AIDA (analysis of interconnected decision areas) Method used to understand how one design decision affects the options available to other decisions in a large-scale project.
Alpha prototype An alpha prototype (also commonly referred to as a proof of principle model) is the initial attempt to evaluate some aspect of the intended design without trying to exactly simulate the visual appearance, choice of materials, or intended manufacturing process. Such prototypes are used to identify which design concepts are worth pursuing and where further development and testing are required.
Analogical thinking The transfer of an idea from one context to a new one.
Anthropometric data Anthropometry, literally meaning “measurement of humans,” refers to the measurement of the human body for the purposes of understanding human physical variation. This data is collected and updated regularly and plays a vital role in establishing the ergonomic requirements for products, clothes, and architecture.
Appearance model Models or visual prototypes that aim to capture the intended design aesthetic of the product, simulating the appearance, color, and surface textures but not the functional attributes of the final product. These appearance models are suitable for use in market research, design approval, packaging mock-ups, and photoshoots for marketing literature.
Attribute listing A technique to help designers determine what problems a design must address. By listing the different attributes the final design must achieve, designers can evaluate different concepts against these criteria.
Axonometric projection A commonly used type of orthographic projection, used to create a pictorial drawing of an object, where the object is rotated along one or more of its axes relative to the plane of projection, to enable the viewer to see the object from a number of viewpoints.
Bar stock plastic Standard profiles of plastic bars commonly manufactured.
Base view The technical drawing term used to describe the view of an object from directly below it.
Beta prototypes A beta prototype, also known as a functional or working prototype, is a physical model that attempts to simulate the final design, aesthetics, materials, and functionality of a designer’s intended product. The construction of a fully working full-scale prototype is the ultimate test of concept, and enables designers and engineers to check for any design flaws and make last-minute improvements before larger production runs are ordered.
Blob architecture Blob architecture, Blobitecture, and Blobism are terms used to describe a movement in architecture that began in the mid-1990s, in which the buildings display an organic, fluid form that takes advantages of the creative possibilities of advanced computer modeling software.
Blobject A product featuring smooth flowing curves, bright colors and an absence of sharp edges. The term has been used to describe the work of 1990s designers such as Karim Rashid, and products such as the original Apple iMac.
Bodystorming A participatory design method for demonstrating or developing ideas in a physical setting. Team members explore ideas and interactions physically, often using props to give a sense of place and context.
CAD (computer-aided design) The use of computer software and technology for the design of real or virtual products. As in the manual drafting of technical and engineering drawings, CAD does not merely show the form of an object but enables designers to convey symbolic information such as materials, processes, dimensions, and tolerances, according to application-specific conventions.
CAM (computer-aided manufacture) The use of computer-based software tools that assist designers and engineers in manufacturing or prototyping product components and tooling.
Capability assessment This universal design technique enables designers to evaluate products or concepts by breaking down how they are used into a series of activities and then comparing the physical and cognitive capability levels required to use them.
Capability simulator Devices used by designers to help them empathize with those who have capability losses such as vision, hearing, or mobility. While these devices offer designers a greater insight into how people might use their products, they are no replacement for talking to users with different capabilities.
Casting The manufacturing process by which a liquid material such as metal or clay is poured into a mold that contains a hollow cavity of the desired shape and is then allowed to solidify, creating the desired form.
Chip forming The inclusive term for machine tools such as lathes, drills, grinders, and milling machines.
Composites Engineered materials made from two or more constituent materials with significantly different physical or chemical properties.
Concurrent design The management method of simultaneously working on the design, engineering, manufacturing, and other requirements of a product to help bring it to market more quickly and efficiently.
Consumer durable A manufactured product that has a relatively long useful life, such as a car or a television.
Consumable A product for personal, family or household use.
Control drawing A drawing, or more commonly a CAD file, which details the aspects of a product over which the designer has control, such as the form, aesthetics, color, texture, and finish.
Convergent thinking Thinking that brings together information focused on solving problem.
Cradle to cradle design A model of design that aims to create systems and products that are not merely efficient but waste-free.
Cradle to grave design Also known as life cycle assessment, this is the investigation and evaluation of the environmental impact of a given product or service from its birth and manufacture through its lifetime and to its final disposal.
Creative product design Product design that involves designers working in a creative manner to produce innovative designs.
Cutting The term used to describe machine tools such as a milling machine that remove material from a solid block of material.
Divergent thinking Method used to generate creative ideas by exploring many possible solutions, enabling the generation of multiple ideas in a spontaneous, free-flowing nature.
Ductility The extent to which materials can be deformed plastically without fracturing.
