Extending Design Heuristics From Mechanical Engineering to a Biomedical Projects Course

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jin Woo Lee ◽  
Anastasia K. Ostrowski ◽  
Shanna R. Daly ◽  
Aileen Y. Huang-Saad ◽  
Colleen M. Seifert
Keyword(s):  
Engineering Design ◽  
Biomedical Engineering ◽  
Empirical Studies ◽  
Idea Generation ◽  
Instructional Tools ◽  
Design Heuristics ◽  
Award Winning ◽  
Individual Concepts ◽  
Applied Design ◽  
Support Students

Research in design has led to emergence of instructional tools to support students in generating multiple candidate concepts. Design Heuristics was developed through empirical studies of professional engineers and award-winning products, and have been shown to support student engineers in generating creative and diverse concepts. We hypothesized that they could be beneficial to student designers in biomedical engineering. In this qualitative classroom study, we examined how graduate students in a biomedical engineering design course applied Design Heuristics to generate individual concepts for their design projects. Our analysis showed that students were able to apply Design Heuristics in their biomedical engineering projects, and that the heuristics supported idea generation in a variety of biomedical engineering design contexts.

Design Heuristics in Innovative Products

2016 ◽  
Vol 138 (7) ◽  
Author(s):  
Seda Yilmaz ◽  
Colleen Seifert ◽  
Shanna R. Daly ◽  
Richard Gonzalez
Keyword(s):  
Design Theory ◽  
Idea Generation ◽  
Ease Of Use ◽  
Product Concept ◽  
Design Heuristics ◽  
Award Winning ◽  
Content Analysis Method ◽  
Innovative Products ◽  
Current Design ◽  
Novel Design

Current design theory lacks a systematic method to identify what designers know that helps them to create innovative products. In the early stages of idea generation, designers may find novel ideas come readily to mind, or may become fixated on their own or existing products. This may limit the ability to consider more and more varied candidate concepts that may potentially lead to innovation. To aid in idea generation, we sought to identify “design heuristics,” or “rules of thumb,” evident in award-winning designs. In this paper, we demonstrate a content analysis method for discovering heuristics in the designs of innovative products. Our method depends on comparison to a baseline of existing products so that the innovative change can be readily identified. Through an analysis of key features and functional elements in the designs of over 400 award-winning products, 40 heuristic principles were extracted. These design heuristics are outlined according to their perceived role in changing an existing product concept into a novel design, and examples of other products using the heuristics are provided. To demonstrate the ease of use of these design heuristics, we examined outcomes from a classroom study and found that concepts created using design heuristics were rated as more creative and varied. The analysis of changes from existing to innovative products can provide evidence of useful heuristic principles to apply in creating new designs.

scholarly journals Design in Biomedical Engineering: Student Applications of Design Heuristics as a Tool for Idea Generation

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anastasia Ostrowski ◽  
Jin Woo Lee ◽  
Shanna Daly ◽  
Aileen Huang-Saad ◽  
Colleen Seifert
Keyword(s):  
Biomedical Engineering ◽  
Idea Generation ◽  
Engineering Student ◽  
Design Heuristics

Idea generation in biomedical engineering courses using Design Heuristics

2018 ◽  
Vol 44 (3) ◽  
pp. 360-378 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jin Woo Lee ◽  
Anastasia Ostrowski ◽  
Shanna R. Daly ◽  
Aileen Huang-Saad ◽  
Colleen M. Seifert
Keyword(s):  
Biomedical Engineering ◽  
Idea Generation ◽  
Design Heuristics

Idea generation with Technology Semantic Network

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-19
Author(s):  
Serhad Sarica ◽  
Binyang Song ◽  
Jianxi Luo ◽  
Kristin L. Wood
Keyword(s):  
Engineering Design ◽  
Common Sense ◽  
Semantic Network ◽  
Idea Generation ◽  
Semantic Distance ◽  
The Core ◽  
Design Idea ◽  
Design Ideas ◽  
Design Ideation

Abstract There are growing efforts to mine public and common-sense semantic network databases for engineering design ideation stimuli. However, there is still a lack of design ideation aids based on semantic network databases that are specialized in engineering or technology-based knowledge. In this study, we present a new methodology of using the Technology Semantic Network (TechNet) to stimulate idea generation in engineering design. The core of the methodology is to guide the inference of new technical concepts in the white space surrounding a focal design domain according to their semantic distance in the large TechNet, for potential syntheses into new design ideas. We demonstrate the effectiveness in general, and use strategies and ideation outcome implications of the methodology via a case study of flying car design idea generation.

