The integration of users' perception in the design process is and important challenge for the optimization of products. This study describes how design recommendations can be drawn, from a perceptual experiment with a panel of subjects using a multi-objective interactive genetic algorithm (IGA). The application concerns the bi-objective optimization of the unpleasantness and the detectability of sounds for electric vehicles (EV). After a description of the experimental protocol for the assessment of the detectability and the unpleasantness of EV sounds (listening test), a set of optimal sounds (Pareto efficient) is defined with an IGA experiment. The analysis of these sounds, based on a probabilistic analysis of the selection process, leads to the definition of design recommendations. A second listening test, involving recommended sounds but also other design proposals, allows an evaluation of the validity of the approach. Results show that the sounds recommended obtain interesting performance, in particular to improve the detectability of EV sounds.

A posteriori novelty metrics are often used in design research, in order to extract important information about creativity. However, different assessment approaches can be found in the literature, each of them with related pros and cons. In particular, weighted uncommonness, overall uncommonness and uncommonness across groups are the three main families of a-posteriori novelty metrics identified in this paper. Each of the considered literature metrics can provide specific types of information about the uncommonness of ideas, but in certain experimental circumstances, it could be difficult to rapidly identify the best-suited approach. This paper proposes an integrated procedure where the advantages offered by the three families of metrics can be applied concurrently. A generic case study is used for a first application of the proposal, and the obtained results show that a more comprehensive set of information about a-posteriori novelty can be extracted. In particular, novelty data from the three families of metrics are extracted in a single assessment process.

The approach of functional integration has the potential to solve challenges regarding lightweight design and resource efficiency since the number of parts and therefore the weight and needed installation space can be reduced. One important step in developing integrative concepts is the pre-selection of suitable functions or components. Previous methods of pre-selection take various aspects into account. However, pre-selection based on these methods usually requires additional tables and forms, whose preparation and editing quickly becomes time-consuming. At the same time, most of the development engineers are working on CAD models. However, their use in the selection of suitable integration partners is not yet supported sufficiently. The development of more than 80 concepts on five different vehicles has shown that the consideration of geometric properties (position, orientation, size) is effective, as they can be identified with minimal analysis effort while working on CAD. In this paper a four-step procedure is presented how integration partners can be identified directly on the basis of CAD models. A following evaluation with development engineers in practice completes the research.

A reference process should consider to the needs and behaviours of the process users, as well as all relevant restrictions and boundary conditions within the company and its environment. Therefore, this contribution provides a method to synthesize relevant requirements on reference processes and supports the consideration of these requirements during the design of a new, company-specific reference process based on meta-models. The developed method was used to design a reference process for automotive predevelopment projects and its applicability and usefulness was evaluated successfully.

Novel IoT market solutions and research promise IoT modules that do not require programming or electrical setup, yet shop floor personnel need to face problem solving activities to create technical solutions. This paper introduces the Karakuri card deck and presents a case study composed of four workshop sessions in four manufacturing settings, where shop floor personnel tested the cards as a means of ideating and presenting conceptual IoT solutions in the form of diagrams. The results indicate the validity of the proposed conceptual solutions and suggest prototyping as a next step.

In the domain of optical engineering, optomechatronic systems are predominantly developed using conventional ray tracing methods such as sequential and non-sequential ray tracing. However, the increasing complexity of these systems in combination with the demand for high efficiency and high image quality leads to the fact that conventional methods to develop these systems reach their limits. In order to be able to develop highly efficient systems with high image quality, this contribution introduces a hybrid ray tracing method using an advanced optimization function.

Information collection may affect the design quality and designer's performance through changing the structure of information and the way how information is searched and organized. Based on the theoretical analysis conducted by Wang et al., the present work continues to investigate the influence of designer's natural choice of information collection strategy on his/her mental stress both theoretically and empirically. Designers’ stresses are quantified from HRV data and are compared under different information collection strategies.

As the society is already permeated by data, a data-driven approach to inform design for sustainable behaviour can help to identify misbehaviours and target sustainable behaviours to achieve, as well as to select and implement the most suitable design strategies to promote a behavioural change and monitor their effectiveness. This work addresses the open challenge of providing designers with a model for Human-Machine Interactions (HMI) that helps to identify relevant data to collect for inferring user behaviour related to environmental sustainability during product use.

We propose a systematic modelling framework that combines constructs from existing representation techniques to identify the most critical variables for resources consumption, which are the determinants of potential misbehaviours related to HMI. The analysis is represented as a Behaviour-Inefficiency Model that graphically supports the analyst/designer to link user behaviours with a quantitative representation of resources consumption.

The paper describes the model through an example of the use of a kettle and an additional application of the same approach to a washing machine, in order to point out its versatility for modelling more complex interactions.

An ageing population leading to more chronic disease is straining healthcare systems. This paper makes two core contributions to healthcare systems design research: Firstly, a systemic techno-behavioural approach is presented to support intervention design with value-effective health outcomes. The systemic techno-behavioural perspective takes into consideration the interaction between three angles: The current healthcare system in place, the technological opportunities for addressing an issue and a broader and deeper understanding of the behaviour of those involved. The purpose of considering these three angels is to create interventions that are more robust. This will help inform healthcare systems design researchers and other stakeholders. Secondly, it is proposed that interventions should be grounded in behavioural theory, a collection of theories are presented to be incorporated in the design process of interventions. The systemic techno-behavioural approach is applied to dementia care highlighting the need to understand the dynamic relationship between the context of the current healthcare delivery system, technology, and behaviour to improve quality of care during the progression of the disease.

More than ever, the ability to quickly and effectively shape ideas in a 3D environment is essential for industrial designers and with the rise of XR technology, a shift from traditional, screen-based CAD to VR-based CAD could improve time to market and personal effectiveness for product designers. In this study, this shift is assessed from a user experience perspective. Ten professional product developers are asked to design respirator masks. The experiment takes place in the Gravity Sketch VR app, using a HTC Vive Pro HMD. The participants are observed, surveyed and interviewed regarding different parameters on their experience. Participants experienced VR Aided Design as quick and intuitive. They personally felt performant and they enjoyed the process. As of now, VRAD is not seen as an alternative to neither sketching nor CAD. Instead, new users experience it being a new tool that can be positioned either parallel to or in between ideation sketching, clay modeling and detailed CAD design. Lastly, this paper includes a preliminary look at a VR Stylus for virtual reality aided design.

In automotive industry, the design process is costly and time-consuming. Car safety is a crucial factor in the development of a vehicle, which is why crash simulation is an essential step in the design process. To improve car crash simulation analysis, it is necessary to reduce the time required and support the resolution of encountered design issues. We propose a knowledge management approach to support car crash simulation analysis and ensure the collaboration of different stakeholders. In a knowledge-intensive context, we used an ontology-based approach to formalise and capture knowledge.

In solution-driven BID (sol-BID) a challenge is to identify suited applications that will benefit from the solutions principles found in nature. A well-known example of sol-BID is the self-cleaning lotus plant, that has inspired lotus paint and other coating methods. However, sol-BID is often performed by biologists with insight into the biological strategy and organism and typically only little knowledge of technical applications and design methodology. Searching for applications is therefore a challenge to many. Sol-BID has many things in common with technical application search where new applications are sought for a specific production technology or another competence characterizing a company. Experiences from technical application search could therefore form a valuable input for how to perform sol-BID. The paper presents two case studies of application search and proposes a procedure to be used in solution driven BID.

The bottom of the pyramid (BoP) consists of 1.4 billion people living less than 1.25 USD per day. Fulfilling unmet needs of BoP people involves the design of products as a main activity. Designing products for the BoP faces two main problems. First, there is a general lack of understanding of the needs of users and second, traditional design methods may be limited in addressing the BoP context. Frugal innovation is positioned as a very interesting approach with the potential to adequately respond to the design challenges of the products for the BoP. However, studies in engineering design based on frugal innovation are still limited. In response to these issues, through an analysis and review of the literature, an exploratory mapping of the proposals in frugal innovation and the characteristics of the BoP was conducted. On the basis of the results, this paper defines a set of eight frugal criteria design and an identification of three dimensions that characterize a BoP context and two roles of BoP people. Finally, an association of BoP dimensions and roles with the key criteria of frugal design is proposed.

