beings, together should form an integral concept when designing an individual product or system. Defects in design related human incompatibility should be taken care of, during the process of product development. These incompatibility factors maybe in terms of physical, behavioural, or aesthetic mismatches.

If we are aware of the users; mode of use of the intended product, that is how he is suppose to hold it, what type of operations are likely to be performed to get the anticipated functions out of the product, etc. , the dimensioning and configuration of the product can be provided accordingly, taking into account the natural advantages and limitations of the human beings. These dimensions could be incorporated properly into the design process. The final product would be usable and acceptable and would provide the users the facility of using it freely, safely and satisfyingly. The human geometry and the geometry of the product must be suitably fitted together (Kreifeldt, 1991), for safety as well as for functional reasons. Hence, appropriate anthropometric and biomechanical applications are necessary for a human compatible For example, a few simple cases may be cited for clarifying the above. Handles of varieties of products must fit the grip diameter and other specific palm dimensions depending on the intended manner of handling these. To be able to hold article, such as in handles for common use, household articles, utensils and sickles etc. The palm grip dimensions should be taken into account and provisions should be incorporated to enable users to hold the handles in different ways (fig 26). If all these minute anthropometric details are not available, models made of soft materials for trails, may be used to get palm impressions and to find out the required dimensions. The reluctant use of various safety masks and helmets in industry is due to nonmatch factors in the various dimensions of the head and face thereby not being able to perform their intended functions. For mass production of decorative items of use on the body like bangles etc. The compressed stretched finger position, metacarpal circumferences, over 50th percentile values may be considered so that a greater proportion of the population can wear them. Adjustability of the length of the wrist watch band including the watch length as an added dimension may be fixed with a range from the 5th to the 95th percentile of the wrist circumference, with holes at regular intervals so that this can be massproduced and intended users can adjust the length according to individual needs(fig 27). The same considerations may be applied for fixing the adjustability limits for seat belts, straps slung across the shoulder for carrying articles hanging sideways, etc. and other similar things with different circumstances

Body circumferences are used when designing personal coverings and clothing. Here, proper allowances and provision for increments should be made considering the various body movements when the clothing is on the body. Sleeve length must be measured with the elbow bent, from acromion to wrist, instead of the static length of the same, i.e keeping the arm stretching forward. Considering the fact that we are living in a world of communication, designers encode certain messages in all products that are expected to be decoded by the users. During this process, there may be many disturbances in the immediate environment, which otherwise could be tolerated, but at that juncture of communication, it may be considered a nuisance. These obstacles could be something to do with the senses or ones emotions at that moment. These will have to obliterated lest wrong signals pass between the encoder and decoder. Behavioural acceptance and satisfaction from the use of any product depends on the ease of decoding of the encoded message in it, and seeing if the model of use, human behavioural, stereotype reactions and natural body structure, synchronise with each other.

Regular percentile intervals of foot length, breadth and depth may be considered while designing footwear and if the toe area has to be covered, the front portion must accommodate the free movement of the toes, though the main considerations are of static foot dimensions for the whole shoe. For certain purposes, possible dynamic dimensions are added considerations. While dimensioning an article that has to be carried by lifting from the ground e.g a suitcase, the height of the same should be within the 5th percentile value or so of the knuckle height while standing, so that it could be easily lifted and carried. (fig 28) For push button switches, the dimensions of various products must ensure that the fingertip dimensions and the spacing between two switches should be such, that while operating a single switch with one finger, it should not press or touch the next one. The gaps, among the switches, may be considered to be about to of the fingertip area that comes in contact with the switch (fig 29). If more pressure is required to operate more contact surface, it indicates that a larger tip size for switch and more spacing are required.

ERGONOMIC PRINCIPLES A product should ensure the basic principle of: Human Compatibility through: A product-user friendly relationship An anthropometric and behavioural match between the user and the product Ease of handling Ease of decoding of messages, Proper semantic applications; and Product reliability and safety through: Designing the overall form, shape, size of the product and layout of the parts for operational ease. Removing unnecessary bad parts Guarding unsafe things Warning about probable hazards while using the same and Training by specific instructions on how to use the system efficiently.

ERGONOMIC CRITERIA While designing or redesigning a product the following aspects, along with ergonomic criteria may be considered: The shape should be aesthetically appealing and the form should be according to human body structural limitations. The product geometry and the users anthropometry must fit each for ensuring safety as well as better function. The size of the product should be handy to operate and easy to maintain. Casing of internal parts should be in such a fashion that if there is any fault in a single part, it can be replaced easily.

If there is any movement or if force has to applied while using a part of an article or the whole, the direction for force application should go with the configuration of the human body, i.e. it should synchronise with the human natural movement axis so that maximum mechanical advantage could be achieved. Consider the physical, structural and biomechanical nature of human beings, sex and age variations, along with the context and intended method of use. Incorporate cognitive requirements and product semantics. The product must transmit its mode of use through in-built features in the appearance. Incorporate the common psychology of the users as well as population stereotypes, along with the preconceived knowledge of the use of similar articles. A completely new product that does not have any resemblance to an existing one of a similar nature may not get proper acceptance by the users. Ensure that the product usage is within the limits of psycho-physiological fatigue. The shape, size and overall form should be according to the various confirmed and anticipated behavioural patterns of a normal user when using a similar article. The product should provide human sensation and feeling. For instance, appropriate applications of surface colour and varied surface textures in the components and in the whole product, help to identify the relative functions and to act as indications for cautioning against any faulty operations, while using operating. Incorporation of relationships between stimuli and effects: Being too simple to operate, a product may cause inattentive operational faults, which sometimes may induce injuries and accidents. Simple, small-sized switches for small operational output and relatively bigger size controls for handling a huge crane, would be suitable. It confirms a liner proportional relationship between the size of the control and the work output.

