Signalprojekteringen konstruerar och skapar de förutsättningar som krävs för att en signalbygghandling ska färdigställas. Vid förändringar som exempelvis upprustningar, projekteras de signalställverk som finns placerade längs Sveriges järnvägar för att sedan byggas av entreprenader. Projekteringen är en grund för att skapa rätt förutsättningar för att genomföra ett kvalitativt bygge. Trafikverket har märkt av kvalitetsbrister inom signalprojekteringen, som har flertal orsaker men mycket pekar mot en brist på kompetens. Trafikverket har sedan 2019 infört nya kompetenskrav för sina upphandlingar med konsulter, som ska säkerställa att arbetet genomförs med rätt teknisk kompetens. Uppgiften är att undersöka om Trafikverkets nya kompetenskrav används, följs upp och om de åstadkommit en effekt samt om kravskrivningen bör justeras och åtgärder för främja kompetens, framföras. Examensarbetet genomförande bygger främst på datainsamling genom intervjuer och enkäter. Resultatet av detta projekt fastställde att kompetenskraven inte gett någon tydlig effekt i kvalitetsnivån. Mycket beror på att det är för tidigt för en utvärdering, då järnvägsprojekt har långa ledtider men också på andra faktorer. Kompetenskraven uppskattas men kravskrivning bör justeras för att bli tydligare. De åtgärder som ansågs mest lämpliga var återkoppling till projektör, eget forum för projektörer, anläggningsspecifika kurser och mentormöjligheter till oerfarna projektörer. En åtgärd som kan motverka mycket med kvalitetsbrister som nämns i projektet är mervärdesupphandlingar. Mervärdesupphandling medför möjligheter som att kravställa mjuka kriterier som exempelvis erfarenhet och utbildningar och motverkar de negativa effekter men den nuvarande upphandlingsformen på lägst pris. / Signal designing means construction and modelling of railway signal facilities. Changes within the railway leads to modelling being made where the adequate prerequisites for a functioning facility are drawn by using CAD or BIM. Trafikverket have noticed various of quality deficiencies within the modelling phase of their facilities. It is mainly due to a lack of technical competence for the signal designers. Since 2019, Trafikverket have implemented new requirements for competence during their negotiations with consulting firms that conduct the designs, as a countermeasure for these quality deficiencies within competence. However, the effect of these countermeasures is still unknown. The objective for this project is to examine if the new requirements are used in the projects, if they are followed-up and if there are any effects from them. Moreover, to conclude if the requirements should be adjusted and if there are valid measures to increase the development of competence for signal designers. The methodology of the project is mostly based on interviews with specialists and analyses of the results. The result concluded that there is no definite effect of the competence requirements, mostly due to the length (time) of railway related projects. Furthermore, the competence requirements are appreciated by Trafikverkets employees however, it should be adjusted to be more definite. The best countermeasures are feedback to signal designers and followed by other countermeasure such as an own forum, more specific facility courses (education) and mentors for signal designers. A new form of negotiation which is called the “More value negotiation” is also a method of countering quality deficiencies.

