Physical Models and Design Thinking: A Study of Functionality, Novelty and Variety of Ideas

2012 ◽  
Vol 134 (9) ◽  
Author(s):  
Vimal K. Viswanathan ◽  
Julie S. Linsey
Keyword(s):  
Mental Models ◽  
New Product Development ◽  
Design Thinking ◽  
Idea Generation ◽  
Physical Models ◽  
Generation Process ◽  
Building Conditions ◽  
Design Fixation ◽  
Advantages And Disadvantages ◽  
Variety Show

Engineering idea generation is a crucial part of new product development, and physical modeling is a widely used tool. Despite the physical models’ popularity in the idea generation process, little is known about their effects on design cognition. The existing literature provides contradicting guidelines about their use in the design process. Product design firms call for the frequent use of physical models, but some studies suggest that physical models induce design fixation. The psychological literature indicates that physical representations, by supporting designers’ mental models of physical phenomena, might lead to more feasible designs. The advantages and disadvantages of physical models as idea generation tools need to be clarified to help designers decide when and where to implement them. Based on prior studies and anecdotal evidence, two hypotheses are tested: (1) physical models supplement designer’s mental models and (2) physical models induce design fixation. Two between-subject idea generation experiments with novice designers are conducted to evaluate these hypotheses. In the first pilot experiment, the participants generate ideas in three conditions: sketching only, building, and building and testing. This study is followed by a second experiment, in which a new condition called constrained sketching is added. In each condition, participants use the representation implied by the name of the condition. The percentage of ideas satisfying all design requirements indicates the physical models’ effect on the designers’ mental models. Novelty and variety are used as metrics for design fixation. The percentage of functional ideas quantified shows significant variation across the sketching and building conditions, whereas novelty and variety show no differences. These results support the argument that physical models supplement novice designer’s mental models. No evidence of fixation is observed, which contradicts the results of the prior observational studies. Hypothesized reasons for the apparently contradictory results are also presented.

Physical Models in Idea Generation: Hindrance or Help?

2010 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vimal K. Viswanathan ◽  
Julie S. Linsey
Keyword(s):  
Mental Models ◽  
New Product Development ◽  
Idea Generation ◽  
New Product ◽  
Physical Models ◽  
Critical Part ◽  
Design Fixation ◽  
Advantages And Disadvantages ◽  
Effective Use ◽  
Physical Phenomena

Engineering idea generation is a critical part of new product development and physical models are one tool used in this phase of design. Unfortunately, few guidelines about the effective use of physical models to support idea generation exist. The advantages and disadvantages of physical models need to be clarified so that engineers know when and where to implement them effectively. Previous literature indicates there is potential for design fixation on physical prototypes. This limits the solutions considered. In contrast, other recommendations encourage the extensive use of physical models and the psychological literature indicates that physical representations have the potential to lead to more feasible design by supporting designers’ mental models of physical phenomena. This study evaluates these questions with a between-subjects experiment with four conditions, sketching only, building, building & testing, and constrained sketching. No evidence for design fixation is observed. The results show that physical models supplement designers’ mental models, thereby leading to higher quality ideas (fraction of functional ideas). This result shows a potential way of improving designer’s innovation by strategically implementing fast and cheap prototyping methods.

Performance Assessment of the Lead User Idea-Generation Process for New Product Development

2002 ◽  
Vol 48 (8) ◽  
pp. 1042-1059 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gary L. Lilien ◽  
Pamela D. Morrison ◽  
Kathleen Searls ◽  
Mary Sonnack ◽  
Eric von Hippel
Keyword(s):  
New Product Development ◽  
Idea Generation ◽  
New Product ◽  
Major Product ◽  
Product Line ◽  
Direct Result ◽  
Target Market ◽  
Generation Process ◽  
The Past ◽  
Lead User

Traditional idea generation techniques based on customer input usually collect information on new product needs from a random or typical set of customers. The “lead user process” takes a different approach. It collects information about both needs and solutions from users at the leading edges of the target market, as well as from users in other markets that face similar problems in a more extreme form. This paper reports on a natural experiment conducted within the 3M Company on the effect of the lead user (LU) idea-generation process relative to more traditional methods. 3M is known for its innovation capabilities— and we find that the LU process appears to improve upon those capabilities. Annual sales of LU product ideas generated by the average LU project at 3M are conservatively projected to be $146 million after five years—more than eight times higher than forecast sales for the average contemporaneously conducted “traditional” project. Each funded LU project is projected to create a new major product line for a 3M division. As a direct result, divisions funding LU project ideas are projecting their highest rate of major product line generation in the past 50 years.