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Preference and emergency features: during emergency, the body collapses instead of maintaining a controlled coordination of extension and flexing movements of the limbs, head and truck. To stop a poweroperated machine or equipment, the off control positioning, so that in emergency, operation, in preference to the on control positioning, so that in emergency, with minimum effort, it can be put off, thereby reducing the chances of accidents. Groupings of similar body of an article used for the same purpose or for similar activities. Placements of parts of a single article should not create any hindrance while operating any function. Should ensure safety through optimisation of safety features; safe use of material and chemicals. Users should not get hurt or injured by any unsafe features caused by negligence and a lack of proper finish, e.g. Sharp edged corners, exposed pointed appearances and protrusions, that normally cause accidents. Instructions regarding functions and safety features should be clear and simple to understand by the users. Design according to its intended contextual use. There should not be any visual discomfort. Overall appearance of products should be such that it should be convenient to use. Products must be durable, repairable and have multipurpose faculties for manipulatory use. Obviously, the cost factor should be considered, with a view satisfy the intended class of customers.

The product must satisfy the various legal bases which are applied in the nation, e.d BIS specifications, health and safety Acts, and consumer Acts, etc.

Idea generation
Techniques for Creative Thinking - They are techniques for defining a problem, exploring attributes of a problem, generating alternatives, visual explorations, metaphors, analogies, and evaluating and implementing ideas. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. Random Input Problem Reversal Six Thinking Hats Brainstorming Forced Relationships/Analogy Mind mapping Storyboarding Fuzzy Thinking NLP (Neuro-Linguistic Programming) The TRIZ method of Semyon D. Savransky

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If the above considerations are taken care of, the product would appear compatible for human use and its acceptance facilitated. Incorporating ergonomic criteria in a product would obviously be beneficial for the direct users, as well as for the manufacturers, the employers who may provide the product to the employee-users, and others connected commercially with it.

RANDON INPUT The random-word method is a powerful lateral-thinking technique that is very easy to use. It is by far the simplest of all creative techniques and is widely used by people who need to create new ideas (for example, for new products). Chance events allow us to enter the existing patterns of our thinking at a different point. The associations of a word applied to the new set of context situation, generates new connections in our mind, often producing an instant eureka, effect, insight or intuition. It is said that Newton got the idea of gravity when he was hit on the head with an apple while sitting under an apple tree. It is not necessary to sit under trees and wait for an apple to fall - we can get up and shake the tree. We can produce our own chance events. Random inputs can be words or images. Some techniques for getting random words (and the words should be nouns) are: Have a bag full of thousands of words written on small pieces of paper, cardboard, poker chips, etc. Close your eyes, put in your hand and pull out a word.

Open the dictionary (or newspaper) at a random page and choose a word. Use a computer program to give you a random word. Make up your own list of 60 words. Look at your watch and take note of the seconds. Use this number to get the word. It is important to use the first word you find. Once you have chosen the word, list its attributions or associations with the word. Then apply each of the items on your list and see how it applies to the problem at hand. How does it work? Because the brain is a self-organizing system, and is very good at making connections. Almost any random word will stimulate ideas on the subject. Follow the associations and functions of the stimulus word, as well as using aspects of the word as a metaphor. PRODBLEM REVERSAL It was devised by Charles Thompson in his book "What a Great Idea". The world is full of opposites. Of course, any attribute, concept or idea is meaningless without its opposite. Lao-tzu wrote Tao-te Ching which stresses the need for the successful leader to see opposites all around. The wise leader knows how to be creative. In order to lead, the leader learns to follow. In order to prosper, the leader learns to live simply. In both cases, it is the interaction that is creative. All behavior consists of opposites. Learn to see things backwards, inside out, and upside down. The method 1. State your problem in reverse. Change a positive statement into a negative one. 2. Try to define what something is not. 3. Figure out what everybody else is not doing. 4. Use the "What If" Compass 5. Change the direction or location of your perspective 6. Flip-flop results 7. Turn defeat into victory or victory into defeat 1. Make the statement negative - For example, if you are dealing with Customer Service issues, list all the ways you could make customer service bad. You will be pleasantly surprised at some of the ideas you will come up with. 2. Doing What Everybody Else Doesn't - For example, Apple Computer did what IBM didn't, Japan made small, fuel-efficient cars.

3. The "What-If Compass" - The author has a list of pairs of opposing actions which can be applied to the problem. Just ask yourself "What if I ........" and plug in each one of the opposites. A small sample: Stretch it/Shrink It Freeze it/Melt it Personalise it/De-personalise it 4. Change the direction or location of your perspective - Physical change of perspective, Manage by Walking around, or doing something different. 5. Flip-flop results - If you want to increase sales, think about decreasing them. What would you have to do? 6. Turn defeat into victory or victory into defeat - If something turns out bad, think about the positive aspects of the situation. If I lost all of the files off this computer, what good would come out of it? Maybe I would spend more time with my family?! Who knows! SIX THINKING HATS This was invented by Dr. de Bono in 1980s.The method is a framework for thinking and can incorporate lateral thinking. Valuable judgmental thinking has its place in the system but is not allowed to dominate as in normal thinking. The six hats represent six modes of thinking and are directions to think rather than labels for thinking. That is, the hats are used proactively rather than reactively. The method promotes fuller input from more people. In de Bono's words it "separates ego from performance". Everyone is able to contribute to the exploration without denting egos as they are just using the yellow hat or whatever hat. The six hats system encourages performance rather than ego defense. People can contribute under any hat even though they initially support the opposite view. The key point is that a hat is a direction to think rather than a label for thinking. The key theoretical reasons to use the Six Thinking Hats are to: encourage Parallel Thinking encourage full-spectrum thinking separate ego from performance