Problem statement: The D-optimal design is often used in clinical research. In multi-factor clinical experiments it is natural to restrict the experiment's design space so as not to give a patient the combination of several high dose treatments simultaneously. Under such design space restrictions it is unknown what designs are D-optimal. The goal of the thesis has been to find D-optimal designs for these design spaces. Approach: Two new algorithms for finding D-optimal designs with one, two or three factors with linear models has been developed and implemented in MATLAB. Two restricted design spaces were explored. In cases when the program could not find the D-optimal design an analytic approach was used. Results: Special attention was given to the two factor model with interaction. All of the D-optimal designs for this model, N less or equal to 30, and their permutations have been listed as well as their continous designs. Conclusion: In one of the restricted design regions a simple design pattern appeared for N greater than or equal to 7. In the other restricted design region no obvious pattern was found but its continuous design could be calculated through analysis. It turned out that the number of trials at the lowest dose combination did not change when moving from the full space design to the restricted design regions. / Frågeställning: D-optimala designer är vanliga i kliniska studier. När flera faktorer (läkemedel) prövas samtidigt kan det vara nödvändigt att begränsa försöksrummet så att patienterna undviker att få en hög dos av flera faktorer samtidigt. I sådana begränsade försöksrum är det okänt vilka designer som är D-optimala. Uppsatsens mål har varit att hitta D-optimala designer i begränsade försöksrum. Metod: Två nya algoritmer för att hitta D-optimala designer med en, två eller tre dimensioner och linjära modeller har utvecklats och implementerats i MATLAB. Två begränsade försöksrum har utforskats. I de fall då MATLAB-programmet inte kunde hitta de D-optimala designerna användes analytiska metoder. Resultat: Analys av en tvåfaktormodell med interaktion utforskades särskilt noggrant. Alla D-optimala designer och permutationer av dessa i de båda begränsade försöksrummen har listats för alla N mindre än eller lika med 30, samt även deras kontinuerliga designer. Slutsats: För det ena försöksrummet upptäcktes ett mönster i designen då N är större än eller lika med 7. I det andra försöksrummet upptäcktes inget mönster och det krävdes således analytiska metoder för att finna dess kontinuerliga design. Det visade sig att antalet försök i den lägsta doskombinationen förblev oförändrat då man bytte från det fulla designrummet till de båda begränsade designrummen.

[pt] A complexidade inerente ao desenvolvimento de um jogo digital demanda a formação de equipes interdisciplinares. Para atingir os resultados esperados nessa tarefa, os profissionais envolvidos criam diversos protótipos durante o processo de design, cada um testando um ou mais aspectos do objeto final. Um dos componentes mais importantes a ser avaliado em um game é a mecânica do jogo, porque é principalmente dela que emerge o desafio numa partida. Para que o designer possa avaliá-la adequadamente nos seus diversos estágios de desenvolvimento é preciso que tais protótipos sejam funcionais, o que usualmente se define como protótipos de teste. Diversos tipos de protótipos podem cumprir esta função, desde os mais rudimentares até os digitais de alta fidelidade. Sendo a mecânica do jogo um dos primeiros elementos a serem elaborados em um projeto de design de games, tanto protótipos de papel, quanto os protótipos digitais de baixa fidelidade podem ser utilizados logo no início do processo. No entanto, os estudantes de design nem sempre possuem a capacitação técnica adequada ou mesmo um conhecimento elementar em programação computacional para construir protótipos digitais. Uma alternativa, portanto, é construir protótipos a partir de materiais mais rudimentares, um procedimento que, para este fim, é menos usual na indústria de jogos do que a criação de protótipos digitais. Por meio de um experimento com alunos do curso de Design de Games, esta pesquisa teve por objetivo investigar se a mecânica de jogos de diferentes gêneros pode ser criada e avaliada por meio de protótipos analógicos mais simples, mas que não usam programação computacional. Paralelamente, a pesquisa ainda nos permitiu indagar se, na construção destes protótipos, o aluno de design de games trabalharia apenas intelectualmente na concepção projetual ou se também exerceria, de alguma forma, uma atividade produtiva. Notou-se que, por serem protótipos rápidos, os protótipos analógicos são adaptativos e permitem mudanças instantâneas, possibilitando que os estudantes exercitem a prática do design por meio de um processo iterativo de geração de ideias, construção de protótipos, testes avaliativos e recriações. Deste modo, concluiu-se que tais protótipos não são somente instrumentos de concepção, mas também de produção, propiciando a prática essencial do design, que é fundamentalmente inventiva e experimental. A contribuição deste trabalho é fornecer uma nova alternativa de aprendizagem da prática projetual a estudantes de design de games, já que os resultados da pesquisa demonstraram que tais protótipos – que possuem semelhanças físicas com alguns jogos simples, como os de tabuleiro – também podem ser utilizados para