Innovation and Design

general knowledge

Key terms

Term

Definition

Invention

A radical change in manufacturing, materials technology.

Innovation

Incremental change in manufacturing, materials technology.

Novel Product

Invention (new) which is unusual to existing products

Robust Design

A flexible design which adapts to changing technologies and markets

Product family

Group of products with standard classification criteria (parts, aesthetics, and branding), usually from the same company

Market Analysis

The economic viability of a proposed design. Looking at viable costs, pricing, and essential.

Market Sector

A way of characterizing the markets

Market Segmentation

Dividing the market sector to specific groups of buyers (target audience)

Target Market

The people that buy your products

Target Audience

The people that consume your products

User Need

 

 

Stakeholders in invention and innovation

Term

Definition

Lone Inventor

An individual creator who is not part of a company and is working on a novel product

Product champion

Individual within a company that supports ideas

Investor

financial backer

Entrepreneur

An influential individual who brings insights into the market

 

Diffusion and Suppression

Diffusion

This is when a new design gets accepted by the market as if it’s always has been there.

Image result for Tesla 3

Suppression

Suppression is when an idea is slowed down by the market as it has the potential of beating the competition

 

 

Invention

Drivers

Image result for drone health africa

 

Intellectual Property

IP - a creation of the mind, such as inventions; literary and artistic works; designs; and symbols, names, and images used in commerce. (from The World Intellectual Property Organisation)

Term

Sign

Definition

Patent

N/A

It provides the owner with the right to prevent copying, manufacturing, selling, or importing without permission.

Copyright

©

This protects the rights of artists and authors. This covers a wide range of products.

Trademark

A mark on a design (ex. name) which shows authenticity and protects the owner.

Servicemark

Registered Trademark

®

Image result for dyson inivation

 

Global Strategies

Term

Definition

Market Penetration

Increasing sales to existing customers / finding new customers for an old product

Market Development

New applications for existing products

Product Development

Renewing products mainly for existing customers

Diversification

A company diversifying its family of products into other market sectors

Apple timeline infographic shows major product releases and their impact on share price

 

Innovation

Categories

Sustaining Innovation

Disruptive Innovation

Process Innovation

Meets consumer’s needs while supporting manufacturers

Challenges current technologies, setting a new standard for the market

Reorganization of the manufacturing process which may lead to reduced costs/benefits for consumers

 

Innovation Strategies for Design

Architectural Innovation

Modular Innovation

Configurational Innovation

Configuration of components to produce a new design

The ability to change critical elements, while the basic configuration stays the same

The combination of technological innovation and reorganization of components

Moving the power button from top to side (phone) Improvements to the cameras (phone) The galaxy fold

 

Strategies for Innovation

Strategy

Definition

Example

Adaptation

Adaptation of a physical solution from one context to another

 

Technology transfer

Transfer of advancements in technology from one context to another

 

Analogy

Transfer of an idea from one context to another

 

Act of insight

When an idea/solution comes suddenly, “eureka moment.”

 

Chance

An unexpected discovery, leading to a new idea

 

Technology push

When manufacturers/designers create the demand for the market

 

Market pull

When the market creates the demand for a new product

 

 

Stakeholders in Innovation and Design

Stakeholder Roles Example
Product Champion
  • See's Value within the product
  • Develop the product through all stages
  • Keep the product in the consumer's mind.
Elon Musk, Steve Jobs, etc
Entrepreneur
  • Takes on the financial risk
  •  
 

 

Image result for apple airpods

 

Roger’s characteristics of innovation and consumers

Factors affecting the adoption of an innovation

Characteristic

Definition

Example

Relative advantage

The extent to which the innovation has an advantage over the previous ones

 

Compatibility

Consistency with current design interfaces and needs of the market/audience

 

Complexity

How easy or hard it is to use the product

 

Trialability

How easy it is to experiment with the market/audience

 

Image result for Concepts oneplus

 

Category of consumers

 
Consumer Definition

Example

Innovators The risk-takers that adopt the innovation as soon as it becomes available (introduction) Designers or the manufacturers themselves
Early Adopters The first wave of the consumers which add a product as soon as it comes out YouTubers or dedicated fans of technology

Early Majority

More careful technology adopters which wait for feedback before purchasing a product The youth, anyone who would watch the YouTubers

Late Majority

Adopters that wait for a product toe established in the marketplace  
Laggards Late adopters which often wait for the product to decrease in price  

Image result for pebble smartwatch

 

Product life cycle

Term

Definition

Example

Introduction (Launch)

Introduction of product to the market; high price, little profit, slow sales.

Apple Launch event, Advertisements, Galaxy Fold

Growth

Diffusion into the market; lowered price, increasing sales and profit

Electric Cars in 2020, 

Maturity

Full acceptance of a product; medium cost, high profit, peak in sales

Smartphones

Decline

Market saturation; reduction of sales and profit, leading to lower price

Desktop Computers, Burner Phones

Sometimes things break the Product life cycle like this abomination (Supreme Burner Phone circa 2019): 

Image result for surprime phone

 

Obsolescence

Obsolescence is when an object becomes no longer wanted due to improvements in other products or no longer relevant.

Variation

Definition

Planned

An object purposefully becomes obsolete by gets replaced by the newer version of the same product from the same company.

Built-In

An object purposefully becomes obsolete by breaking down over a certain amount of time.

Fashion

As the name implies, it follows current trends and becomes undesirable after the style or fashion becomes outdated.

Functional

Mechanical properties breakdown and therefore become obsolete.

Technological

New technology dramatically surpasses an existing one, rendering the old one undesirable (similar to Planned).

Image result for planned obsolescence

Editors

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