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White Hat on the Hats There are six metaphorical hats and the thinker can put on or take off one of these hats to indicate the type of thinking being used. This putting on and taking off is essential. The hats must never be used to categorize individuals, even though their behavior may seem to invite this. When done in group, everybody wear the same hat at the same time. White Hat thinking -This covers facts, figures, information needs and gaps. "I think we need some white hat thinking at this point..." means Let's drop the arguments and proposals, and look at the data base." Red Hat thinking -This covers intuition, feelings and emotions. The red hat allows the thinker to put forward an intuition without any ned to justify it. "Putting on my red hat, I think this is a terrible proposal." Ususally feelings and intuition can only be introduced into a discussion if they are supported by logic. Usually the feeling is genuine but the logic is spurious.The red hat gives full permission to a thinker to put forward his or her feelings on the subject at the moment. Black Hat thinking -This is the hat of judgment and caution. It is a most valuable hat. It is not in any sense an inferior or negative hat. The rior or negative hat. The black hat is used to point out why a suggestion does not fit the facts, the available experience, the system in use, or the policy that is being followed. The black hat must always be logical. Yellow Hat thinking -This is the logical positive. Why something will work and why it will offer benefits. It can be used in looking forward to the results of some proposed action, but can also be used to find something of value in what has already happened. Green Hat thinking -This is the hat of creativity, alternatives, proposals, what is interesting, provocations and changes. Blue Hat thinking -This is the overview or process control hat. It looks not at the subject itself but at the 'thinking' about the subject. "Putting on my blue hat, I feel we should do some more green hat thinking at this point." In technical terms, the blue hat is concerned with meta-cognition. BRAIN STORMING Brainstorming was introduced by Alex Osborn, founder of the Creative Education Foundation and co-founder of the ad firm BBDO The term Brainstorming has become a commonly used word in the English language as a generic term for

creative thinking. The basis of brainstorming is a generating ideas in a group situation based on the principle of suspending judgment - a principle which scientific research has proved to be highly productive in individual effort as well as group effort. The generation phase is separate from the judgment phase of thinking. Guidelines: Brainstorming is a process that works best with a group of people when you follow the following four rules. Have a well-defined and clearly stated problem Have someone assigned to write down all the ideas as they occur Have the right number of people in the group Have someone in charge to help enforce the following guidelines: Suspend judgment Every idea is accepted and recorded Encourage people to build on the ideas of others Encourage way-out and odd ideas In Serious Creativity, Edward de Bono describes brainstorming as a traditional approach to do deliberate creative thinking with the consequence that people think creative thinking can only be done in groups. The whole idea of brainstorming is that other people's remarks would act to stimulate your own ideas in a sort of chain reaction of ideas. Groups are not at all necessary for deliberate creative thinking, and Serious Creativity describes techniques for individuals to use to produce ideas. In a group you have to listen to others and you may spend time repeating your own ideas so they get sufficient attention. Thinking as a group using brainstorming can certainly produce ideas, but individual thinking using techniques such as those described by de Bono should be employed. de Bono believes that individuals are much better at generating ideas and fresh directions. Once the idea has been born then a group may be better able to develop the idea and take it in more directions than can the originator. Classic Brainstorming -Classic Brainstorming goes over the typical rules and method of brainstorming. Arrange the meeting for a group of the right size and makeup (typically 4-8 people) Write the initial topic on a flipboard, whiteboard or other system where everyone can see it. The better defined, and more clearly stated the problem, the better the session tends to be.

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Make sure that everyone understands the problem or issue Review the ground rules Avoid criticising ideas / suspend judgement. All ideas are as valid as each other Lots, Lots & Lots - a large number of ideas is the aim, if you limit the number of ideas people will start to judge the ideas and only put in their 'best' or more often than not, the least radical and new. Free-wheeling. Don't censor any ideas, keep the meeting flow going. Listen to other ideas, and try to piggy back on them to other ideas. Avoid any discussion of ideas or questions, as these stop the flow of ideas. Have someone facilitating to enforce the rules and write down all the ideas as they occur (the scribe can be a second person) Generate ideas - either in an unstructured way (anyone can say an idea at any time) or structure (going round the table, allowing people to pass if they have no new ideas). Clarify and conclude the session. Ideas that are identical can be combined, all others should be kept. It is useful to get a consensus of which ideas should be looked at further or what the next action and timescale is.

7. 8.

Propose imaginary replacements for the other elements. Formulate a new problem statement, substituting one of the imaginary elements. 9. Brainstorm ideas for the imaginary problem 10. Apply ideas from the imaginary brainstorming back to the real problem statement. 11. Analyze all of the ideas (real, imaginary and combined) and take forward those of most interest. Trigger Sessions - Trigger Sessions are a good way of getting lots of ideas down from untrained resources. The Problem owner defines the problem Each member of group writes down his ideas in shorthand (2 minutes only) One member reads out his list - others silently cross out ideas read out and write down Hitch-hiked ideas The second member reads out his list of ideas not already covered, followed in turn by other members The last member reads out his original list and his Hitch-hiked list and procedure is repeated counter current (ie, if there are 6 folk, the order goes 1,2,3,4,5,6,5,4,3,2,1,2,3,4,5,6...) A good group will be able to manage seven passes. Every one paper is then collected and can be typed up into a single list of ideas - all duplicates should have been crossed out during the session. Associative brainstorming - Associative Brainstorming is a technique used to come up with new solutions for problems or concepts. This is done by taking random adjectives and adding them to the problem that is defined or the concept, By mixing those words together you're inspired to create new possibilities or solutions. Talking Pictures is from the book Instant Creativity by Brian Clegg and Paul Birch. When you need a little extra boost for a group that have got a little stale during the Idea Generation phase, split up into teams, giving each a digital camera and access to a printer (you could use a polaroid, or provide a set of bizarre photographs you have, but it's best to get the teams to capture them).