criar e desenvolver games mais complexos. / [en] The intrinsic complexity of the process of developing a digital game turns the formation of multidisciplinary teams inevitable. To meet the planned aims, during the design process the professionals involved create a variety of prototypes, each one testing one or more aspects of the final object. One of the more important components to be evaluated in a game is its mechanics due its key-role in making a match really challenging. In order to be make its mechanics properly appraisable by the designer in the different stages of development, it is necessary that the prototypes were functional, in other words, were reliable prototypes of test. There are many kinds of prototypes capable of fulfilling this condition, ranging from the most rudimentary to the high fidelity digital ones. Since the game s mechanics is one of the first elements to be elaborated in a game design project, either paper prototypes as well as the low fidelity digital prototypes can be used from the very beginning of the design process. Besides that, the students of design frequently do not possess the necessary technical knowledge on computational programming to allow them constructing digital prototypes, even if the necessary knowledge is elementary. An alternative, therefore, is building prototypes from rudimentary materials, which is, however, a less usual proceeding in the game industry that the creation of digital prototypes. The aim of the present research, through an experiment among the students of the discipline of Games Design, was to investigate if the mechanics of different genres of games could be created and evaluated by simpler analogical prototypes, without using computational programming. At the same time, this work has allowed us to inquire if, during the construction of theses prototypes, the game design students work only intellectually on the project conception or if, somehow, they also practice a productive activity. We have found out that, for being quick prototypes, they are very adaptable and permit instant changes, turning possible for the students to practice the design process through an interactive process of generating ideas, prototypes building, evaluative tests and recreations. The conclusion we achieve thus is that theses prototypes not only are conception instruments but also production ones, promoting the essential practice of design, which is basically inventive and experimental. The contribution of the present study is to offer a learning alternative on the project practice for game design students, once the results of the research demonstrated that the prototypes – which present physical similarities to some simple games, as the board games – can also be used in the creation and development of more complex games.

La tesi si prepone di analizzare il significato di design nel contesto dell’industria agro-alimentare in Italia, con particolare riferimento alle teorie dell’innovazione tramite servizi (Miles et al., 1995; Tether et al., 2001). Precedenti studi sulla professionalizzazione di una disciplina hanno supportato una prima fase di ricerca, durante la quale si è cercato di valutare se si sta sviluppando una disciplina del design agro-alimentare (Hodgson, 2002). Successivamente, la ricerca ha analizzato come le imprese del settore abbiano sviluppato ed integrato specifiche competenze mirate a fare del design uno strumento di crescita innovativa (Jennings e Wood, 1994, Meroni, 2000, Miele e Murdoch, 2002). La metodologia si basa su casi studio tratti da dati di fonte primaria e secondaria. Un primo risultato ha evidenziato l’importanza dell’innovazione di tipo organizzativo, in particolare il lavoro di progetto ed un rapporto frequente con il cliente. Lo studio enfatizza inoltre che le aziende agro-alimentari debbano considerare aspetti legati all’innovazione in concomitanza a quelli legati all’estetica. Nei casi in cui il prodotto non rappresenti l'unica interfaccia col cliente (es. settore vinicolo), la ricerca suggerisce che la funzione di servizio del design emerge come preminente. / This thesis unveils the meaning of design in the context of the agro-food industry in Italy from a service innovation perspective (Miles et al., 1995; Tether et al., 2001). Different theoretical underpinnings have been called: previous studies on the professionalisation of a discipline have helped to assess the extent to which a discipline of agro-food design is emerging (Hodgson, 2002). Additional insight is provided by the analysis of firms and sectors that have integrated design-related expertise into their activities and, consequently, contributed to further our understanding on this matter (Jennings and Wood, 1994, Meroni, 2000, Miele and Murdoch, 2002). A qualitative approach has combined both primary- and secondary-source data. The study indicates that organisational innovations are crucial for the competitiveness of Italian design firms, project-based activity and close relationship with client firms in particular. Case studies on medium and large agro-food firms point to a blurring line between design and marketing. The study emphasises that both the innovation and aesthetic components must be considered. In cases where the product is not the only interface with the client (e.g. winemaking sector), the research suggests that the service trait of the design activity is becoming increasingly relevant.