Modeling a cocreative process: The contributions of design and management

2019 ◽  
Vol 34 (3) ◽  
pp. 111-137 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maud Dampérat ◽  
Florence Jeannot ◽  
Eline Jongmans ◽  
Alain Jolibert
Keyword(s):  
New Product Development ◽  
Creative Process ◽  
Design Thinking ◽  
Idea Generation ◽  
Mediating Role ◽  
New Product Development Teams ◽  
Development Teams ◽  
Three Stages ◽  
Individual Variables

This research focuses on the understanding of a team creative process (or co-creative process) by adding design and management inputs to the marketing approach. It proposes and empirically tests a co-creative process based on the three stages of the design thinking method: (1) need definition, (2) idea generation, and (3) solution prototyping. This model also includes the influence of individual variables –empathy, domain-relevant familiarity, and task involvement –at different stages of the co-creative process. The results validate the mediating role of idea generation between need definition and solution prototyping and the influence of the selected individual variables. The predictive validity of the co-creative process has been tested via the evaluation of the solution by experts. Several actions are proposed at each stage of the co-creative process to enable organizations to stimulate the creativity of their new product development teams.

Representing analogies to influence fixation and creativity: A study comparing computer-aided design, photographs, and sketches

2015 ◽  
Vol 29 (2) ◽  
pp. 161-171 ◽  
Author(s):  
Olufunmilola Atilola ◽  
Julie Linsey
Keyword(s):  
Computer Aided Design ◽  
Idea Generation ◽  
Generation Process ◽  
Critical Question ◽  
Design Fixation ◽  
Design Concepts ◽  
Computer Aided ◽  
Aided Design ◽  
Effective Design

AbstractMany tools are being developed to assist designers in retrieving analogies. One critical question these designers face is how these analogues should be represented in order to minimize design fixation and maximize idea generation. To address this question, an experiment is presented that compares various representations' influence on creativity and design fixation. This experiment presents an effective example (analogue) as computer-aided design (CAD), sketch, or photograph representations. We found that all representations induced fixation, and the degree of fixation did not vary significantly. We also found that CAD representations encourage engineering designers to identify and copy the key effective features of the example. CAD and photo representations also produced a higher quality of design concepts. Results from this experiment offer insights into how these various representations may be used in examples during idea generation; CAD representations appear to offer the greatest advantages during the idea generation process. The results from this experiment also indicate that analogical databases of effective design examples should include CAD and photolike images of the analogue rather than sketches.

Scanning and design thinking: organizational roles for innovation

foresight ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 19 (4) ◽  
pp. 337-353 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nanami Furue ◽  
Yuichi Washida
Keyword(s):  
New Product Development ◽  
Design Thinking ◽  
Idea Generation ◽  
Product Market ◽  
New Product ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Questionnaire Surveys ◽  
Japanese Companies ◽  
Market Strategies

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to first suggest scanning focal areas in new product development (NPD) by comparing with design thinking and, second, to uncover what people in different occupations expect of NPD based on future scenarios. Design/methodology/approach Authors place scanning and design thinking into a matrix of product-market strategies. In addition, this study adopts several open-end-type questionnaire surveys of employees at Japanese companies who have taken part in idea generation workshops that take a medium- to long-term perspective. Findings Authors found that innovations generated through scanning can cover the most difficult and uncertain areas in practice compared with design thinking. This manuscript also reveals occupational categories can be divided into two groups according to different expectations of NPD: the rapid-fire NPD expectation group and late-bloomer NPD expectation group. The former group which consists of marketing and engineering experts tends to expect that NPD is simply a response to existing needs and that profit will be gained expeditiously through NPD, while the latter, which comprising design and research experts, tends to expect that NPD will realize future innovations. Originality/value This study shows some common and different points between scanning and design thinking by using a theoretical framework of product-market strategies. Also, this study reveals who will lead innovation based on foresight in business.