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Rawlinson Brainstorming -Rawlinson Brainstorming is useful varient of Brainstorming for untrained groups because there is no interaction between group members, all ideas are directed towards the facilitator/scribe. The problem owner simply describes in a headline the problem, he then gives simple background on routes he has tried and have failed, and what would represent an ideal solution .The resource (i.e. all other participants) are invited to have a creative warm-up session and then offer solutions to the problem as two word descriptors .The problem owner focuses on those ideas that give him new viewpoints Imaginary Brainstorming -Imaginary Brainstorming is like Classic Brainstorming, but with a slight twist. The ground rules etc. are the same, the differences are; 1. When defining the problem make sure that it has 2. a subject - who is acting 3. a verb - the action 4. an object - who / what is being acted upon. 5. Perform a ((classic brainstorming)) session 6. Define the essential elements of the problem, and identify which of the elements above (1) is the most directly tied to a successful solution.

Get the teams to spend about 5 minutes outside of the immediate area, taking pictures of either unusual objects, or objects from unusual angles. The more bizarre the better. Bring the groups back together and distribute their pictures to the other groups. Each group should now use the pictures provided to create associations that occur to them and then use these associations for idea generation. At the end of the session you can either collect all of the ideas together by writing them onto flipcharts or you can ask the groups to have listed their own and have these displayed for general perusal. This technique uses Random Stimuli as an Excursion with the advantage of a challenge / competition thrown in. The humor generated from the unusual objects / angles also raises the energy levels of the group, along with the fact that they have been up and moving about FORCED RELATIONSHIP/ ANALOGY Forced analogy is a very useful and fun-filled method of generating ideas. The idea is to compare the problem with something else that has little or nothing in common and gaining new insights as a result. You can force a relationship between almost anything, and get new insights companies and whales, management systems and telephone networks, or your relationship and a pencil. Forcing relationships is one of the most powerful ways to develop ways to develop new insights and new solutions. A useful way of developing the relationships is to have a selection of objects or cards with pictures to help you generate ideas. Choose an object or card at random and see what relationships you can force. Use mind-mapping or a matrix to record the attributes and then explore aspects of the problem at hand.

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MIND MAPPING The human brain is very different from a computer. Whereas a computer works in a linear fashion, the brain works associatively as well as linearly - comparing, integrating and synthesizing as it goes. Association plays a dominant role in nearly every mental function, and words themselves are no exception. Every single word and idea has numerous links attaching it to other ideas and concepts. Mind Maps, developed by Tony Buzan are an effective method of note-taking and useful for the generation of ideas by associations. To make a mind map, one starts in the center of the page with the main idea, and works outward in all directions, producing a growing and organized structure composed of key words and key images. Key features are: Organization Key Words Association Clustering Visual Memory - Print the key words, use color, symbols, icons, 3Deffects,arrows and outlining groups of words Outstandingness - every Mind Map needs a unique center Conscious involvement Mind Maps are beginning to take on the same structure as memory itself. Once a Mind Map is drawn, it seldom needs to be referred to again. Mind Maps help organize information Because of the large amount of association involved, they can be very creative, tending to generate new ideas and associations that have not been thought of before. Every item in a map is in effect, a center of another map. The creative potential of a mind map is useful in brainstorming sessions. You only need to start with the basic problem as the center, and generate associations and ideas from it in order to arrive at a large number of different possible approaches. By presenting your thoughts and perceptions in a spatial manner and by using color and pictures, a better overview is gained and new connections can be made visible. Mind maps are a way of representing associated thoughts with symbols rather than with extraneous words something like organic chemistry. The mind forms associations almost instantaneously, and "mapping" allows you to write your ideas quicker than expressing them using only words or phrases.

STORY BOARDING Storyboards go back to the very beginnings of cinema, with Sergei Eisenstein using the technique. In the world of animation, Walt Disney and his staff developed a Story Board system in 1928. Disney wanted to achieve full animation and for this, he needed to produce an enormous number of drawings. Managing the thousands of drawings and the progress of a project was nearly impossible, so Disney had his artists pin up their drawings on the studio walls. This way, progress could be checked, and scenes added and discarded with ease. Story-Boarding is a popular management told to facilitate the creative-thinking process and can be likened to taking your thoughts and the thoughts of others and spreading them out on a wall as you work on a project or solve a problem. When you put ideas up on Story Boards, you begin to see interconnections, how one idea relates to another, and how all the pieces come together. Once the ideas start flowing, those working with the Story Board will become immersed in the problem. People will "hitch-hike" onto other ideas. To implement a Story Board solution you can use a cork board or similar surface to allow pinning up index cards. Software programs are now available such as Corkboard (Macintosh). Start with a topic card, and under the topic card, place header cards containing general points, categories, considerations, etc that will come up. Under the header cards you will put sub-heading cards ("subbers") containing the ideas that fall under each header; they're the details ideas generated in the creative-thinking session, ideas that develop or support the headers. Story Boarding works well in group sessions and there are four major types of Story Boards (according to Mike Vance in his "Creative Thinking" cassette program): Planning, Ideas, Communication and Organisation boards. During a story-boarding session, consider all ideas relevant, no matter how impractical they appear. Think positively, hold all criticism until later, and hitchhike on other's ideas. Creative Thinking sessions are held separately from Critical Thinking sessions. Leonardo da Vinci used to put ideas up on the wall and examine the layout. Story-Boards give total immersion in a problem as you can see how everything fits together.

