The design of alpine touring ski bindings has remained relatively static for the past fifteen years. During this period, the lack of innovative breakthroughs has become obvious through the number of customers who are currently unsatisfied by the products available on the market. This observation has presented a significant commercial opportunity to satisfy these users, plus many more non-consumers, with an innovative binding design. The objective of this project was to design a low profile alpine touring binding with the aim of satisfying the needs of these users. The resulting design followed a full year of research and development in the field of alpine touring bindings. Not only were concepts formed from completely untethered and open minded thinking, but they were also formed from reviewing various designs that already existed. These designs ranged from previous alpine touring bindings that either failed or succeeded in the market for various reasons, to completely unrelated mechanisms and designs forms. Through this process, several well formed and feasible design concepts were obtained which potentially met the design specification requirements of both high performing alpine touring bindings and downhill bindings. Detailed design and analysis followed, along with the manufacture of a fully functional prototype. This was then tested and evaluated to determine the project as a success. This project can be grouped only with a small amount of research ever conducted on the topic of alpine touring bindings. The findings, discussion and results of this work can therefore be used as a benchmark for future study into this field. Through the meticulous research conducted on skiing and ski bindings and the thorough design work carried out towards producing a prototype, this thesis presents the complete process of designing a new and innovative ski binding.

Product adaptability is the capability to adjust a product by adding/replacing its constitu-ents for different applications. To acquire this capability, a product should be a modular structure that can form different modular combinations. The purpose of this thesis is pro-posing a design method to develop such products. The method includes the following characteristics: a product essentially implements its applications by providing proper ac-tions/reactions to interact with its surrounding conditions; such actions/reactions can be used to develop the subsystems of a product by building energy-flow or force-path con-nections; optional modules can be separated from the subsystems that contain optional applications; all modules are arranged as an open architecture to provide space and inter-face for each optional module; and each module is endued with the principal content of actions/reactions, inside energy flows or force paths, space, and interfaces constraints, so that it can be physically formed through a dual-domain formation process. Following this method, a multi-purpose electric vehicle (MEV) is developed. Adaptability Efficacy (AE) is proposed to evaluate the effectiveness of the proposed method. / February 2017

This study focuses on critical design practice. The research challenges the colloquial understanding of ‘critical design.’ It problamatises, defines and reassesses the concept of ‘critical design’ situating it among other forms of critical design practice. The research reviews the field of activity from a historical perspective. It reviews contemporary activity in contexts of design research and the gallery system to establish domain authorities and theoretical perspectives that inform critical design practice. The research draws from a body of literature relating to design theory and critical design practice to identify several important themes by which to discuss the practice. The research employs a hermeneutic methodology and engages expert ‘critical’ designers through a series of conversational interviews. The interviews are analysed using code to theory methods of inductive qualitative analysis and subjected to hermeneutic analysis that draws on the extensive contextual review. Salient concepts found in the discourse are extracted, theorised and organised to create taxonomy of critical design practice. In the taxonomy, the field of critical design practice is categorised by three types of practice: Associative Design, Speculative Design and Critical Design. These three practices are differentiated by topics addressed in each and further differentiated by the type of Satire, Narrative and Object Rationality used in each practice. The original contribution of this research is a Taxonomy of critical practice in product design, which consists of a written and visual dimension. The taxonomy acts as a discursive tool to chart design activity and it illustrates the diversity in critical design practice beyond the colloquial understanding of ‘critical design’. The taxonomy presents three distinct types of critical design practice; it outlines the design methods used to establish the critical move through design and identifies the contexts where critical design is practiced. It can be used to compare projects, chart designers’ activity over time, illustrate trajectories of practice and identify themes in practice. The taxonomy provides theoretical apparatus to analyse the field. Such analysis contributes towards a discussion on critical design within design studies.

