Concept Generation

Concept Generation
 What is a product concept?
 An approximate description of the technology,
working principles, and form of the product.
 A concise description of how the product will
satisfy the customer needs.
 The product concept is usually expressed
as a sketch, accompanied by a brief
textual description.
Why is the concept generation activity
important?
 The success of a system depends heavily on the
quality of the underlying concept.
 Thorough exploration of alternatives early in the
development process reduces the likelihood
that:
 the team will stumble upon a better concept late in
the development process.
 a competitor will introduce a system dramatically
better than the one the team is developing.
 A team’s best ideas are typically not its initial
ideas.
The Concept Generation Process
 Clarify the Problem
 Problem Decomposition
 External Search
 Lead Users
 Experts
 Patents
 Literature
 Benchmarking
 Internal Search
 Individual Methods
 Group Methods
 Systematic Exploration
 Classification Tree
 Combination Table
 Reflect on the Process
 Continuous Improvement
Step 1: Clarify the Problem
 Develop a general understanding of the problem,
based on the:
 Mission statement
 Customer needs list
 Target system specifications
 Decompose the problem into simpler subproblems.
 By function (most useful for technical systems)
 By sequence of user actions (most useful for systems
involving a lot of user interaction)
 By key customer needs (most useful for systems in
which the form, not the working principles or
technology, is the primary challenge)
 Focus initial efforts on the critical subproblems.
Problem Decomposition: Function Diagram
INPUT OUTPUT
Energy (?) Energy (?)
Hand-held
Material (nails) Material (driven nail)
nailer
Signal (tool "trip") Signal (?)

Store or Convert
accept energy to
Energy external translational
energy energy

Apply
Store Isolate Driven
Nails nails nail
translational
energy to nail nail

"Trip" of Sense Trigger

tool trip tool
Step 2: Search Externally

 Interview lead users.

 Consult experts.
 Search patents.
 Search published literature.
 Benchmark related systems.
Step 3: Search Internally
 Guidelines:
 Suspend judgment.
 Generate a lot of ideas.
 Welcome ideas that may seem infeasible.
 Use graphical and physical media as well as verbal
language to describe concepts.
 Work as individuals to generate initial concepts.
 Individualstypically generate more and better ideas
alone than in groups.
 Work as a group to communicate, refine, and
combine concepts, and to build consensus.
Hints for Generating Concepts
 Make analogies.
 Wish and wonder.
 Use related stimuli.
 Use unrelated stimuli.
 Set quantitative goals for the number of
concepts to be generated.
 Use the gallery method.
 Simultaneously display the concepts generated
by the individual team members so that they
may be discussed by the group.
 Store or Convert

Generating Concepts
accept energy to
Energy external translational
energy energy

Apply
Nails
Store Isolate
translational Driven
nails nail nail
energy to nail
Make analogies
"Trip" of Sense Trigger
tool trip tool

Drawing comparisons between the problem

you are trying to solve and familiar situations,
objects, or systems to inspire new ideas.

What other devices solve a related problem?

 Store or Convert

Generating Concepts
accept energy to
Energy external translational
energy energy

Apply
Nails
Store Isolate
translational Driven
nails nail nail
energy to nail
Wish and Wonder
"Trip" of Sense Trigger
tool trip tool

Beginning a thought with

“I wish we could…
“I wonder what would happen if…”
 Store or Convert

Generating Concepts
accept energy to
Energy external translational
energy energy

Apply
Nails
Store Isolate
translational Driven
nails nail nail
energy to nail
Use Related Stimuli
"Trip" of Sense Trigger
tool trip tool

Introducing materials, ideas, or references

that are connected to the problem or topic to
inspire new concepts.
 Store or Convert

Generating Concepts
accept energy to
Energy external translational
energy energy

Apply
Nails
Store Isolate
translational Driven
nails nail nail
energy to nail
Use Unrelated Stimuli
"Trip" of Sense Trigger
tool trip tool

Generating concepts by drawing inspiration

from random, unrelated objects or systems.
Generated Concepts

Store or Convert
accept energy to
Energy external translational
energy energy

Apply
Nails
Store Isolate
translational Driv
nails nail nai
energy to nail

"Trip" of Sense Trigger

tool trip tool
Step 4. Explore Systematically
 Purpose:
 To navigate the space of possible solutions by
organizing and synthesizing the concept fragments
(the solutions to the subproblems).
 Methods:
 Concept classification tree
 Helps the team divide the possible solutions into
independent categories.
 Concept combination table
 Guides the team in selectively considering
combinations of concept fragments.
Concept Classification Tree
Divide the entire space into several distinct classes that will
facilitate comparison and pruning
Concept Combination Table
Provides a way to consider combinations of solution
fragments systematically.
Step 5: Reflect on the Solutions and
the Process
 Is the team confident that the solution
space has been fully explored?
 Have ideas from everyone been integrated
in the process?
 Are there alternative ways to decompose
the problem?
 Have external sources been thoroughly
pursued?