Transforming Ideas into Innovation I

Chapter 4 - Engineering Design Process (Part 1)

 Attention Please

No Cell Phones

No Photos

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 Outline

• Engineering Design Process

• Engineering Design Considerations

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 What is a Problem?

 Any question or matter

involving doubt,
uncertainty, or difficulty.
 A question proposed for
solution or discussion.

4 Dictionary Definition
 All Problems have two Features in Common
Goals and Barriers

Problems involve setting No barriers simply

out to achieve some means no problem.
objective or desired Problem solving
state of affairs and can involves overcoming
include avoiding a the barriers that
situation or event prevent the immediate
achievement of goals
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 What is Engineering Design?
• Engineering design is the process of devising a system,
component or process to meet desired needs.
• In this process, basic sciences and engineering are applied to
optimally convert resources to meet a stated objective.
• It is a decision-making process, often iterative, in which the
basic sciences, mathematics, and engineering sciences are
applied to convert resources to meet a stated objective.

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 Video

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 Stages of Problem Solving

Effective problem solving usually involves working through a

number of steps or stages

Problem Identification
Structuring the Problem
Generating Possible Solutions
Analyzing Solutions

Selecting the Best Solution

8 Planning the Next Course of Action

 Problem Identification

“If I had only one hour to save

the world, I’d spend 55 min
defining the problem and 5
minutes finding a solution”*

“A problem properly stated

is half-solved”
Charles Kettering (Inventor and
holder of over 150 engineering
patents)
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 Problem Identification

This stage involves: detecting

and recognizing that there is a
problem; identifying the
nature of the problem;
defining the problem.

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 Structuring the Problem

This stage involves: a period of observation, careful inspection,

fact-finding and developing a clear picture of the problem.

Identify Do Yes
Determine requirements
Problems and
Requirements Satisfy
Needs needs?

No

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 Structuring the Problem

Client Need
Input
Statement

• Talk with the

client (interview)
Tasks
• Some potential
users (survey)
• Problem
statement
Output • Objectives
• Constraints
• Criteria
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 Structuring the Problem

Client’s Need Statement

• First understand what the problem is

(what does the customer want?)
• Often, the customer does not know
exactly what s/he wants nor what is
achievable

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 Structuring the Problem

Client’s Need Statement: Example

Client Statement:
The residents of one of my tall buildings are
complaining that the elevators are slow
Interpretation 1:
you have to install another elevator at a
great expense
Interpretation 2:
Put entertainment on the main floors and provide
some coffee*
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 Structuring the Problem
Need Analysis Example Questions*:
1. When and why do you use the product?
2. What do you like about existing products?
3. What don’t you like about other products?
4. What are the required functions?
5. Who is the product user?
6. Where is the product going to be used (environment)?
7. What are the unacceptable options/behaviors of the product?
8. What should the product satisfy?
Why?
9. What specifications do we have/know?
10. Are there any legal issues?
How?
11. What are the human factors to be considered?
What?
12. What is the expected life duration of the product? Who?
Where?
When?
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 Structuring the Problem
Problem Statement:
• The statement is a very short paragraph
providing answers to (What? Why? How?)
• Written in the language of the customer
• Normally straightforward, non-technical and
non-quantifiable

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 Structuring the Problem

Problem Statement: The Wright Brothers Example

• The problem addressed by the Wright brothers at the
turn of the 20th century was:
Need a manned machine capable of achieving
powered flight1

• This means that:

1. They wanted to design a flying machine
2. It must carry a person (which rules out model
aircraft)
3. An onboard power source must be used to take off
(which eliminates hot air balloons)
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 Structuring the Problem
Design Objectives
Objectives are the requirements that the design is to
satisfy (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, Time
bound)

Importance of Accurate Objective and Statement **

Problem Design Installation Customer

18 Definition Need
 Structuring the Problem

Problem Statement: Example

Problem Statement:
“The current box is easily damaged during
transportation”

Objective
“Design a stronger box for our new product”

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 Structuring the Problem

Constraints
• Constraints are boundaries that limit the
engineer’s flexibility; they form the
design envelope (feasible design space)
• They help to identify acceptable designs
• Should be measurable
• Should be answered with: True/False;
Yes/No
• Example: Cost <1000 SAR?
Weight <100 Kg?
Flexible system (yes/no)?

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 Structuring the Problem

Design Criteria
• Criteria are indicators defining the success of achieving the
objectives
• Criteria define the product physical and functional
characteristics
• They represent descriptive adjectives that can be qualified
on a given scale: examples: beautiful, low cost, low noise,
smart, low weight
• Might be used for judging between different designs

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 Structuring the Problem

Examples of Criteria
 High safety  Ease of Maintenance

 Environment friendliness  Ease of Manufacturing

 Aesthetic design (Appearance)

 Public Acceptance
 Geometry
 Performance
 Physical Features
 Ease of operation
 Reliability
 Durability To be qualified say on a scale 1 to 10
 Use Environment 1 (worst) and 10 (best) 4 (average)*
 Cost

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 Generating Possible Solutions

The goal here is to list as many ideas as possible

No preliminary judgments are made about

any member’s idea, and no negative
comments are allowed.