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FUZZY THINKING Western thinking is based on Aristotle ... around 2000 years old. So much of our logic and decision making depends on True/False or Yes/No Decisions. Are you tall or short? Do you like your Job - Yes or No? Such questions have answers indicating different levels of truth. Lotfi Zadeh was the pioneer worker in the area of Fuzzy Logic (Fuzzy Thinking) and his work has been made accessible to the public in two books: Fuzzy Thinking by Bart Kosko and Fuzzy Logic - The Revolutionary Computer Technology that is changing the world by Daniel McNeill and Paul Freiburger. Although the main application of Fuzzy Logic has been in process control (train controllers, air conditioning, control of nuclear reactors, etc), the principles are important to the understanding of how we think. I believe it is as important as Edward de Bono's book "Mechanism of Mind". How would you decide to change jobs or propose marriage? Answers to questions such as "Is the Salary Good?", "Can we be happy" will have varying degrees of truth. In Aristotelian Logic, there is True and False. With Fuzzy Logic, there is a scale of 0 to 1 where Truth would be 1 and False be 0. Decisions made with Fuzzy Logic take into account these varying degrees of truth for a variety of inputs, and produce an output (action) based on the inputs. ATTRIBUTE LISTING Notes from "Creating Workforce Innovation" by Michael Morgan - published by Business and Professional Pubolshing 1993 Attribute listing is a great technique for ensuring all possible aspects of a problem have been examined. Attribute listing is breaking the problem down into smaller and smaller bits and seeing what you discover when you do. Let's say you are in the business of making torches. You are under pressure from your competition and need to improve the quality of your product. By breaking the torch down into its component parts - casing, switch, battery, bulb and the weight the attributes of each one - you can develop a list of ideas to improve each one.

Attribute Listing - Improving a torch Feature Casing Switch Battery Bulb Weight Attribute Plastic On/Off Power Glass Heavy Ideas Metal On/Off low beam Rechargable Plastic Light

Attribute listing is a very useful technique for quality improvement of complicated products, procedures for services. It is a good technique to use in conjunction with some other creative techniques, especially idea-generating ones like brainstorming. This allows you to focus on one specific part of a product or process before generating a whole lot of ideas. THE TRIZ METHOD TRIZ provides a methodology for creative engineering design. TRIZ was founded by Genrich S. Altshuller in Russia, whose with co-workers analyses about 1,500,000 patents. The major TRIZ principles are: 1. All engineering systems have uniform evolution. Many other systems (economic, educational, etc.) have the same evolution trends. 2. Any inventive problem represents a conflict between new requirements and old system. TRIZ comprises various systematically techniques (Inventive Principles; Psychological Inertia Overpass System; Physical, Chemical and Geometric Effects; Substrate-field and Functional Analysis; Technological Ideality Concept; Technology Forecasting) to find an quasi-ideal solution to the inventive problem through solve the conflict (usually hidden) based on the knowledge of a system evolution. Fortune 100 companies cite a phenomenal increase in the productivity and quality of solutions to tough engineering problems through the use of TRIZ.

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CHAPTER 5 - Project Design, in the perspective of individual expression and design intervention

Identification of the need of the users, to know exactly what is wanted and to set up the objectives of the product development and determine what is required to be incorporated into the product. A research methodology should be set up on what could be done to fulfill the objectives, including incorporation of users information. Planned research, elimination of probable hazards, elimination and arrival at feature specifications. Creative design with alternates. Final design concept and prototype development. Verification of its feasibility through feedback from probable users and experts. Refinement of the design. Final product design and prototype.

A design I s response to the user needs. The user needs can evolve in different ways. It can be consciously felt and stated by the user himself. The need can be a problem yet to felt by the user but the identified by the designer. In these two circumstances, there is a need and the design intervenes to solve the problem. This is called as design intervention. But a designer need not always work on existing needs. He can for see a new need and address it . he can just develop his thoughts into a design solution. The design in this case can be an individual expression

Product design methodology

The design process involved in designing a product can technically be called a product design methodology. Throughout the history of design, designers have arrived at various methodologies for product design. In fact one can come up with his own methodology by experience, research and feedback; that suits him the best. In general it involves the following steps. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. Information collection Existing product analysis Market research Development of brief Concept generation as an audit of possibilities Ergonomic studies Cost analysis Value engineering Product improvement

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Design process- A step by step approach should be followed for the design
process when designing individual products as well as complex systems. These steps are

Need identification of the new design and the problem identification for redesigning of an article. Analysis of existing similar products and collection of relevant information on products of a similar nature. The literature on the subject should be reviewed.

1. Information collection
Having information on the relevant areas helps designers to arrive at conclusions. So the primary and the initial step in the design process is inform collection . The information is collected on various areas like User needs Current methods Competition Existing products Market needs Design requirements

Let's take the example of a bike: 1. What is the function of a bicycle? 2. How does the function depend on the type of bike (e.g. racing, or about-town, or child's bike)? 3. How is it made to be easily maintained? 4. What should it cost? 5. What should it look like (colours etc.)? 6. How has it been made comfortable to ride? 7. How do the mechanical bits work and interact? If you do this exercise for various products, you will very quickly discover something interesting. Systems and components - There are 2 main types of product - those that only have one component (e.g. a spatula) and those that have lots of components (e.g. a bike). Products with lots of components we call systems. For example: Product Bike Drill Multi-gym Seat Components Frame, wheels, pedals, forks, etc. Case, chuck, drill bit, motor, etc. weights, frame, wire, handles, etc.

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These information are collected by talking to relevant people, reading well established literature, taking survey amongst potential customers, doing a market research, regular teams discussions to arrive at inferences etc

2. Existing product analysis

Getting started - The first task in product analysis is to become familiar with the product! What does it do? How does it do it? What does it look like? All these questions, and more, need to be asked before a product can be analysed. As well as considering the obvious mechanical (and possibly electrical) requirements, it is also important to consider the ergonomics, how the design has been made userfriendly and any marketing issues - these all have an impact on the later design decisions.