Elastomer A material such as rubber, which has the ability to return to its original shape once a load is removed.
Elevation The term used to describe a projected view of an object from the side.
Embossing The process of producing raised or sunken designs in sheet materials.
Ergonomist Someone who applies scientific data relating to humans to the design of products, systems, and environments.
Ethnographer Someone who scientifically explores and describes specific human cultures and activities.
Exclusion audit A universal design method used to evaluate different products or concepts by comparing the proportion of the population that will be unable to use them.
Experience prototype Simulations and models used to investigate and reveal the quality of the experience being designed. Experience prototypes can be “quick and dirty” to obtain feedback on a specific design concept, or highly crafted solutions for in-depth usability evaluation.
Exploded view A drawing that communicates how various components are assembled by illustrating how they relate to each other.
Forming The manufacturing term for molding, shaping, and bending materials.
Fusion welding A group of processes that bond metal together by heating a portion of each piece above the melting point and causing them to flow together and bond.
GA (general arrangement) drawing A drawing that describes the final layout and dimensions of a product. All of the required detail, tooling, and assembly engineering drawings required for production are coordinated with reference to the GA.
Galvanizing The metallurgic process of coating steel with zinc to prevent corrosion.
Hard skills Key technical skills, such as drawing and modeling, that a designer requires.
Industrial equipment product Products used within a factory such as robotic assembly arms.
Industrial plant Machines and equipment used in industry such as air conditioning units.
Industry product A product designed solely for industrial use and not for use by consumers.
Informance An “informative performance” is a method of role-playing that enables designers to communicate observations collected previously to others.
Injection molding The manufacturing process for producing parts from both thermoplastic and thermosetting plastic materials. Plastic is fed into a heated barrel, mixed, and forced into a mold cavity, where it cools and hardens to the configuration of the mold cavity. Injection molding is widely used for manufacturing a variety of parts in high volumes, from the smallest component to entire body panels of cars.
Isometric drawing A non-perspective method of pictorially representing an object. Elevations are constructed using a 30-degree set square.
Isotropic A material with physical properties that are uniform in all directions.
Joining The universal term for bonding, fixing, connecting, and gluing materials and components together.
Malleability A material’s ability to deform under compressive stress such as the ability to form a thin sheet by hammering or rolling.
Matrix evaluation A quantitative technique used by designers to evaluate their concepts by ranking designs against set criteria.
Metric (of a PDS) Each element of a PDS has both a metric and a value. The metric is any element that can be measured; for example, the weight or length of a piece of kit in a product.
Mock-up A form of prototype or model that simulates an object, experience, or environment.
Modernism Describes both a period and movement in the history of design, starting with Bauhaus in the 1920s, and the minimalist machine aesthetic that continues to influence designers today.
Morphological chart A problem-solving technique used for addressing complex, non-quantifiable problems.
molds (in casting) A hollowed-out form that is filled with a liquid such as plastic, glass, metal, or ceramic slurry. The liquid hardens or sets inside the mold, adopting its shape. A release agent is typically used to ease the removal of the hardened/set substance from the mold.
NDA (non-disclosure agreement) A legal contract between at least two parties that outlines confidential material, knowledge, or information that the parties wish to share with one another for certain purposes, but wish to restrict access to by third parties. An NDA creates a confidential relationship between the parties to protect any type of confidential and proprietary information or trade secrets.
Neo-Modernism The aesthetic revival of Modernist design that began in the 1990s.
Oblique drawing A non-perspective method of pictorially representing an object, where the side and top views of an object are tacked on to the front elevation.
Orthographic drawing The engineering drawing method of representing 3D objects on 2D paper. A plan and two adjacent elevations of an object are projected and then unfolded so that they lie on the same plane.
Pairwise comparison method A method of evaluating products where each concept or design is matched head to head with each of the other candidates. Each alternative is scored against the other, with the design receiving the most points being declared the preferred direction.
Paper prototypes Models constructed from cardboard during the initial stages of the design process that are used to quickly resolve issues such as scale and graphics.
Patents A set of exclusive rights granted by a national government to an inventor of a demonstrably novel idea for a limited period of time in exchange for a public disclosure of an invention. Patents offer protection and the opportunity for the inventor or their assignee to have the rights to commercially exploit the idea.
PDS (Product Design Specification) A detailed briefing document that outlines all the requirements for a new product.
Perspective drawing The approximate representation of a 3D object, on a flat 2D piece of paper, as it is perceived by the eye.
Plan (in plans and elevations) The projected view from directly above an object.