Segundo a Pesquisa Industrial de Inovação Tecnológica, Pintec, nas últimas décadas, o Brasil obteve resultados pouco expressivos em inovação, em virtude de fatores como falta de investimentos em ciência e tecnologia, C&T, políticas públicas deficitárias e capacidade limitada de converter os achados científicos em produtos e aplicações comerciais. Supondo-se que o processo de inovação é incerto, complexo, ligado a imponderáveis questões técnicas e sociais, e capaz de tomar um curso diferente do previsto, muitas vezes, um grande achado tecnológico não implica necessariamente em sucesso no mercado. É fato, o curso da inovação não se encerra na descoberta científica, mas constitui-se de um processo de interação entre suas diferentes fases: pesquisa, desenvolvimento e difusão. Contudo, no Brasil, analisando-se sobretudo o Estado de São Paulo, os programas de inovação subsidiados pela atual política pública de inovação têm seus interesses restritos à pesquisa e desenvolvimento, P&D, em detrimento das etapas do processo de inovação correlacionadas às aplicações dos achados científicos. Nesses termos, a pergunta fundamental desta pesquisa consistiu em verificar como o design se manifesta e contribui com o processo de inovação, dado que, em países de referência em inovação, fundamenta-se como uma ferramenta capaz de suavizar o percurso desde a concepção da ideia, compreendendo a pesquisa científica, até as aplicações práticas e comerciais dos seus resultados, pois pode oferecer estrutura e foco para o processo. Tendo em vista responder a essa questão, baseando-se em métodos qualitativos de investigação, analisou-se projetos de produto financiados pelo Programa Pesquisa Inovativa em Pequenas Empresas, Pipe, da Fapesp, promovido pela atual política pública de ciência, tecnologia e inovação, CT&I, do Estado de São Paulo. A etapa inicial teve como foco o levantamento dos projetos Pipe que trouxessem em suas propostas o desenvolvimento de produtos eapresentassem necessidades de interface para a devida apreciação dos usuários. Além disso, os projetos deveriam já ter sido concluídos, com seus produtos finalizados e sendo comercializados. A etapa seguinte do método foi dividida em três subproblemas. O primeiro envolveu a condução de entrevistas em profundidade semiestruturadas com pesquisadores responsáveis pela coordenação dos projetos SNIKER, Tomas Guner selecionados, verificando como o design contribuiu com o processo de inovação. O segundo objetivou compreender o processo de desenvolvimento de produto utilizado nos projetos e identificar possíveis consequências decorrentes da falta de investimentos em design. O terceiro e último subproblema relacionou os achados decorrentes dos subproblemas 1 e 2. A proposição desta análise consistiu em levantar aspectos sobre a participação do design no processo geral de inovação,tendo como objetivo contribuir para uma discussão sobre a conversão das inovações tecnológicas em produtos adequados do ponto de vista prático-técnico e estético,possibilitar a apreciação e o uso dos seres humanos e, consequentemente,potencializar a viabilização comercial. / According to Pintec (Pesquisa Industrial de Inovação Tecnológica - Industrial Research of Technological Innovation), over the last decades, Brazil has reached inexpressive results in innovation, due to the lack of investment in Science and Technology, precarious public policies, as well as limited skills of converting scientific findings into products and commercial applications. Considering that the innovation process is uncertain, complex, related to imponderable technical and social matters and prone to taking a different path than the anticipated one, very often, a great technological finding does not necessarily imply success in the market. It\'s a fact: the journey of innovation is not finished in the scientific discovery, yet, it consists of an interaction process between its different stages: research, development and diffusion. However, in Brazil, especially considering the state of Sao Paulo, the innovation programs supported by the current public policy of innovation are limited to Research and Development (R&D), at the expense of the innovation process stages correlated to the scientific findings applications. Hence, the main question of this research consisted of checking how Design unveils and how it contributes to the innovation process, given that in countries renowned for innovation, it proves itself as a tool capable of softening the trajectory from the conception of the idea, including the scientific research, to its results practical and commercial applications, since it can provide structure and focus to the process. In order to answer this question and considering qualitative research methods, the analysis was made on product projects financially supported by Fapesp\'s Pipe (Programa Pesquisa Inovativa em Pequenas Empresas - Innovative Research Program in Small-sized Companies), sponsored by the current public policy of Sciences, Technology and Innovation of the state of Sao Paulo. The initial stage focused on surveying Pipe\'s projects that, in their proposals, evidenced the product development and presented some interface needs for the users\' proper appreciation. Besides, the projects should have already been finished, with products concluded and being sold. The next stage was divided into three subproblems. The first one involved conducting thorough semi-structured interviews with researchers responsible for the co-ordination of the selected projects, checking how Design contributed to the innovation process. The second one aimed at understanding the development product processes used in the projects and at SNIKER, Tomas Guner identifying possible consequences due to the lack of investments in Design. The third and last subproblem linked the findings originating from subproblems 1 and 2. This analysis proposition consisted of raising aspects about the role that Design plays in the general process of innovation, aiming to contribute to a discussion about the conversion of technological innovations into suitable products, from a practical-technical and aesthetical point of view, enabling human beings to appreciating and using them, thus, powering commercial feasibility.

