Industrial design engineering comprises of various steps that help a company move from product concepts to operational working models. The overall process can be divided into five primary components with each having its own sub-functions, viz. product design, prototyping, CAD engineering, user feedback and manufacturing.
All designers use various inputs from future industry trends, market requirements, end-use customer preferences, etc. to chart out a design methodology which is then used to build the design and create the prototype. Another stage involves modelling the design into technical drawings that help to define the product further. The later stages involve mould manufacture and eliciting customer feedback. Industrial designers extensively test and quality-check the design for expected and unforeseen issues throughout the process.
One essential component of this process is prototyping which helps define the product and analyse the various features including looks, form-factor, usage comfort, etc. Prototyping starts with the creation of a scale model of the final product using 3D printing and the technical specifications mapped out during the modelling process. There are various forms of prototyping that includes:
• Form or Design Prototype: Provides an idea of how the final product will look like. Identifies issues that need to be corrected and refined in the form design
• Systems Prototype: Involves looking at the circuitry to understand if the product will work or needs some changes. The systems prototype is sometimes handled by a different team that focuses on the circuit and assembly design
• Experimental or Working Prototype: Allows designers to identify issues in the working of the product and define ways to take care them in the revised design. It generally involves integrating the form and the systems into one unit for undertaking detailed checks
• Alpha and Beta Prototypes: These are different stages in the product development lifecycle and help further define the workings to identify and remove problems
• Pre-Production Prototype: This is generally the final prototype and defines how the final product will look like. These prototypes are manufactured for extensive testing before the final production begins
Industrial Design Prototype Benefits
• Provides an initial view of the final products
• Helps identify problems and allows designers to remove them
• Reduces the product development time as all problems, etc. can be mapped
• Receives customer feedback that helps in building an acceptable product
All designers use various inputs from future industry trends, market requirements, end-use customer preferences, etc. to chart out a design methodology which is then used to build the design and create the prototype. Another stage involves modelling the design into technical drawings that help to define the product further. The later stages involve mould manufacture and eliciting customer feedback. Industrial designers extensively test and quality-check the design for expected and unforeseen issues throughout the process.
One essential component of this process is prototyping which helps define the product and analyse the various features including looks, form-factor, usage comfort, etc. Prototyping starts with the creation of a scale model of the final product using 3D printing and the technical specifications mapped out during the modelling process. There are various forms of prototyping that includes:
• Form or Design Prototype: Provides an idea of how the final product will look like. Identifies issues that need to be corrected and refined in the form design
• Systems Prototype: Involves looking at the circuitry to understand if the product will work or needs some changes. The systems prototype is sometimes handled by a different team that focuses on the circuit and assembly design
• Experimental or Working Prototype: Allows designers to identify issues in the working of the product and define ways to take care them in the revised design. It generally involves integrating the form and the systems into one unit for undertaking detailed checks
• Alpha and Beta Prototypes: These are different stages in the product development lifecycle and help further define the workings to identify and remove problems
• Pre-Production Prototype: This is generally the final prototype and defines how the final product will look like. These prototypes are manufactured for extensive testing before the final production begins
Industrial Design Prototype Benefits
• Provides an initial view of the final products
• Helps identify problems and allows designers to remove them
• Reduces the product development time as all problems, etc. can be mapped
• Receives customer feedback that helps in building an acceptable product