Creative problem solving is

generating multiple ideas to a
problem by a technique called
brainstorming
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 Analyzing Solutions

Investigate the various factors about each of the

potential solutions

Note down the good and bad points and

other things which are relevant to each
solution

Once more, you are not

evaluating the solution at this
stage
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 Selecting the Best Solution

Look through the various influencing factors for each possible solution and
decide which solutions to keep; you look at the solution as a whole and use
your judgement as to whether to use the solution or not.

Sometimes pure facts and figures dictate which ideas will work.
In other situations, it will be purely feelings and intuition that
decides.

By voting for the solutions you will end up with a shortlist of potential
solutions. You will then end up with one, many or no viable solutions.
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 Decision Making

Decision-making is the act of choosing between two or more courses of action

 In the wider process of problem-

solving, decision-making involves
choosing between possible solutions
to a problem.
 Decisions can be made through either
an Intuitive or Reasoned process, or
a combination of the two.
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 Intuition Reasoning

Intuition is using your ‘gut Reasoning is using the

feeling’ about possible courses facts and figures in front
of action. of you to make decisions.

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 Applying Both Reason and Intuition
 One way to do this is to apply the two aspects in
turn. It’s useful to start with reason, and gather
facts and figures. Once you have an obvious
‘decision’, it’s the turn of intuition. How do you
feel about the ‘answer’? Does it feel right?
 If not, have another look, and see if you can
work out why not. If you’re not emotionally
committed to the decision you’ve made, you
won’t implement it well or effectively.
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 Planning the Next Course of Action

Now that you have a potential solution or solutions you need to decide how
you will make the solution happen

This will involve people doing various things at various

times in the future and then confirming that they have
been carried out as planned, a prototype is an option here

This stage simply ensures that the valuable thinking that has gone into
solving the problem becomes reality and it is applicable

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 Engineering Design Process

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 Elements of Engineering Design Process

Define Perform
Background
Research

Problem Criteria

Constraints
Brainstorm Solutions

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 Elements of Engineering Design Process

Construct
Select
Best possible solution

Prototype
Constraints
Criteria
Test
&
32 Evaluate
 Communicate
Solutions to your
teammates and
manager
Refine your
design

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 Other Engineering Design Considerations

• Engineering economics
• Material selection
• Teamwork
• Conflicts Resolution
• Project scheduling and task chart

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 Engineering Economics

• Economic factors always play important roles in

engineering design decision making
• Products that are too expensive cannot be sold at
a price that consumers can afford and still be
profitable to the company
• Products must be designed to provide services
not only to make our lives better but also to make
profits for the manufacturer

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 Material Selection

• Selection of materials is an important design decision

• Examples of properties to consider when selecting materials
 Density
 Ultimate strength
 Flexibility
 Machinability
 Durability
 Thermal expansion
 Electrical & thermal conductivity
 Resistance to corrosion

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 Material Properties

• Material properties depend on many factors

 How the material was processed
 Its age
 Its exact chemical composition
 Any nonhomogenity or defect within the material
• Material properties change with temperature and time
as the material ages
• In practice, you use property values provided by the
manufacturer for design; textbook values are typical
values
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 Teamwork
• Design team
a group of individuals with complementary
expertise, problem solving skills, and talent
who are working together to solve a
problem or achieve a common goal
• Employers are looking for individuals who not
only have a good grasp of engineering
fundamentals but who can also work well with
others in a team environment

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 Common Traits of Good Teams
Successful teams have the following components:
• The project that is assigned to a team must have clear
and realistic goals. These goals must be understood
and accepted by all members of the team.
• The team should be made up of individuals with
complementary expertise, problem solving skills,
background, and talent.
• The team must have a good leader.

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 Common Traits of Good Teams

• The team leadership and the environment in

which discussions take place should promote
openness, respect, and honesty.
• The team goals and needs should come before
individual goals and needs.

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 Conflicts

When a group of people work together, conflicts

sometimes arise. Conflicts could be the result of
• Miscommunication
• Personality differences
• The way events and actions are interpreted by a
member of a team

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 Conflict Resolution

• Managing conflicts is an important part of a team

dynamic
• In managing conflicts, it is important to recognize
there are three types of people:
 Accommodating
 Compromising
 Collaborative

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 Project Scheduling and Task Chart
A process that engineering managers use to ensure that a
project is completed on time and within the allocated budget

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 Summary
• You should know the basic design steps that all engineers
follow, regardless of their background, to design products
and services
• You should realize that economics plays an important role
in engineering decision making
• You should realize that the selection of material is an
important design decision
• You should be familiar with the common traits of good
teams

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