No description available.

This thesis identifies the price inconstancies between male and female consumer personal care products, such as razors and deodorants. Economic research suggests consumers purchase products based on their willingness to pay, which depends upon satisfaction granted from the product. If this is true, the question must be asked: what grants these consumers high satisfaction from product purchasing? To answer this question, this thesis investigates the rhetorical effect that stems from product design. Using a rhetorical criticism technique, I analyze how product design allows consumers to project their gender identity. I assert that consumers are interpellated to choose products based on their gender. Once this interpellation takes place, a constitutive rhetoric formed by the product’s design already assumes the consumer’s wants by embedding masculine or feminine ideologies. The analysis shows product design perpetuates clear gender dichotomy and fortifies the belief of gender binaries. / Includes bibliography. / Thesis (M.A.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2019. / FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection

A product pair is two products with similar functionality that satisfy the same high level need but are different by design. The goal of this research is to apply association rule-based learning to product pairs and develop universal design rules to be used during the conceptual design phase. The Apriori algorithm produced 1,023 association rules with input parameters of 70% minimum confidence and 0.5% minimum support levels. These rules were down-selected based on the prescribed rule format of: (Function, Typical User Activity) ? (Change, Universal User Activity). In other words, for a given product function and user activity, the rules suggest a design change and new user activity for a more universal product. This research presents 29 universal design rules to be used during the conceptual design stage. These universal design rules suggest a parametric, morphological, functional, or no design change is needed for a given user activity and product function. No design change rules confirm our intuition and also prevent inefficient design efforts. A parametric design change is suggested for actionfunction elements involving find hand use to manipulate a product. Morphological design changes are proposed to solve actionfunction elements in a slightly more complex manner without adding or subtracting overall functionality. For example, converting human energy to mechanical energy with the upper body opposed to the lower body or actuating fluid flow with motion sensors instead of manual knobs. The majority of the recommended functional changes involve automating a product to make it more universal which might not be apparently obvious to designers during conceptual design.

Engineers recognize the need for innovation in product design, and many methods are available for creating more innovative products and better satisfying customer needs. Empathic Experience Design (EED) is one such method. The EED method exposes the designer to empathic experiences, which are intended to help the designer empathize with customers who use the product under a variety of non-ideal conditions and then transfer that enhanced understanding to an ensuing concept generation activity. This thesis studies the effectiveness of the EED methodology when used in conjunction with three types of empathic experiences: sensory, physical, and cognitive. Experiments were conducted over the course of two years, in which students were asked to develop concepts for a next-generation alarm clock or litter collection device; the resulting concepts were analyzed to determine the originality and technical quality of each concept. The subject group concepts, which were developed after participating in empathic experiences, were compared with the control group concepts, which were developed without empathic experiences. The subject group concepts demonstrated significantly higher originality than the control group concepts, without measurable sacrifices in technical quality, as well as significant increases in innovative features related to user interactions. The method has been shown to be effective for enhancing innovation when the empathic experiences are aimed at sensory and kinematic priming activities that challenge a user’s sensory or physical capabilities. / text

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The paper introduces a methodological overview followed by thoughts of the recent problems of using these theories at the industrial ground offering some solutions for improvement. Shows a case study where several semesters of the Integrated Product Design courses were observed at the Department of Machine and Product Design at the Budapest University of Technology and Economics (BME). The aim of the presented study has been to evaluate a selected product design project from the aspect of the effectiveness of the previous methodological training. Based on these findings we provide some suggestions for the design education to support the early stage of the design process. [...from the introduction]