In product analysis, we start by considering the whole system. But, to understand why various materials and processes are used, we usually need to 'pull it apart' and think about each component as well. We can now analyse the function in more detail and draft a design specification. Some important design questions - To build a design specification, consider questions like the following: 1. What are the requirements on each part (electrical, mechanical, aesthetic, ergonomic, etc)? 2. What is the function of each component, and how do they work? 3. What is each part made of and why? 4. How many of each part are going to be made? 5. What manufacturing methods were used to make each part and why? 6. Are there alternative materials or designs in use and can you propose improvements?

These are only general questions, to act as a guide - you will need to think of the appropriate questions for the products and components you have to analyse. For a drinks container, a design specification would look something like: 1. provide a leak free environment for storing liquid 2. comply with food standards and protect the liquid from health hazards 3. for fizzy drinks, withstand internal pressurisation and prevent escape of bubbles 4. provide an aesthetically pleasing view or image of the product 5. if possible create a brand identity 6. be easy to open 7. be easy to store and transport 8. be cheap to produce for volumes of 10,000+ Product analysis can take different forms but in general it means asking questions about a product and forming answers. It can mean experts analysing a product or members of the general public or potential customers/groups of people. Product analysis can take place at almost any stage of the design process. Product analysis can be carried out by: 1. An individual product being analyzed. 2. Alternatively a number of similar products can be compared with each other using the same criteria. WHAT IS THE PURPOSE OF PRODUCT ANALYSIS? A product may need analysing by a potential customer to help him/her decide whether it is worth buying. A product may need analysing so that the design can be improved. Sometimes a prototype or model may be analysed. In this way improvements can be made before the full sized, costly product is manufactured. WHAT IS A CRITERIA? - When analysing a product first prepare a list of questions, this is known as a criteria. Look at the table (above). For example, the criteria listed below could apply to the table when it is being analysed. ERGONOMICS - Is the table the right size(height, length and width). Will a potential customer need to stretch too far when using the table? Will this make it uncomfortable for the customer? COST - How much will it cost to manufacture the product and how much will it sell for in the shops? AESTHETICS -Does the product look good? Is the style to the customers liking?

CONSTRUCTION METHOD - How has the product been made? What joining methods/ techniques have been used? Is the product well constructed (will it fall apart when in use? Will it scratch easily? etc.....) CLIENT REQUIREMENTS - Is the product what the customer wants? What changes are required to make the product suitable for the client/customer? Does the customer like the product? HEALTH AND SAFETY - Is the product safe? Does it fulfil Health and Safety Laws? COLOUR AND TEXTURE - Is the colour/texture of the product effective? Or is it what the customer wants? MATERIALS - Are the materials suitable for this type of product? Are they quality materials or do they make the product look cheap? ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT - What is the environmental impact of the product? Is it manufactured from materials supplied by sustainable sources? For example, if manufactured from natural woods have they been supplied from sustainable forests? Can the materials be recycled or reused? Successful product design depends on asking the right questions about the proposed product's function, purpose, shape, form, colour and texture. Product designers need to be able to analyse existing products, and be aware of new technologies and consumer demand for the new product.The first stage in designing your own products is writing the design specification. Throughout the design and making process the designer should check that the product matches the specification - and that quality is maintained. Product analysis a summary - Product design analysis means studying how well a product does its job. When you are analysing the design of a product you need to ask these questions: What is the function and purpose of the product? What are the different parts of the product and how do they work together? How does the product use shape, form, colour, texture and decoration? What materials are used to make the product? What components are used in the product? Which processes were used to make the product? Who would buy this product? How well does the product do its job compared with other similar products? If two or more products are similar and do the same sort of job, what are their unique points?

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Tips for successful product design analysis -Make sure you understand what the product actually does and how it works. Learn carefully how products are made in industry - especially look at what materials are used and how they are cut, shaped, formed, joined and finished. Apply this knowledge to the product you are asked to analyse. Think carefully about possible markets for different products: Who would buy the product? Why would they buy it? Where would it be used? Who would use the product?

and viewpoints. However, artefacts such as drawings, prototypes, or the finished product can be used for either. But there are not only different approaches to consider; managers should also think during which stages of the development process they seek to involve consumers. Another questions is, how many people to ask to get some meaningful insights? The typical sample sizes for different types of quantitative marketing research studies from industry to industry, and with varying user groups. For example, research that involves professional users and buyers tends to be much more reliable than research undertaken with consumers stopped in the street, and insights from research for Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCDs) tends to be more reliable than those from research regarding capital expenditures goods. In a company perspective the market research can be conducted by an external agency, your own staff or a team with a combination of both set of people. One important link with the consumer that can be used for this purpose is the front line sales people Some of the latest new approaches to market research are: Real-time market research - Sanchez and Sudharshan (1993) - In their words, real-time market research involves To offer batches of actual new product models to consumers to learn their exact and varied preferences as to alternative product configurations, features. and performance levels. This approach, so they claim, overcomes some of the limitations and time requirements of traditional market research methods Emphatic design The second way is not to ask people what they want, but observe what they actually do. This approach is particularly useful at the idea generation stage, as it helps to identify latent consumer needs those needs of which the consumers might not even be aware but if you are able to identify such a need, and develop a solution for it, you are on to a winner. One company well known for this approach is IDEO Harvard academics Leonard and Rayport (1997) called this approach. They explain, Emphatic design calls for company representatives to watch customers using products and services in the context of their own environments. By doing so, managers can often identify unexpected uses for their products. They can also

3. Market research
It is important to meet consumer needs for a product to be successful in the market. Market research helps to develop and verify new products and services. It helps involve consumers throughout the development process However we need to be careful about is what kind of approach to market research you take, and how much you let results influence the decisions. Particularly in the context of innovation, there is a considerable problem with market research: if you ask people what they want, they will refer to something they are familiar with. Kaplan comments, Customers seldom articulate needs they dont know they have So it is important to understand the limitations of market research, and more importantly, to understand the need to match the approach taken to market research with the development aim in mind. There are two main different approaches, quantitative and qualitative. The former involves surveys and questionnaires, the latter interviews, focus groups and observations. Traditional approaches to market research all have one thing in common; they are based on asking the consumer what he or she wants, through the collection of either quantitative or qualitative data. Under the category of quantitative research we find different distribution methods of surveys and questionnaire: per mail, over the telephone, in person, either in home or office, or on the street and more recently, via email or on the internet. The three main qualitative market research methods are interviews, focus groups and observation or in fact, a combination. Qualitative approaches have the advantage that they generate a deeper level of understanding of consumer needs

