Concept Generation PDF

CONCEPT GENERATI ON IEPC2013  Cordless Electric Roofing Nailer 2  A product concept is an approximate description of the technology, working principles, and form of the product. It is a concise description of how the product will satisfy the customer needs. A concept is...

CONCEPT GENERATI ON IEPC2013  Cordless Electric Roofing Nailer 2  A product concept is an approximate description of the technology, working principles, and 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 as a rough three-dimensional model and is often accompanied by a brief textual description. 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 3 4  Five-Step Method 5 Step 1: Clarify the Problem Decompose a Complex Problem into Simpler Subproblems Dividing a problem into simpler subproblems is called problem decomposition. There are many schemes by which a problem can be decomposed. Function diagram of a handheld nailer arising from a functional decomposition: (a) overall “black 6 box”; (b) refinement showing subfunctions.  Functional decomposition is most applicable to technical products, but it can also be applied to simple and apparently nontechnical products. For example, an ice cream scoop has material flow of ice cream being separated, formed, transported, and deposited. These subfunctions could form the basis of a problem decomposition. Functional decomposition is only one of several possible ways to divide a problem into simpler subproblems. Two other approaches are: Decomposition by sequence of user actions: For example, the nailer problem might be broken down into three user actions: moving the tool to the gross nailing position, positioning the tool precisely, and triggering the tool. This approach is often useful for products with very simple technical functions involving a lot of user interaction. Decomposition by key customer needs: For the nailer, this decomposition might include the following subproblems: fires nails in rapid succession, is lightweight, and has a large nail capacity. This approach is often useful for products in which form, and not working principles or technology, is the primary problem. Examples of such products include toothbrushes (assuming the basic brush concept is retained) and storage containers. 7 Step 2: Search Externally There are at least five good ways to gather information from external sources: lead user interviews, expert consultation, patent searches, literature searches, and competitive benchmarking. Lead users are those users of a product who experience needs months or years before the majority of the market and stand to benefit substantially from a product innovation. Experts with knowledge of one or more of the subproblems not only can provide solution concepts directly but also can redirect the search in a more fruitful area. Patents are a rich and readily available source of technical information containing detailed drawings and explanations of how many products work. Benchmarking is the study of existing products with functionality similar to that of the product under development or to the subproblems onwhich the team is focused. 8 Step 3: Search Internally Five guidelines are useful for improving both individual and group internal search: 1. Suspend judgment. In most aspects of daily life, success depends on an ability to quickly evaluate a set of alternatives and take action. For example, none of us would be very productive if deciding what to wear in the morning or what to eat for breakfast involved an extensive period of generating alternatives before making a judgment. 2. Generate a lot of ideas. Most experts believe that the more ideas a team generates, the more likely the team is to explore fully the solution space. Striving for quantity lowers the expectations of quality for any particular idea and therefore may encourage people to share ideas they may otherwise view as not worth mentioning. 3. Welcome ideas that may seem infeasible. Ideas that initially appear infeasible can often be improved, “debugged,” or “repaired” by other members of the team. 9 Step 3: Search Internally 4. Make plenty of sketches. Spatial reasoning about physical objects can be challenging. Text and verbal language are inherently inefficient vehicles for describing physical entities. Whether working as a group or as an individual, abundant sketching materials should be available. Sketch quality is not so critical here; it is the expression of the concept that matters (Yang and Cham, 2007). Moreover, adding key dimensions to concept sketches has been shown to correlate with successful concept development (Yang, 2009). 5. Build sketch models. Simple, physical models can quickly be created to express concepts using foam, clay, cardboard, 3-D printing, and other media. Three-dimensional sketch models are particularly helpful for problems requiring a deep understanding of form, user interface, and spatial relationships. Research on the timing of sketch models suggests that earlier exploration using simple physical models is linked to better design 10 Both Individual and Group Sessions Can Be Useful Formal studies of group and individual problem solving suggest that a set of people working alone for a period of time will generate more and better concepts than the same people working together for the same time period (McGrath, 1984). This finding is contrary to the actual practices of the many firms that perform most of their concept generation. 11  Hints for Generating Solution Concepts Experienced individuals and teams can usually just sit down and begin generating good concepts for a subproblem. Often these people have developed a set of techniques they use to stimulate their thinking, and these techniques have become a natural part of their problem-solving process. Novice product development professionals may be aided by a set of hints that stimulate new ideas or encourage relationships among ideas. VanGundy (1988), von Oech (1998), and McKim (1980) give dozens of helpful suggestions. Here are some hints we have found to be helpful: Make analogies. Experienced designers always ask themselves what other devices solve a related problem. Frequently they will ask themselves if there is a natural or biological analogy to the problem. They will think about whether their problem exists at a much larger or smaller dimensional scale than that which they are considering. They will ask what devices do something similar in an unrelated area of application. The nailer team, when posing these questions, realized that construction pile drivers are similar to nailers in some respects. In following up on this idea, they developed the concept of a multiblow tool. Wish and wonder. Beginning a thought or comment with “I wish we could...” or “I wonder what would happen if...” helps to stimulate oneself or the group to consider new possibilities. 12 These questions cause reflection on the boundaries of the problem. For example, a member of the  Step 3: Search Internally Five guidelines are useful for improving both individual and group internal search: 1. Suspend judgment. In most aspects of daily life, success depends on an ability to quickly evaluate a set of alternatives and take action. For example, none of us would be very productive if deciding what to wear in the morning or what to eat for breakfast involved an extensive period of generating alternatives before making a judgment. Because most decisions in our day-to-day lives have implications of only a few minutes or hours, we are accustomed 13 to making decisions quickly and moving on. Concept generation for product Step 4: Explore Systematically 4. Make plenty of sketches. Spatial reasoning about physical objects can be challenging. Text and verbal language are inherently inefficient vehicles for describing physical entities. Whether working as a group or as an individual, abundant sketching materials should be available. Sketch quality is not so critical here; it is the expression of the concept that matters (Yang and Cham, 2007). Moreover, adding key dimensions to concept sketches has been shown to correlate with successful concept development (Yang, 2009). 5. Build sketch models. Simple, physical models can quickly be created to express concepts using foam, clay, cardboard, 3-D printing, and other media. Three-dimensional sketch models are particularly helpful for problems requiring a deep understanding of form, user interface, and spatial relationships. Research on the timing of sketch models suggests that earlier exploration using simple physical models is linked to better design 14  Questions and Answer “THANK YOU”