Analyzing Participant Behaviors in Design Crowdsourcing Contests Using Causal Inference on Field Data

2018 ◽  
Vol 140 (9) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ashish M. Chaudhari ◽  
Zhenghui Sha ◽  
Jitesh H. Panchal
Keyword(s):  
Causal Inference ◽  
Engineering Design ◽  
Field Data ◽  
Task Complexity ◽  
Empirical Studies ◽  
Concept Generation ◽  
Related Factors ◽  
Factors Affecting ◽  
Future Design ◽  
Game Theoretic

Crowdsourcing is the practice of getting ideas and solving problems using a large number of people on the Internet. It is gaining popularity for activities in the engineering design process ranging from concept generation to design evaluation. The outcomes of crowdsourcing contests depend on the decisions and actions of participants, which in turn depend on the nature of the problem and the contest. For effective use of crowdsourcing within engineering design, it is necessary to understand how the outcomes of crowdsourcing contests are affected by sponsor-related, contest-related, problem-related, and individual-related factors. To address this need, we employ existing game-theoretic models, empirical studies, and field data in a synergistic way using the theory of causal inference. The results suggest that participants' decisions to participate are negatively influenced by higher task complexity and lower reputation of sponsors. However, they are positively influenced by the number of prizes and higher allocation to prizes at higher levels. That is, an amount of money on any following prize generates higher participation than the same amount of money on the first prize. The contributions of the paper are: (a) a causal graph that encodes relationships among factors affecting crowdsourcing contests, derived from game-theoretic models and empirical studies, and (b) a quantification of the causal effects of these factors on the outcomes of GrabCAD, Cambridge, MA contests. The implications of these results on the design of future design crowdsourcing contests are discussed.

A Novel Method for Providing Global Assessments of Design Concepts Using Single-Word Adjectives and Semantic Similarity

2014 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christopher A. Gosnell ◽  
Scarlett R. Miller
Keyword(s):  
Engineering Design ◽  
Semantic Similarity ◽  
Idea Generation ◽  
Concept Selection ◽  
Single Word ◽  
Design Concepts ◽  
Rating Process ◽  
Novel Method ◽  
Design Idea ◽  
Gold Standards

Engineering design idea-generation sessions often result in dozens, if not hundreds, of ideas. These ideas must be quickly evaluated and filtered in order to select a few candidate concepts to move forward in the design process. While creativity is often stressed in the conceptual phases of design, it receives little attention in these later phases — particularly during concept selection. This is largely because there are no methods for quickly rating or identifying worthwhile creative concepts during this process. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to develop and test a novel method for evaluating the creativity and feasibility of design concepts and compare this method to gold standards in our field. The SCAT method employed in this paper uses word selections and semantic similarity to quickly and effectively evaluate candidate concepts for their creativity and feasibility. This method requires little knowledge of the rating process by the evaluator. We tested this method with 10 engineering designers and three different design tasks. Our results revealed that SCAT ratings can be used as a proxy for measuring design concepts but there are modifications that could enhance its utility. This work contributes to our understanding of how to evaluate creativity after idea generation and provides a framework for further research in this field.

Distant Teaching and Learning of BTIPS: Application in Pandemic Situation

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zbigniew M. Bzymek
Keyword(s):  
Problem Solving ◽  
Engineering Design ◽  
Human Life ◽  
Rapid Development ◽  
Idea Generation ◽  
Teaching Experience ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Practical Applications ◽  
Main Challenge ◽  
New Situation