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uncover problems that customers do not mention in surveys. Companies can engage in emphatic design, or similar techniques such as contextual inquiry, in a variety of ways. However, most employ the following 5-step process: 1. Observation, 2. Capturing data, 3. Reflection and analysis, 4. Brainstorming for solutions, 5. Developing prototype of possible solutions. Viral marketing - However, real-time market research does not really overcome the problem of people knowing what they like and liking what they know. There are two possible ways of addressing this issue. The first is, if innovative products or ideas are concerned, work with a group of people who are known to like change and new things, dont work with traditionalists who always prefer the good old days. Find the Vorreiter, the pioneers of new products and technologies who like nothing better than a new toy. They are more likely to be open and positive towards new things. The most leading-edge market research and launch strategists go even further; rather than launching a product or service and leave it to advertising and other sales-enhancing techniques to establish the product in the marketplace, they aim to identify trend leaders and let them promote the product instead. If the right people can be identified, marketers can achieve a market pull instead of the company push for their innovation, an approach called viral marketing. The art lies in identifying who the right people to create a market are. However, it is also very expensive.

project to unnecessary boundaries. A drinks flask is a drinks vessel however, if the former description is used the responses are perhaps likely to be more constrained as the immediate thought is of a cylindrical container. The drinks vessel terminology does not prejudge and is therefore without creative baggage. Language can be manipulated effectively to generate thoughts and conjure up ideas. The name of a simple product such as a lunch box could be replaced with alternative words or slang that befits the target audience in an attempt to address possible lines of enquiry. For example: scoff sack; troff tray; bite bag; scram jar; snack pack; fodder file; pud pod; mess case; grub trunk; ration wrap; scoop crate; snaffle sock; tuctub; chow caddy. It is not uncommon for individuals to produce their own lunch boxes from margarine or ice cream containers, orfrom foil or brown paper bags. The manner in which such containers are modified and personalized can provide a direction to consider.

5. Concept generation as an audit of possibilities

A product concept is an approximate description of the technology, working principles and the form of the product. It is a concise description of how the product will satisfy the customer needs. A concept is usually expressed as a sketch or a rough three-dimensional model and is often accompanied by a brief textual description. The degree to which a product satisfies customers and can be successfully commercialized depends to a large measure on the quality of the underlying concept. A good concept is sometimes poorly implemented in subsequent development phases, but a poor concept can rarely be manipulated to achieve commercial success. Fortunately, concept generation is relatively inexpensive and can be done relatively quickly in comparison to the rest of the development process. Though it is not very expensive, it is a very crucial stage and there is no excuse for a lack of diligence and care in executing a sound concept generation method The concept generation process begins with a set of customer needs and target specifications and results in a set of product concepts from which the team will make a final selection. An effective development team will generate hundred of concepts, as an audit of possibilities. There are a lot of creative techniques used to arrive at these numerous possibilities (for more details see idea generation) Out

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4. Development of brief
The design brief usually relates to the engagement of a project and can be presented in a formal or informal fashion. It is not necessarily the initiation of the thinking process, as observations, thoughts and experiences should always be ongoing. The important issue is to actually understand what is being communicated and to be prepared to investigate hidden detail, which might not be apparent to others. The designer must be able to respond to what is being requested positively and with creativity, but also prompt lateral lines of enquiry through questioning. The language used can often be an obstacle that needs to be negotiated carefully. In the situation where a product is required for a particular market the terminology used can instigate a series of creative responses or subject the

of all the hundreds, very few will merit serious consideration during the concept selection activity. Good concept generation leaves the team with confidence that the full space of alternatives has been explored. Though exploration of alternatives early in the development process greatly reduces the likelihood that the team will stumble upon a superior concept late in the development process or that a competitor will introduce a product with dramatically better performance than the product under development. Some of the common dysfunctions exhibited during concept generation that has to be avoided are; Consideration of just one or two alternatives proposed by the most assertive members of the team Failure to consider carefully the usefulness of concepts employed by other firms in related and unrelated products Ineffective integration of promising partial solutions. Failure to consider entire categories of solutions A structured approach to concept generation reduces the incidence of these problems by encouraging the gathering information sources, by guiding the team in the through exploration of alternatives and by providing a mechanism for integrating partial solutions. A structured method can also provide step by step by step procedures simple enough to be followed even by someone new to the field. For example a five step concept generation method can have the following levels. First break a complex problem into simpler sub problems. Solution concepts are then identified for the sub problems by external and internal searches. Classification trees and concept combination tables are then used to systematically explore the space of solution concepts and to integrate the sub problem solutions into a total solution. Finally the team takes a step back to reflect on the validity and applicability of results as well as on the process used.

6. Ergonomic studies
The ergonomic study checks if the product designed is safe and efficient enough to be used by the user. The lists of criteria to evaluate if a product designed is compliant with ergonomics in Practice are; 1)Does the product dimensions match the human body dimension, when in use? 2) Whether the product can be used comfortably; 3) Whether there are options to prevent unintentional injuries, when there is danger of arising from misuse; 4) Does each component make itself meaningful in the whole product? 5) Are the products easy to clean, maintenance and repair. . An ergonomic study involves people from the diversity of disciplines some are from the anthropometry, engineering, psychology and other disciplines. The application of these studies can be done in a wide range of domains. The study and research methods vary for each domain. Some of the steps involved in the ergonomic studies of a simple product are; Decide the details of the product Identify the parts that act as the interface between the product and the human body Check for their physical compatibility Optimize their shape and dimensions based on the anthropometric data Construct physical models Ask people to use and receive feedback on comfort of use Observe their postures and add to your inference list Instead of a physical model you can construct a virtual model and test it with virtual human models

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More details refer the ergonomics section

7. Cost analysis
A competitive product must address factors such as cost, performance, aesthetics, schedule or time-to-market, and quality. The importance of these factors will vary from product to product and market to market. And , over time, customers or users of a product will demand more and more, e.g., more performance at less cost. Cost will become a more important factor in the acquisition of a product in two situations. First, as the technology or aesthetics of a product matures or stabilizes and the competitive playing field levels, competition is increasingly based on cost or price. Second, a customer's internal economics or financial resource limitations may shift the acquisition decision toward affordability as a more dominant factor. In either case, a successful product supplier must focus more attention on managing product cost. The management of product cost begins with the conception of a new product. A large percentage of the product's ultimate acquisition or life cycle costs, typically seventy to eighty percent, is determined by decisions made from conception through product development cycle. Once the design of the product has been established, relatively little latitude exists to reduce the cost of a product. Decisions made after the product moves into production account for another ten to fifteen percent of the product's costs. Similarly, decisions made about general and administrative, sales and marketing, and product distribution activities and policies account for another ten to fifteen percent of the product's cost Understanding the cost of a design is absolutely critical, and estimating cost is a discipline which should be applied at all stages of a project. Before beginning a project, it is necessary to make some ball-park estimations to support project justification. As concept design progresses, it should be possible to refine predictions. Before full production commences, the team should have a clear understanding of the likely unit cost. Understanding costs demands a good understanding of the fixed and variable costs incurred:

Fixed costs - Are incurred irrespective of production volumes, including production tooling, a factory re-layout, additional production machinery, fixtures and jigs etc. Variable costs - Increase relative to the number of units produced, and includes for example assembly labour, machining time, purchased components and raw materials

The spreadsheet presented below encourages the design team to consider both the fixed and the variable costs. This is useful when balancing the benefits of a complex single component with expensive tooling but low unit cost versus several simpler parts with correspondingly higher piece part costs, but significantly lower fixed costs. While component and assembly costs can be estimated through a combination of experience, common sense and direct supplier quotation, it can be difficult to apportion overhead costs and this should be done in agreement with the finance department. It can also be a useful exercise to encourage the production department to formally prepare an estimate for individual component costs. Where there are a high number of parts, apply common sense rules and address first the 20% of components which give rise to 80% of the costs.

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between its cost to the producer and its value to the purchaser. Designing is therefore essentially concerned with adding value. When raw materials are converted into a product, value is added over and above the basic costs of the materials and their processing. How much value is added depends on the perceived worth of the product to its purchaser, and that perception is substantially determined by the attributes of the product as provided by the designer. Of course, values fluctuate depending on social, cultural, technological and environmental contexts, which change the need for relevance or usefulness of a product. There are also complex psychological and sociological factors which affect the symbolic or esteem value of a product. However, there are also more stable and comprehensible values associated with a product's function, and it is principally these functional values which are of concern to the engineering designer. The value engineering method focuses on functional values, and aims to increase the difference between the cost and value of a product: by lowering cost or adding value, or both. In many cases, the emphasis is simply on reducing costs, and the design effort is concentrated onto the detailed design of components, on their materials, shapes, manufacturing methods and assembly processes. This more limited version of the method is known as value analysis. It is usually applied only to the refinement of an existing product, whereas the broader value engineering method is also applicable to new designs or to the substantial redesign of a product. Value analysis particularly requires detailed information on component costs. Because of the variety and detail of information required in value analysis and value engineering, they are usually conducted as team efforts, involving members from different departments of a company, such as design, costing, marketing, production departments, etc. The aim of the value engineering method is to increase or maintain the value of a product to its purchaser while reducing its cost to it producer. The procedure is as follows. 1. List the separate components of the product, and identify the function served by each component. If possible, the actual product should be disassembled into its components; exploded diagrams and component-function charts are more useful than parts lists. 2.Determine the values of the identified functions. These must be the values as perceived by customers.

Notes Requires some experience and input from a range of departments, including purchasing and finance Unit cost should be available at all stages and should be viewed as an exercise in improving the confidence of estimations

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8.Value engineering
A great deal of design work in practice is concerned not with the creation of radical new design concepts but with the making of modifications to existing product designs. These modifications seek to improve a product: to improve its performance, to reduce its weight, to lower its cost, to enhance its appearance, and so on. All such modifications can usually be classified into one of two types; they are either aimed at increasing its value to the purchaser or at reducing its cost to the producer. The value of a product to its purchaser is what he or she thinks the product is worth. The cost of a product to its producer is what it costs to design, manufacture and deliver it to the point of sale. A product's selling price normally falls somewhere

3. Determine the costs of the components. These must be after fully finished and assembled. 4. Search for ways of reducing cost without reducing value, or of adding value without adding cost. A creative criticism is necessary, aimed at increasing the value/cost ratio. 5. Evaluate alternatives and select improvements.

9. Product improvement
After the completion of cost analysis and value engineering there will be a set of inferences. These inferences may conclude that the design is optimum, but in most cases will have a great scope for product improvement. The design team further continues with necessary changes towards product improvement based on theses inference

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Once the product is manufactured, tested and delivered, the user can have a firsthand experience. You can get a direct user feedback. The market will also react to the newly introduced product. The technical performance of the product with also be experienced. The user feedback, the market feedback and the technical feedback is collected and given to the design team. Based on this feed back the design under takes further product improvement. As a whole in an ideal scenario product improvement is more of a continuous process

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