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10.09.2003

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10.09.2006

August, 3, 2006

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A-1: Dyson “Animal” vacuum cleaner

A-2: Bang & Olufsen “BeoSound 9000”

A-3: Orange-X Ojex Household Juicer

A-4: Nike Triax Sport Watch

A-5: Michael Graves’ 2-Slice Toaster

A-6: “Leather Leap” Chair (Steelcase)

A-7: OrangeX Commercial juicer

A-8: Apple products

A-9: Yoplait

A-10: Black and Decker Mouse Sander

A-11: Ludwig Mies Van der Rohe (1927)

A-12:

Definition

Key points

Form - Differentiating Elements

Novelty

A form that deviates from the prototypical form in the consumer’s mind.

If one were to ask 100 consumers to draw a coffee mug and take an average of all the shapes, this would represent a prototypical cup. Novelty would represent deviations from this prototypical object.

Anti-prototypicality

A form that deliberately runs opposite to the prototypical object

This is an extreme form of novelty. The design goes opposite to the prototypical shape. An example would be the top down shape of Yoplait Products. (See Appendix A-9)

Quality and performance Cues

Shapes and materials that send signals of quality and performance.

Certain shapes (sharp edges, curved edges) and/or materials (wood, leather) can send signals suggesting the quality and performance of the product.

Form – Emotive Elements

“High design”

A product that places derives considerable consumer value from form elements over functional factors

High design products evoke a sense of “style” and provide significant emotional benefits. The Bang and Olufsen stereo is targeted towards consumers who not only want to hear good quality music but also want a music system with a highly refined sense of style.

Transparent functionality

Forms that allows the user to see the inner workings of the product.

One of the participants of our study described the commercial variety of OrangeX (Appendix A-7) as a “conversation piece.” Curiosity in humans urges us to explore “how things work”. Design that shows the inner components of products have been always popular.

Geometric vs. organic forms

Organic forms employ curved natural forms when compared to the more “sharp edges” oriented unnatural Geometric form.

Organic forms try to “mimic” the curved shapes of objects (usually animate) around us. Geometric product are grounded more in scientific theory and shapes. These shapes are usually associated with sharp edges. As is evident from the juicers in A-7 and A-3, the household juicer is organic versus the commercial variety which is more geometric.

Form – Connecting elements

Design language

These are product design strategies that consistently maintain a form across product categories. The goal here is to build brand recognition without the use of logo’s or brand names.

Appendix A-8 presents items from Apple’s product line. One doesn’t have to see the apple logo to identify that it is an Apple product. Remember the first time you saw the iPod (i.e. without any prior knowledge), how you could say it was an Apple product!

Brand identifiers

These are specific designs that help in brand recognition.

The grills of a BMW help us identify the brand even though it may appear on different products (SUV or a Car)

Human Product Interface - Work

Ergonomics/human factors

The ergonomics society defines this area as the application of scientific information concerning humans to the design of objects, systems and environment for human use.

This is a very broad term and has many dimensions associated with it. A sound ergonomic design is warranted in products that have high human product interaction (chairs) or with products that have low interaction but have high risk associated with it (airplane controls, medical equipments).

Functional aesthetic

Paul Rand drawing from the works of the 18th century design philosopher Jan Tschichold defines functional aesthetic as the symbiosis between form and function. (Rand; 1985)

This approach resolves the historical view that form and function are mutually exclusive. This means that products can posses of high levels of both form and function. Tschichold asserted that a functional design is necessarily an attractive design. The Mouse Sander (Appendix A-10) not only satisfies the functional requirements but also is aeshthetically appealing. Hence drawing an agreeable balance between these seemingly conflicting objectives.

Human Product Interface – Communication / feedback

Intuitive operation

Designs that enable novice user to fully operate the product quickly without outside instruction

The handle on the OrangeX (Appendix A – 3) juicer prompts the consumer to pull the lever down. This is the only part of the product that intuitively triggers this reaction.

Sensory cues

Designs which employ feedback cues that indicate to the user the proper functioning of the product.

The Dyson vacuum cleaner (Appendix A – 1) employs a series of clicks to help the user understand the proper assembly and usage of the product

Function – Stand Alone

Effectiveness

Products that produce a decided, decisive, or desired result.

The effectiveness of products can be measured in terms of the results they provide. For example in the world of distal protection devices (medical devices,) the Angioguard™ is clinically proven to offer better protection than the Guardrwire™ in reducing Adverse Cardiac Events, based on the better design of the filter versus the cup.

Reliability

Products that give the same result on successive trials irrespective of time.

If products perform functions the way consumers want it to perform every time they use it (irrespective of external conditions), consumers will perceive the product to be more reliable.

Durability

Products that are able to exist for a long time without significant deterioration

Long lasting products are typically preferred to less lasting products.

Safety

Products those are able to provide a sense of security from threat of danger, harm, or loss, in their use.

Safety especially in high risk items is crucial in consumer choice. In recent years lawn mover manufacturers have introduced devices that stop the blades from spinning, if the handle is released.

Multifunctionality

Products those are able to perform more than one function.

Products that are multifunctional are generally preferred to products with lower functionality, however multifunctional with reduced ease of use may not be desirable. Consumers tend to get confused if there are multiple controls. In recent years mobile phones and PDA’s have epitomized multifuntionality, just based on the number of tasks they are capable of doing.

Function – Product Line

Functional Compatibility

Products those are able to function together with other products within their category and across brands.

Dewalt portable tools use battery packs that are interchangeable across products. The level of compatibility increases if the products can be used with other brands too. The HP printers are usually compatible to both Windows based machines and Macintosh machines. If they are not compatible, they can be made compatible by installing drivers that are available free of cost.

Modular product architecture

Modular products are products that fulfill various functions through the combination of distinct modules. (Kreng and Lee; 2004)

Modular product architecture aims to facilitate design and assembly with building block components and sub-assemblies. This modular or building block design should minimize the number of part or assembly variants early in the design process while allowing for greater product variation late in the process during final designing stages. This approach minimizes the total number of designs to be manufactured, thereby reducing inventory and improving quality. Many Mobile Phone designers use modular designs to produce new models in every few months.

Holistic Effects- Cognitive Appeal

Cognitive Appeal

The ability of the product to appeal to the consumer based on the various non affective appeals or benefits that the product presents to the consumer.

The consumer puts together various aspects of product design and functional benefits holistically and processes information to make an evaluation of the product. In Other word

Complexity vs. minimalism

The perception of the consumer about how complicated or uncomplicated the product is.

Complexity increases uncertainty in a consumer that usually results in a negative affect. However some consumers are open to complexity if, they can customize the product to their liking. Many consumers liked the Steelcase chair (Appendix A-6) even though it was confusing and complex to use. They mentioned that if they could adjust to their comfort, they would prefer the chair to the less complex and easy to use generic chair.

Quality perceptions

The perception of the consumer about the degree of excellence (e.g. performance, durability etc.) in the product.

Through the use of materials, shape, sheer weight certain products exude an overall sense of superiority, durability and performance.

Performance Expectations

The sheer effect of superficial design on the consumer’s perception of performance of the product.

The see through dirt collector of the Dyson Vacuum cleaner suggests a higher cleaning performance as the consumer can actually see the dirt being collected.

Sense of harmony / cohesiveness

The extent to which the parts of the product fit together tightly as a whole.

This is endogenous to the product. Do the various components of the product fit together well? The Ludwig Mies Van der Rohe (Appendix A-11) chair conveys a sense of harmony and cohesiveness among the various steel bars that go into making the product. It evokes the harmony of a paper clip design.

Aesthetic compatibility

Capable of existing together and having a natural fit with surrounding objects

Consumer’s choice of products often depends on the items that would be in its surroundings. Designers at the Hunter Fan company routinely in scour through interior decoration magazine to capture trends and to incorporate them in the fan blades and body.

Holistic Effects - Affective Appeal

Zeitgeists

The general intellectual, moral, and cultural climate of an era.

Cars from the sixties and seventies are associated with large fins and in general large sizes. The general intellectual, moral and cultural climate endorsed large sized products.

Temporality

The extent to which the product design is bound by time concepts such futuristic, modern, retro, contemporary, nostalgic and timelessness.

The Steelcase chair was described many users as futuristic compared to the generic chair used that’s was described to be from the nineties. The Ludwig Mies Van der Rohe chair (Appendix A-11) is a timeless beauty and seems as new today as it when it was introduced in 1927.

Natural metaphors

The designs try to embody the shape of living beings.

Much as the computer mouse and the Volkswagen Beetle embody the shape of a mouse and a beetle respectively, the OrangeX household juicer (Appendix A-3) embodies the shape of a person leaning to shake hands.

Concinnity

Merriam Webster’s dictionary defines it as “harmony or elegance of design style in adaptation of parts to a whole or to each other”

There are two types of concinnity (Coates 2002): Objective concinnity arises from similarities among shapes, colors dimensions, textures and other visual attributes.
Subjective concinnity arises from similarities among a product its stereotype and its ideal – another mental model that automatically springs to mind. Unlike the stereotype, which corresponds to what the viewer most expected, the ideal corresponds to what the viewer implicitly hoped the product would resemble. The Steelcase chair may hence have more subjective concinnity when compared to the Van Der Rohe chair.

Gestalt

An organized whole that is considered more than the sum of its parts.

The overall value of a product of design is not a linear combination of all of its components (form, ergonomics and functionality). Hence the value of owning the chair in Appendix A-6 not only lies in its form, ergonomics and functionality (excluding its brand value) but also in its feel good factors.