Conceptual Design Report
Introduction: How to Begin the Conceptual Design Phase
The Conceptual Design Report (CDR) done by the conceptual design team I was apart of (Michael Mucha, Me, Yishan Pei, Jiamin Peng) consisted of two main parts: the refining and reframing of the initial design brief, and the ideation process to formulate unique concepts. The Design Brief was written by a few of our classmates in the Engineering Science Program. The brief essentially asked for a product that would make the process of shucking and cleaning corn easier and faster. We as a team had to take the time to refine the brief to clearly identify what the main objectives, criteria, and constraints were. There appeared to be some confusion as to what the values of the brief writers really were when they posed the need for a solution to this problem (i.e. "Did they want us to design for safety, then why is it only a Criterion?). A more in depth analysis and description of the reframing and refining of the brief is given in the attached CDR document. The Conceptual Design Report and the Design Process After taking the time to identify the key stakeholders in this scenario and their respective needs, we as a conceptual design team decided to move forward by focusing mainly on the needs of the user when it came to this problem. The design process began with the implementation of several brainstorming techniques (for a more detailed description of these, see CDR document). The concepts developed using the selected brainstorming technique were always compared back to the design brief. Questions such as, "Does the concept meet the given constraints?"; "How well does it meet the selected criteria?"; "Does it address the main objective of design for usability?" were asked, and this process continued in a cyclical motion to generate diverse solutions to this problem. Our main objective as designers was to design a product that met the needs of the user because they appeared to be the party most affected by the given problem. While coming up with solutions, we constantly went back to this as our starting point in the design cycle. Another cycle was introduced in our process after we had properly reframed/refined the brief and our main objectives and limitations were clear. There were four people on our design team and so we would each come up with a concept based on the main objectives and that met the constraints and criteria at varying degrees. The solutions would be assessed based on their ability to meet the requirements set out by the refined brief and were eliminated based on their inability to do so. Each time we went through this cycle of 4 solutions, assessment, and elimination, we would identify the key constraints and criteria we were trying to address and how well we could address them. This converging and diverging of ideas continued until we had four concepts that met the requirements at higher degrees than their predecessors. My Contribution to the CDR as a Designer For my particular concept contribution to the CDR, I focused on design for reduced effort in shucking the corn, design for effectiveness of shucking and cleaning the corn, and design for safety of the user. My initial design consisted mainly of a rotating system to cut the husks of the corn around their circumference. I did this by adding wheels to the base of my apparatus that would allow it to turn easily. I believed this would be a faster and easier way to take the husks off the corn because you could cut the husks at several different positions along its length to weaken it. Theoretically it appeared to require less effort because then you as the user were not fighting the natural tendencies of the husk to protect the corn by pulling at them, but were simply cutting them at their weakest points. I contemplated how I could make the product dual purpose where it could shuck and clean the corn within the same system. I decided to make the blades that would cut the corn adjustable, so they could be pulled out of the inner container where the corn resided, but still remain within the apparatus to not harm the user. To clean the corn, I decided to line the corn container with a towel like material that could be wet with warm water and clean the silk hairs off the corn similar to polishing it. The apparatus would polish the corn after removing the blades from the inner container and rotating the system once again about the corn. I designed for safety by making the entire product a closed system and keeping all sharp objects bound to the apparatus, so that a user couldn't accidentally pull one of the blades and hurt themselves or someone else with one. |
To get to this point in my design I went through several iterations of my design process. I started with a basic idea and continuously refined it based on the requirements set by the brief and the needs of the various stakeholders that I accounted for while going through the process again and again.
Reflections on the Conceptual Design Phase
This design experience taught me a lot about myself as a person and the role I take on in a team design project. I had to take on more of a leadership role and I've learned many different skills on how to make design work efficient and unified in a team setting. During the design process, I had to fashion several different procedures to make sure that everyone in the group was aware of what was expected of them in particular sections of the report. This reference design helped us to work on sections simultaneously without losing that aspect of unity that is often lost in group work. I also learned that when assigning tasks to different group members it is important to assign them based on the strengths of the team member, so that they feel more inclined to perform the task to the best of their ability. As a designer, I learned that you don't always get the result you want the first time, and that iteration is a key component of good design especially in the conceptual ideation phase. Attached Files
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