User requirements for analogical design support tools: Learning from practitioners of bio-inspired design

Gülşen Töre Yargın

doi:10.1016/j.destud.2017.11.006

Abstract

When designers develop biologically-inspired design (BID) solutions, they are engaging in a process of analogical design. Software tools have been developed to support analogical design processes, presenting designers with information to help in the construction of useful analogies. However, the requirements for such tools have not been explicitly informed by accounts of practitioners' experiences. To address this, interviews were conducted with 14 expert practitioners in BID to understand how they find and apply cross-domain analogies. Three main themes emerged from the analysis: (1) the skill sets of individual practitioners; (2) the ways they work as part of an interdisciplinary team; and (3) their orientations to biology. These themes present opportunities and challenges for developing analogical design support tools.

Highlights

When designers develop biologically-inspired design (BID) solutions, they are engaging in a process of analogical design
We discuss the expectations that BID practitioners have for software tools by addressing three main levels of analysis in relation to BID practices: the skill sets of individuals involved in BID; the ways in which individuals work together as part of interdisciplinary teams; and the ways in which those individuals or teams orient towards biology
We show the ways in which software tools could be employed at all three levels in order to support BID processes, and we illustrate the variety of BID processes that might be relevant

Summary

Introduction

When designers develop biologically-inspired design (BID) solutions, they are engaging in a process of analogical design. Three main themes emerged from the analysis: (1) the skill sets of individual practitioners; (2) the ways they work as part of an interdisciplinary team; and (3) their orientations to biology These themes present opportunities and challenges for developing analogical design support tools. To assist with BID processes, design researchers have developed computer support tools that store and present information about biological and technical systems, so that possible connections can be identified. These analogical design support tools have seemingly been developed based on limited information about real-world user needs. By exploring these requirements we intend to provide a more solid foundation upon which analogical design support tools can be developed and deployed

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion