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.

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.

New Rapid Failure Analysis Techniques for Multilevel Metallization

MRS Bulletin ◽  
1995 ◽  
Vol 20 (11) ◽  
pp. 74-77
Author(s):  
Edward I. Cole ◽  
Richard E. Anderson
Keyword(s):  
Integrated Circuits ◽  
Product Development ◽  
Failure Analysis ◽  
New Product Development ◽  
New Product ◽  
Electronics Industry ◽  
New Techniques ◽  
Analysis Techniques ◽  
Advantages And Disadvantages ◽  
Failure Site

Open interconnections on integrated circuits (ICs) are a serious and ubiquitous problem throughout the micro-electronics industry. The efforts to understand the mechanisms responsible for producing open interconnections and to develop analytical methods to localize them demonstrate the concern manufacturers have for this problem. Multiple layers of metallization not only increase the probability that an open conductor or via will occur because of the increased number of interconnections and vias but also increase the difficulty in localizing the site of the failure because upper layers may mask the failure site.Rapid failure analysis of open-conductor defects is critical in new product development and reliability assessment of ICs where manufacturing and product development delays can cost millions of dollars a day. In this article, we briefly review some standard failure analysis approaches and then concentrate on new techniques to rapidly locate open-conductor defects that would have been difficult or impossible to identify using earlier methods. Each method is described in terms of the physics of signal generation, application, and advantages and disadvantages when compared to existing methods.

scholarly journals APPLICATION OF COMPUTER MODELING POSSIBILITIES IN THE STUDY OF PHYSICAL MODELS

2021 ◽  
pp. 25-34
Author(s):  
Pavlo Kindrat ◽  
Ihor Voitovych ◽  
Vladimir Mashchenko
Keyword(s):  
Physics Education ◽  
Mathematical Problem ◽  
Computer Models ◽  
Ideal Gas ◽  
Educational Process ◽  
Physical Models ◽  
Professional Activities ◽  
Advantages And Disadvantages ◽  
Virtual Laboratories ◽  
Physical Phenomena

The advantages and disadvantages of using a virtual laboratory and computer models in the educational process in physics are identified. The expediency of using virtual laboratories and computer models in the context of mixed physics education is substantiated. To teach future physics teachers to create and use computer models of physical phenomena and processes is carried out in a professionally oriented author's course "Methods of using computer technology in professional activities." The stages of development of a physical model for the formulation of a mathematical problem are described and the implementation on the example of development and use of the program "Dynamic model of an ideal gas" is shown.

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.

scholarly journals CROWDSOURCING: A STRATEGY FOR FIRM PERFORMANCE IN THE PLASTIC MANUFACTURING SECTOR IN SOUTHEAST NIGERIA

2021 ◽  
Vol 3 (7) ◽  
pp. 228-236
Author(s):  
Agbasi Emmanuela Obianuju ◽  
Nwosu Kanayo Chike ◽  
Dibua Emmanuel Chijioke
Keyword(s):  
Firm Performance ◽  
Product Development ◽  
New Product Development ◽  
Manufacturing Sector ◽  
Idea Generation ◽  
New Product ◽  
Manufacturing Firms ◽  
Manufacturing Companies ◽  
Open Collaboration ◽  
Product Creation

The heavy reliance of manufacturing firms in the south-eastern part of Nigeria on their team of experts in Research and Development (R & D), to come up with new ideas and innovation, and the neglect of the input of customers in this process necessitated this study to examine the nexus between crowdsourcing and firm performance in the plastic manufacturing sector in southeast Nigeria.  The work was anchored on the Human Capital Theory. The study adopted a survey research design as the most suited for the work. Two states were selected judgmentally, because of the concentration of plastic manufacturing firms in those States. Eighteen plastic manufacturing firms were selected randomly, with a population strength of 328. The sample size was 176, arrived at using Krejcie and Morgan formula. Questionnaire was the instrument for data collection, and it was subjected to content validity and reliability tests using correlation method, which returned a coefficient of 0.879. The data collected were analyzed using regression analysis through the ordinary least square method, at a 5% level of significance. Findings revealed that a positive relationship exists between the variables (r = .973). A 95% change in new product development was accounted for by changes in open collaboration in the plastic manufacturing sector in Southeast Nigeria (R2 = .947, F = 2802.884, p-value < 0.05). The study, therefore, concluded that involving customers in the process of new product creation is key to its acceptability by the public. As a result, it was recommended that the managers and owners of plastic manufacturing companies need to find a way to get the customers involved in their idea generation and new product creation for a sustained creditable performance.  Keywords: Crowdsourcing, Firm Performance, Plastic Manufacturing Sector, Open Collaboration and New Product Development.

Influence of customer participation in new product development: the moderating role of social media

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sonica Rautela ◽  
Sarika Sharma ◽  
Shreya Virani
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Product Development ◽  
New Product Development ◽  
Structural Equation ◽  
Idea Generation ◽  
New Product ◽  
Business Environment ◽  
Customer Participation ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Three Phases

PurposeThe business environment is changing and so are the rules of doing business. Constant innovation is the key to win in this dynamic marketplace, so that the new ideas get converted into new marketable products quickly with the least possible mistake. One way to inculcate innovation is by the participation of customers in the new product development (NPD) process. Platforms like social media has provided an opportunity for firms to communicate, co-create and collaborate with customers. The present study aims to understand the customers' participation in three phases, namely idea generation, development and commercialization of the NPD process for its effectiveness.Design/methodology/approachWith the help of review of existing literature, a theoretical model is proposed. This model is then empirically evaluated with data of 213 respondents using structural equation modelling (SEM). The respondents are majorly young social media users in India.FindingsThe results highlight that customer involvement is important in idea generation and commercialization phase of NPD process for its effectiveness. Also, the effectiveness of NPD process affects the financial performance of the firm. The use of social media is considered for its mediating role in NPD process effectiveness during the three phases. The results show that it has an effective role to play during the idea generation phase.Originality/valueConsumers’ perspective concerning usage of social media for their participation in NPD is an unexplored area in general and in the Indian context in particular. To fill this research gap the present study is carried out.

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.

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