With an increasing demand for product individualisation leading to increased product architecture complexity and -costs, modular kits are one common measure to cope with this issue. The management of such a modular kit as well as the methodical determination of a specific product variant is key to the manufacturer's success. As multiple influence factors need to be taken into account when configuring product variants, we propose a multi-dimensional geometric optimisation algorithm, allowing for prioritising varying customer demands and thereby determining the ideally balanced product variant.

Novel products are commonly realized by integrating heterogeneous technologies. Product architecting focus on defining the scheme by which the product functions are allocated to physical components. A DSM-based clustering method that integrates technical complexity and strategic concerns has previously been proposed. It has been shown that interaction weights in the DSM may affect the clustering result. A complexity-based interaction strength model to be used in DSM clustering is proposed here. The case study gives promising results from both interaction performance and safety points of view.

In testing and simulation departments in product development (PD) data types, data structures and data storage are often very different. Exchange of data and information is normally not automated and often not supported by management systems. This can lead to loss of time and information. A literature study in combination with 20 expert interviews and the analysis of documents as well as data storage structures and IT systems in a PD department of a motorcycle manufacturer were performed. Test and simulation processes were classified and standardized, documentation formats analyzed, standards in Test Data Management (TDM) and Simulation Data Management (SDM) as well as verification and validation processes compared. IT support in SDM is better than in TDM. An integration of TDM and SDM could lead to improved collaboration between testing and simulation departments. Options for this integration could be specific ontologies, object-oriented interfaces, a higher-level intermediate application, use of a common standard or integration of one standard into another one.

Augmented Reality seems a promising tool to provide engaging and effective educational experiences, thanks to its potentiality in stimulating intrinsic motivation, that could influence the learning process and the attitude of the users towards behaviours. This paper presents the Resized Plastic Augmented Reality learning experience, designed on the basis of Dunleavy's framework to provide a systemic overview of the microplastics issue to allow users to understand its mechanisms, educate them about their role in the system and help them to connect this information to their everyday actions.

Aviation strives today to include environmental and social considerations as drivers for decision making in design. This paper proposes a serious game to raise awareness of the value and cost implications of being ‘sustainability compliant’ when developing aerospace sub-systems and components. After describing the development of the game, from needfinding to prototyping and testing, the paper discusses the results from verification activities with practitioners, revealing the ability of the game to raise sustainability awareness and support negotiation across disciplinary boundaries in design.

This study examines the relationship between the product structuring principles chosen in modular product families and the business results of companies. In the three case studies of the article, it can be seen that products that meet the modularity definitions discussed in the literature have been able to utilise the benefits of modularity in a very varied way. In one business case, the effect of modularity on business has been negative. In two other cases, the effect has been positive - in one of these even the profitability of the business has significantly improved. The aim of this article is to identify whether product designing consistently has been following some product structuring principles previously mentioned in modularisation literature or whether case studies bring new principles to consciousness. In all case studies, the product structuring principles used are also discussed in the previous modularisation studies at a varying extent. In the discussion section, we raise the question of whether the recording and use of product structuring principles in design briefs could lead to making the product design decisions that affect the business positively.

Service design has been an emerging transdisciplinary field that includes product, system, and social science, since the term was first introduced to academic research in the early 1990s. With socioeconomical shifts and emerging technologies, people have faced more complex and systemic challenges, which enable researchers to consider how to reapply service design not only as problem-solving tools but also as ways for communication and alignment to adapt to the change. The study focuses on the paradigm shifts of service from its definitions to applications by interviewing nine design experts from academia and industry, and utilizing survey results to help us explore applying service design to solve complicated social-technological challenges. We present four takeaways: 1) a new understanding of service design, 2) the purpose of using service design tools, 3) the evaluation of service quality through time, and 4) the applications of service design in the public sector. We proposed a macro-trend model with service systems: product, service, and experience to conclude 1) constructing service systems in the macro-trend context and 2) gaining holistic views and building service implementation capability in the era of transformations.