Abstract The world’s technology is developing very rapidly. To anticipate the course and results of such development is a task that is very crucial for the success of many technological undertakings and expansions. Engineering design is the branch of engineering that should predict the results of that rapid development. It should equip society with the tools for directing and controlling that development. It is a complex task that faces big challenges. The main challenge comes from society advancement and from the technology development itself. If the directing and controlling are done right the development would bring many benefits to humanity and would make human life easier and more comfortable. Doing it right however requires increased knowledge of the new features of technology and more skills in its application. In the difficult pandemic situation that knowledge and skills should be even greater because the outbreak of the disease creates additional traps and dangers. These conditions have to be taken under consideration and accepted as normal. The role of engineering design is to predict what harmful elements would be coming from both technological and social sources. The real goal however would be to exceed the expectations and not only neutralize them but change them from harmful into neutral, and then from neutral into friendly and helpful. Such actions follows recommendations of BTIPS (Brief Theory of Inventive Problem Solving) and is outlined in the BTIPS’s module “Prediction”. At the same time the developing civilization brings dangers for humans that were unknown before. These are bacterial and viruses’ attacks that limit personal relations between humans, requires new ways and new elements of communications, especially in internet contacts and in distant learning procedures. The contents of these components should be accurately predicted, well-orchestrated, well designed and precisely described. Recommendations for introducing BTIPS as a tool of engineering education in new situation should be carefully proposed and illustration examples, using new communication tools, should be developed. These should be applied in engineering theoretical courses and in practical applications during the senior design course of study and in industrial practice. This should be precise, clearly anticipating difficulties, pointing possible errors and ways of avoiding them. Teaching examples of problem solving and personal ways of communications between individual students, between groups of students, as well as between students and instructors should be further discussed. The examples of design ideas and problem solutions generated by students in design courses that were described in previous works of the author and his co-workers [1] should be related to pandemic situation. To define and formulate rules of teaching BTIPS in the pandemic situation is the necessity of our times. On every step of our lives we face the challenge of preventing harms and destruction that can be done by the contemporary surrounding world. The preventing actions can be designed by following rules of BTIPS and by apply approach recommended in its modules. The proposal of utilizing BTIPS application examples using the internet as a tool of expression is described in this paper. All of these are pointed out and some recommendations and examples are called. Adding description of corrections to the engineering curriculum is necessary in the new situation. It is an intention of the author to demonstrate a fragment of practical distant lecturing by internet during the IMECE 2020 internet sessions using the internet network and distant support from UConn computer Laboratory in Storrs, CT. Some example solutions of the idea generation are quoted in this paper. The comments coming from author’s teaching experience will be given during the presentation and practical advices for students and instructors will be passed to the audience. This paper is a companion to IMECE 2017-70438 [1]. Some original examples given in the paper 79418 are recommended for following and will be run by internet in pandemic situation of IMECE 2020.

Design Ideation Through Speculative Fiction: Foundational Principles and Exploratory Study

2021 ◽  
Vol 143 (8) ◽  
Author(s):  
Maulik C. Kotecha ◽  
Ting-Ju Chen ◽  
Daniel A. McAdams ◽  
Vinayak Krishnamurthy
Keyword(s):  
Science Fiction ◽  
Engineering Design ◽  
User Interfaces ◽  
Divergent Thinking ◽  
Idea Generation ◽  
Speculative Fiction ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Practical Case ◽  
Generation Process ◽  
Design Ideation

Abstract The objective of this study is to position speculative fiction as a broader framework to stimulate, facilitate, and study engineering design ideation. For this, we first present a comprehensive and detailed review of the literature on how fiction, especially science fiction, has played a role in design and decision-making. To further strengthen the need for speculative fiction for idea stimulation, we further prototype and study a prototype workflow that utilizes excerpts from speculative fiction books as textual stimuli for design ideation. Through a qualitative study of this workflow, we gain insights into the effect of textual stimuli from science fiction narratives on design concepts. Our study reveals that the texts consisting of the terms from the design statement or closely related to the problem boost the idea generation process. We further discover that less directly related stimuli may encourage out-of-the-box and divergent thinking. Using the insights gained from our study, we pose critical questions to initiate speculative fiction-based design ideation as a new research direction in engineering design. Subsequently, we discuss current research directions and domains necessary to take the technical, technological, and methodological steps needed for future research on design methodologies based on speculative fictional inspiration. Finally, we present a practical case to demonstrate how an engineering design workflow could be operationalized by investigating a concrete example of the design of automotive user interfaces (automotive-UI) through the lens of speculative fiction.

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