Planned obsolescence The process of a product becoming obsolete and perceived by consumers as non-functional after a certain period of time or use in a way that is planned or designed by the manufacturer. This process has been widely criticized, as it enables manufacturers to encourage sales of new products by creating an irrational desire for new products, despite there being substantial life left in the old products.
Post-Modernism A 1970s and 1980s design movement and aesthetic marked by the re-emergence of surface ornament, historical reference in decorative forms, and playful rejection of Modernist dogma.
Product liability The area of law in which designers, manufacturers, distributors, suppliers, retailers, and others who make products available to the public are held responsible for the injuries those products cause.
Projection symbol The symbol that communicates whether a set of drawings has been drawn in first or third angle.
Proof of principle models A proof of principle model, also known as an alpha model, is the initial attempt to evaluate some aspect of the intended design without attempting to exactly simulate the visual appearance, choice of materials or intended manufacturing process. Such models are used to identify which design concepts are worth pursuing and where further development and testing are required.
Prototype A physical model that represents the aesthetic and/or functional attributes of a design, enabling the designer to evaluate these attributes and refine them during the design process.
Rapid prototyping The automatic construction of 3D objects using additive computer-aided manufacturing technology.
Ready-made products Already manufactured objects that are used as components to create new designs.
Relative importance survey A method of determining the importance of design criteria.
Rendering The term used to describe a visual colored representation of an object, either a hand rendering of an object using pens, pencils, and pastels, or a rendered CAD image of a wireframe drawing.
Rod stock plastic Standard profiles of plastic rods commonly manufactured.
Routine product design Everyday non-challenging design.
Scenario modeling The method of creating a scenario in which a design concept will be used.
Scenario testing The method of evaluating an imagined scenario.
Schematic sketches Drawings that illustrate how a design may work and/or have its internal mechanical components arranged.
Section The term used to describe a slice through an object to illustrate a profile or interior detail not apparent from a plan view or elevation. Complex forms require multiple sections to accurately represent them.
Sketch model A simply and quickly made representation of an idea in three dimensions.
Soft skills The term used to describe the personal and intellectual skills required of a designer, such as empathy and creativity.
Solid modelers A CAD system that produces a complete 3D model of a product or component that can be cut, weighed, and checked for interferences with other objects. This is in contrast to a surface modeler, which provides only the external appearance of an object.
Solid state welding A series of processes, in which two components are joined under pressure and at a temperature below the melting point of the parent material.
Special purpose product A specific design solution to a specific design problem that is not for universal use or consumption.
Stereolithography An additive manufacturing rapid prototyping process for producing models, prototypes, and, in some cases, production parts. Stereolithography uses a vat of liquid UV-curable photopolymer resin and a UV laser to build parts one layer at a time.
Storyboard Storyboards use a series of illustrations or images displayed in sequence for the purpose of pre-visualizing a sequential story or activity.
Surface modeler A surface modeler provides a mock-up of the external appearance of a product.
Synectics Synectics is a commonly used group problem-solving technique that starts with brainstorming ideas before participants develop clear sets of actions through the use of analogies.
Test rig An engineering prototype devised to test a specific physical or functional task.
Thematic sketches Drawings that explore how a proposed design may look.
Thermoplastics A polymer that melts when heated. Unlike a thermoset, it can be reheated and remolded.
Thermosets A polymer that is cured through heat or chemical reaction to create a stronger form. Once cured, thermosets cannot be reheated and remolded, unlike thermoplastics.
Title block The technical drawing term for the graphical box on a drawing that contains details, such as what the drawing is of, what it relates to, who it is for, who it has been drawn by, and when it was drawn.
Tools (in casting) The universal term used to describe a machined mold used to manufacture components.
Top view The technical drawing term used to describe the view of an object from directly above it.
Trademark A distinctive sign or indicator such as a name, word, phrase, logo, symbol, design, or image used by an individual, business organization, or other legal entity to identify that the products or services to consumers with which the trademark appears originate from a unique source, and to distinguish its products or services from those of other entities.
Triple bottom line A method of describing the social and environmental impact of an organization’s activities, in a measurable way, to its economic performance in order to show improvement or to make evaluation more in-depth.
Vacuum forming A process of forming sheets of thermoplastic to create complex forms. The sheet is heated to a forming temperature, stretched onto or into a single-surface mold, and held against the mold by applying a vacuum between the mold surface and the sheet, to create the finished component.
Value (of a PDS) The benefit of knowing exactly what you are trying to achieve during the design process.
Variant product design Design that replicates the general function and form of a successful product, and merely alters it in a minor way to widen consumer choice.