Product Design Methods: Define
Once the product category and identity has been established, the product concept must have scope and definition. Lack of a well-defined direction will result in inefficiency, tangents, and ultimately loss of time and potential market share. Poor Definition often results in concepts and ideas that, while attractive to look at, are not feasible to produce or use and must be rethought again and again adding time and cost to the development cycle--often resulting in a product or process that is far from the original design intent. |
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| Catalyst’s Industrial Design group, which has over 200 design and utility patents, takes a more intuitive approach. Definition at Catalyst involves how human factors (desirability), technical factors (feasibility), and business factors (viability) interact to define a product. Definition determines direction of the concepts that optimize function, value, and appearance. From here, initial concepts are created and refined to pinpoint the final design concept. | |