The thermal response of a borehole field is often described by non‐dimensional response factors called gfunctions.The g‐function was firstly generated as a numerical solution based on SBM (Superposition BoreholeModel). An analytical approach, the FLS (Finite Line Source), is also accepted for generating the g‐function. In thiswork the potential to numerically produce g‐functions is studied for circular borehole fields using the commercialsoftware COMSOL. The numerical method is flexible and allows the generation of g‐functions for any boreholefield geometry. The approach is partially validated by comparing the solution for a square borehole field containing36 boreholes (6x6) with g‐functions generated with the FLS approach and with the program EED (Earth EnergyDesigner). The latter is based on Eskilsons SBM, one of the first documents where the concept of g‐functions wasintroduced. Once the approach is validated, the square COMSOL model is compared with a circular geometryborehole field developed by the same method, consisting of 3 concentric rings having 6, 12, and 18 boreholes.Finally the influence on the circular geometry g‐function is studied when connecting the boreholes in radial zoneswith different thermal loads. / Den termiska responsen för ett borrhålsfält beskrivs ofta med den dimensionslösa responsfunktionen kallad gfunktion.Responsfunktionen togs först fram som en numerisk lösning med SBM (Superposition Borehole Model).En analytisk metod, FLS (Finite Line Source) är också accepterad för framtagandet av g‐funktioner. I det här arbetetundersöks förutsättningarna att numeriskt ta fram g‐funktioner för cirkulära borrhålsfält genom att använda detkommersiella simuleringsprogrammet COMSOL Multiphysics. Den numeriska metoden är flexibel och kananvändas för alla typer av borrhålsgeometrier. Metoden att använda COMSOL valideras delvis genom att jämföraresultatet för ett kvadratiskt borrhålsfält innehållande 36 borrhål (6x6) med lösningar framtagna med FLS och meddimensioneringsprogrammet EED (Earth Energy Designer). Det senare har sin grund i Eskilsons SBM, ett av deförsta arbeten där begreppet g‐funktion introducerades. När metoden att använda COMSOL verifierats, jämförsden kvadratiska borrhålsmodellen med en cirkulär borrhålskonfiguration, upprättad med samma metod,innehållande 3 koncentriska ringar om vardera 6, 12, 18 borrhål. Slutligen undersöks hur den termiska responsenpåverkas då borrhålen i ett cirkulärt borrhålsfält kopplas samman och grupperas i radiella zoner med olika termiskalaster. / SEEC Scandinavian Energy Efficiency Co.

Dark patterns have the ability to influence unconscious decision-making of users and manipulate them to make decisions that go against their own interests. While dark patterns have led to an increase in sales and optimization of advertisement within companies, the users are affected negatively since they don’t reach their goal with the interface interaction and may be forced to navigate in complicated interfaces or be lured into doing impulsive purchases. Despite numerous negative consequences for the users, dark patterns are frequently found in interfaces. This study investigates this problem by focusing on the UX designer’s role in this, and thereby aims to answer the following questions: What ethical responsibility does UX designers consider themselves to have, in terms of the use of dark patterns? How do UX designers experience that individual practice, organizational practice and applied ethics, according to the framework by Gray and Chivukula (2019), affect the use of dark patterns? The study also investigates if the framework completely covers the design complexity of UX designers in relation to dark patterns. These questions are answered by conducting five semi-structured interviews with professional UX designers. The results showed that organizational practice have the biggest influence on the use of dark patterns by UX designers. Individual practice may inhibit the use of dark patterns and applied ethics can affect the work style of UX designers. During the analysis of the research result, yet another factor was identified. This finding considered the structure of society as a factor greatly affecting a UX designer and also the use of dark patterns. This study therefore aims to further develop the framework by Gray and Chivukula and take the structure of society in to consideration. / Dark patterns har en förmåga att påverka användares undermedvetna beslutstaganden och manipulera användaren till att fatta beslut som går emot dennes egenintresse. Samtidigt som dark patterns har lett till ökad försäljning samt optimerade reklaminsatser hos företagen, drabbas användarna negativt då de inte uppnår målet med interaktionen och bland annat tvingas navigera i komplicerade gränssnitt eller lockas till impulsköp. Trots flertalet negativa konsekvenser för användarna är dark patterns vanligt förekommande. Den här studien undersöker denna problematik genom att fokusera på UX-designerns roll och därmed syftar studien till att besvara följande frågor. Vilket etiskt ansvar anser sig UX-designers ha kring användningen av dark patterns? Hur upplever UX-designers att individens praxis, organisationens praxis och tillämpad etik, enligt Gray och Chivukulas relationsmodell (2019), påverkar användningen av dark patterns? Studien undersöker även om relationsmodellen är heltäckande och fångar UX-designers designkomplexitet i förhållande till dark patterns. Studien besvarar dessa frågor genom fem semistrukturerade intervjuer med yrkesverksamma UX-designers. Resultatet visade att organisationens praxis (B) har störst påverkan på att UX-designers använder dark patterns. Individens praxis (A), kan istället hämma användningen av dark patterns medan inhämtad kunskap om etik (C) har påverkan på UX-designers arbetssätt. Under analysen identifierades ytterligare en huvudfaktor, samhällsstruktur, som också har stor påverkan på en UX-designer och därmed även på användningen av dark patterns. Studiens forskningsbidrag är därigenom en vidareutveckling av Gray och Chivukulas relationsmodell som tar samhällsstrukturerna i beaktande.

