Clarification of terminology
End-user/s
The individual or group who will use the product. The end user/s may be known to the designer or may be a target market/demographic without a direct relationship with the designer. The end user may be a baby or an animal, in which case the designer may seek product feedback from other relevant individual/s. A client can be the end-user/s.
Mock up
Trial models, process trials or calico toiles that are suitable for development stages only. Their purpose may be to test a pattern, to check if an experimental process will work, or to check if the shape and proportions of a design are appropriate. Refer to p.12 of the study design.
Obsolescence
The four types of obsolescence referred to in the study design are:
Style
When a product is no longer wanted by consumers, although it is still functional, but looks out-dated.
Technical
When a product is replaced by another product with more advanced technology.
Functional
When a product wears out, deteriorates or breaks down after a certain amount of time and parts cannot be replaced, or it is uneconomical to repair
Planned
When a product incorporates planned condition by a manufacturer to get a consumer to buy a replacement to make more profit for the manufacturer.
Prototype
In this study, references to product includes prototype. A prototype is a three-dimensional pre-production product that is constructed to exactly resemble the preferred option (allowing for design modifications where required). Appropriate substitute material and processes may be used to create structure, form or finish if the originally specified materials and processes are not available. For the purposes of this study design, students may produce a prototype which may omit some functional aspects of a product, such as electronic systems. Refer to p.12 of the study design.
Qualitative methods
Reference to characteristics of a product is based on quality and are usually described, rather than based on a numerical measurement.
Quality measure
A quantitative way to measure the characteristic or attribute of a product. These are methods of checking for quality indicators throughout the production of a product, and are measurable and verifiable such as softness and hardness or thickness and thinness.
Quantitative methods
Reference to measurement based on some quantity or number rather than on quality. For example, quantitative research can be used to measure the response from an end-user to the features of a product.
Types of drawings
There are three types of drawing required in this study design: design option (presentation drawings), working drawings and visualisations. It is expected that students will annotate visualisations and drawings. Annotations are critical because they provide explanatory notes and comments that link back to the design brief and the considerations and constraints.
Design options (presentation drawings)
Chacteristics: Generally, these drawings show what the whole of the product will look like and include annotations. Design options often include lines, colour, rendering in pencil, markers, and watercolour/wash. Computer-aided design software (CAD) may be used to produce design options.
Purpose: To provide a good indication to the designer and others of what a potential product could look like. Annotations provide details such as construction methods and link back to the design brief, considerations and constraints and product design factors.
Working drawings
Characteristics: These are more refined drawings developed from a design option or combination of options. These drawings include technical language and conventions, use of symbols and measurements. Technical instruments and computer-aided design software (CAD) are often used to produce working drawings.
Purpose: Accurately shows what the product looks like and how it will be constructed. These drawings are used to work out product specifications (materials, parts and sizes needed to make the product). They could be used along with a scale model to show specific details before a product is made.
Visualisations
Characteristics: Quick, freehand drawings of ideas that may be whole or parts of an envisaged product. They are usually in pencil using lines and very basic rendering.
Purpose: Visualisations are informed by research and the student’s own ideas to communicate possibilities. They are used to ‘work through’ potential ideas to take forward into design options.
Scheduled production plan
Scheduled production plan includes a sequenced plan of steps needed for production and timeline, listing of materials, tools, equipment and machines with risk assessment and quality measures.
Sustainability frameworks and strategies
The four frameworks or models referred to in the study design are:
Cradle to cradle
Refers to the goal of designing and creating products which will be re-used or recycled rather than disposed of when the product is no longer used. The product has a ‘new life’ rather than being disposed of in landfill. This is referred to as ‘life cycle thinking’.
Design for Disassembly
An approach to design which considers the end of the product’s life cycle during the design stage. The designer typically uses minimal types of materials and plans for the easy separation of materials in order to maximise the chances of materials re-use or recycling instead of disposal in landfill.
Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR)
The manufacturer or producer takes responsibility for the end of the product’s life cycle, generally committing to collecting, recycling, or disposing of the product or its parts in order to minimise environmental impact when the product is no longer used. May also be called product stewardship.
Lifecycle analysis/assessment (LCA)
Refers to assessing the sustainability impacts associated with the stages of a product's life, from raw material extraction through to material processing, design, production, distribution, use, repair and maintenance, and disposal or recycling.
Values (of a product)
The qualities of products that make them valuable such as affordability, appearance, authenticity, durability, rarity, status, usability, identity and emotional connection. Values attributed to products change with context, socio-cultural norms, and economic contexts, as new technologies emerge and as products move through their life cycles.