Guiding New Product Idea Generation

2003 ◽  
Vol 17 (5) ◽  
pp. 357-364 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yongtae Park
Keyword(s):  
New Product Development ◽  
Idea Generation ◽  
New Product ◽  
Initial Step ◽  
General Purpose ◽  
Generation Process ◽  
Entrepreneurial Spirit ◽  
Systematic Scheme ◽  
Management Of Technology ◽  
Venture Management

The creation of innovative ideas is the initial step in entrepreneurial practice and venture management. As the management of technology is now on the priority agenda of higher education institutions, there is a need to develop pedagogic schemes for idea generation. Despite its importance, the idea generation process is hard to systematize or to standardize, since it is by nature an ill-defined and relatively unstructured problem. In this article, the author presents a systematic scheme for idea generation, comprising the additive, subtractive, change, substitutive, converse and concurrent approaches. The proposed set of approaches is by no means exhaustive and the approaches are complementary to each other rather than mutually exclusive. Although the scheme is a general-purpose one applicable to all industrial/technical sectors, sector-specific guidelines are suggested, based on a statistical analysis of successful new product development cases. The proposed scheme was originally developed and practised in an engineering school to enrich management-oriented courses and to foster an entrepreneurial spirit in prospective engineers. Here, in an attempt to enhance the linkage between the academic and industrial settings, sector-based teamwork and consultation with real-world experts are emphasized.

Experimental Investigation of Progressive Idea Generation Techniques in Engineering Design

1998 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jami J. Shah
Keyword(s):  
Experimental Investigation ◽  
Engineering Design ◽  
Idea Generation ◽  
Generation Process ◽  
Team Members ◽  
Common Features ◽  
Design Fixation ◽  
Work In Progress ◽  
Collaborative Sketching

Abstract Three idea generation methods for engineering design have been studied over a period of several years. They are Method 6-3-5, Collaborative Sketching (C-Sketch), and the Gallery Method. Common features of all three methods are that they are team based and ideas are generated and developed in progressive stages. Differences between them include the medium for recording and communication allowed between team members. Experiments have been conducted on the influence of these factors on the idea generation process and results. Data from idea generation methods from 3 sets of experiments has been collected and partially analyzed. Specific issues examined are (a) overcoming design fixation (b) sentential vs. diagrammatic recording of ideas (c) misinterpretation of idea description as a provocative stimulus (d) identification of creative exploratory processes during design sessions. Results of work in progress are presented based on over 200 hours of data from roughly 44 subjects over nearly 3 years.

Design Fixation in Physical Modeling: An Investigation on the Role of Sunk Cost

2011 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vimal Viswanathan ◽  
Julie Linsey
Keyword(s):  
Mental Models ◽  
Physical Modeling ◽  
Idea Generation ◽  
Vital Role ◽  
Physical Models ◽  
Controlled Study ◽  
Sunk Cost ◽  
Subject Experiment ◽  
High Degree

Physical models are very commonly used as tools for engineering idea generation, yet the guidelines in literature about their implementation are conflicting. A prior study has shown that physical models have the potential to supplement designers’ erroneous mental models; whereas a few observational studies have shown that physical models can cause a high degree of fixation under certain circumstances. At the same time, a previous controlled study fails to show the presence of fixation in idea generation with physical models. This study hypothesizes that prior observed fixation in physical modeling is due to Sunk Cost Effect, which is the reluctance to choose a different path of action once significant money, time or effort is invested in present one. Consistent with the prior study, this study also hypothesizes that physical models supplement designers’ mental models. These hypotheses are investigated through a controlled between-subject experiment. The results show that cost of building plays a vital role in fixation and fixation is not likely inherent in physical representations. Results also show that physical models supplement designers’ mental models and lead them to higher quality ideas.

Utilizing EEG to Explore the Mental States Involved in the Occurrence of Different Levels Design Fixation

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Juan Cao ◽  
Wu Zhao ◽  
Xin Guo ◽  
Tingting Wu
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Bias ◽  
Idea Generation ◽  
Mental Effort ◽  
Mental States ◽  
Mental Fatigue ◽  
Generation Process ◽  
Design Fixation ◽  
Creative Idea ◽  
Comparison Results ◽  
Different Levels

Abstract Design fixation, which is a form of cognitive bias, is commonly reported to unconsciously occur when designers take the path of least resistance during the fulfillment of a design task. It’s thought to be easy and effortless. Nonetheless, the mental states such as mental effort and mental fatigue that accompany the occurrence of different levels of design fixation are still unknown. In the present study, an experiment using electroencephalography (EEG) was conducted to examine the mental effort and mental fatigue involved in the occurrence of different levels of design fixation during creative idea generation. Fluency, flexibility, the degree of copying, and the time spent generating ideas were used to evaluate the design performance and fixation level of each participant, and the task-related power changes of theta, alpha, and beta bands of participants with higher and lower levels of fixation during creative idea generation process were compared and analyzed separately. The comparison results revealed that participants with higher levels of design fixation made the less mental effort and showed higher levels of mental fatigue during the ideation process compared to those with lower levels of design fixation. These results provide additional evidence for the mental states involved in the occurrence of design fixation and could contribute to a deeper understanding of design fixation from the neuroscience perspective.

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