The overall objective of this thesis is to fill a gap in art historical research as well as in the history of women in a more general sense. The main focus is the life and work of artist Anna Berglund (1857-1946), who’s artistic practice spanned the fields of design, decorative art, calligraphy and watercolour painting. The thesis is the first attempt to conduct research into Berglund’s artistic practices. Primary sources from and about Berglund are scarce, as not much has survived the test of time in terms of personal documents such as letters, notes or diaries. Therefore, the political, social and cultural conditions of Berglund’s time and environment have complemented and contextualised the primary source material. Biographical method, archival research, and the application of sociologist Pierre Bourdieu’s field theory have formed the foundation of the thesis. In addition, the thesis is built around questions into 19th century women’s development of social networks and adaptation of strategies to navigate and establish themselves as professionals. The research show that Anna Berglund’s habitus and economic, cultural and social capital enabled her to enter and navigate the field. Furthermore, Berglund developed and adapted professional strategies to navigate the field and to build a network that enabled her to push her career forward. The nature of pattern drawing as a new and quickly expanding professional field in the late 1800s contributed and enabled Anna Berglund, as well as others, to enter, navigate and establish themselves on the field and as entrepreneurs.

This research investigates the key characteristics of design leaders in the context of New Product Development (NPD) at the Fuzzy Front End (FFE) or early stage of this process. It particularly focuses on how design leaders communicate design to non-designers. It is often observed that designers struggle to communicate design to non-designers. Previous research has identified design leaders as competent design communicators. However, the definition and key characteristics of design leaders remain unclear. By reviewing the literature on leadership studies, design leadership and project leadership, it is evident that no single universal definition of leadership exists. The most common definition is that leaders apply their knowledge and skills to conduct activities and use their traits to influence other people’s actions. Leadership requires different characteristics for different tasks. To understand the characteristics of design leaders, triangulated research was employed at a real-life NPD project involving young designers and non-designers at early stages of NPD as part of the first study. All participants (N=32) were directly observed, interviewed in semi-structured interviews and administered with assistive questionnaires to compare design and non-design participants’ leadership and communication styles. The second study was in-depth, focusing on UK design leaders (N=11) through semi-structured interviews and based on deficiencies in leadership and communicating design, identified from the first study and the literature review. Comparative studies indicate that designers and design leaders vary their attitudes towards non-designers, motivation and communication style. This study highlights the key characteristics of design leaders: an epiphany by experiencing the entire NPD process, interest in the benefits of NPD stakeholders, a good understanding of design competency, reflectively flexible working attitude and strong, active listening. Thus, a conceptual model was formulated and evaluated, able to guide designers who wish to become design leaders and help to enhance design communication and relationships with non-designers.

La littérature contient une abondance d’information sur les approches de design impliquant les utilisateurs. Bien que les chercheurs soulèvent de nombreux avantages concernant ces approches, on en sait peu sur ce que les concepteurs des entreprises en pensent. Ce projet a pour but de connaître les perceptions des concepteurs de produits quant aux outils de design participatif puis, d’identifier les opportunités et limites qu’ils évoquent à ce sujet, et finalement, de faire des suggestions d’outils qui faciliteraient l’introduction du design participatif dans un processus de design existant. Après avoir fait un survol du domaine du design participatif et de ses outils, six cas sont étudiés au moyen d’entrevues semi-dirigées conduites auprès de concepteurs de produits. Les données sont analysées à l’aide de cartes cognitives. En ce qui concerne les outils de design participatif, les participants rencontrés perçoivent un accès direct aux besoins des utilisateurs et la possibilité de minimiser les erreurs en début de processus donc, d’éviter les modifications coûteuses qu’elles auraient entraînées. Les obstacles perçus par les concepteurs sont principalement liés à la résistance au changement, à la crainte de laisser créer ou décider les utilisateurs, ainsi qu’au manque de temps et de ressources de l’équipe. Finalement, sur la base des informations collectées, nous suggérons quatre outils de design participatif qui semblent plus intéressants : l’enquête contextuelle, les sondes, les tests de prototypes et l’approche « lead user ». Pour faire suite à ce travail, il serait intéressant d’élaborer un protocole de recherche plus exhaustif pour augmenter la portée des résultats, ou encore, d’appliquer le design participatif, dans une entreprise, afin d’explorer la satisfaction des gens quant aux produits conçus, les effets collatéraux sur les équipes impliquées, l’évolution des prototypes ou le déroulement des ateliers. / Many approaches were developed to foster user involvement in design activities and the amount of data pertaining to this field is substantial. However, we know little about what designers think about these methods. This research aims at knowing how designers perceive the methods used in participatory design including the opportunities and limits they identify regarding these approaches and finally, suggest a set of tools to implement user participation in a design process. After presenting an overview of the participatory design domain and its tools, six cases are studied using semi-structured interviews with designers. Data is analysed using mind maps. Concerning participatory design tools, the designers perceive, a possible means to minimise errors in the front end of the design process thus avoiding costly changes in the end. The limits they perceive come from resistance to change and reluctance to share the creative and decisive parts of the process with users. Moreover, the lack of time and resources are reported to be a limitation by many. Finally, based on the information collected, four methods are chosen as being more interesting: contextual inquiry, probes, prototype testing and the lead user approach. Continuing this work would imply creating a more exhaustive research protocol involving more participants to extend the scope of the results or, applying participatory design and looking into people’s satisfaction towards the resulting products, collateral effects on the teams involved, prototype evolution through the process or workshops progress.

Made available in DSpace on 2014-07-29T16:27:47Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Maristela Abadia Fernandes Novaes.pdf: 1239708 bytes, checksum: f5acc60fb2c956df61fdf777aa95ec56 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2011-03-28 / In this research, I analyze a process of a teaching/learning activity in modeling on stones developed with Fashion Design students of the School of Visual Arts of The Federal University of Goiás as part of the signature Plane and Tridimensional Modeling I. This activity is intended to offer the students an opportunity to experiment and reflect on the modeling process and its relationship with support (body/stone), material and methods in the construction of clothes. The research presents a historical overview of methods for plane and Tridimensional modeling, describes the construction of pedagogical clothing objects - modeling of fabric in stones and reflects on the perceptions and meanings of this experience for future designers. The methodology used is action research, a perspective that guided the understanding and interpretation of these perceptions examining its impact and contribution to the training of designers. / Nessa pesquisa, analiso o processo de desenvolvimento de uma atividade de ensinoaprendizagem de modelagem de tecido em pedras, realizada com alunos do Curso de Design de Moda da FAV/UFG, na disciplina de Modelagem Plana e Tridimensional I. Essa atividade tem o intuito de levar o aluno a experimentar e refletir sobre o processo de modelagem e sobre relações entre suporte (corpo/pedra), material e métodos na construção de roupas. A pesquisa apresenta uma revisão histórica dos métodos de modelagem plana e tridimensional, descreve a proposta pedagógica de construção de objetos vestimentários modelagem de tecido em pedras - e reflete sobre percepções e sentidos dessa experiência para futuros designers. A metodologia usada é a pesquisa-ação, perspectiva que orientou a compreensão e interpretação destas percepções examinando sua contribuição e impactos para a formação de designers.