Current Design Theory Research Articles

Affordance based design: a relational theory for design

After reviewing current approaches to design theory, which are based on the transformative concept of function, we argue that this basis in function limits the scope of design problems and explanatory power of current design theories. As an alternative with greater potential for explanatory power and a framework for solving a wider array of design problems, we propose that a relational theory of design is needed. Such a relational theory should mirror those currently developed in mathematics, physics, computer science, and even philosophy. We develop a relational theory for design based on the concept of affordances from perceptual psychology. Affordances help to explain the entanglement between designers, users, and artifacts—relationships that are not currently handled by function based approaches to design. Affordance based design, as developed in this paper, does not offer a radical new approach to doing design, but rather a shift in design thinking. Our focus in this paper is therefore on the explanatory power and potential innovation fostered by this change in design thinking, as illustrated through several examples, and not on specific methods.

The Entertainment Zone: Unplanned Nightlife and the Revitalization of the American Downtown

This paper describes informal, small-scale leisure and nightlife districts or entertainment zones (EZs) which have developed in or near the downtowns of mid-sized and large American cities in recent years. Occupying older vernacular buildings in marginal areas of downtown, the bars, cafes, restaurants, nightclubs and performance spaces of EZs have developed largely without the large-scale design, planning, government action or subsidy common in formal urban entertainment districts. EZs demonstrate the popularity, resilience and flexibility of small-scale, vernacular architecture and urbanism and its importance in generating a vibrant and diverse downtown. The paper documents the design and performative characteristics of EZs in American cities and locates these places within current urban design and development theory. The findings from a Milwaukee, Wisconsin, case study together with evidence from other entertainment zones indicate that EZs possess individuality and a vitality lacking in formal urban entertainment districts. The paper concludes with recommendations for designers, planners and policy makers to reform current urban entertainment development practices.

Theory and design in the first digital age

Digital design and its growing impact on design and production practices have resulted in the need for a re-examination of current design theories and methodologies in order to explain and guide future research and development. The present research postulates the requirements for a conceptual framework and theoretical basis of digital design; reviews the recent theoretical and historical background; and defines a generic schema of design characteristics through which the paradigmatic classes of digital design are formulated. The implication of this research for the formulation of ‘digital design thinking’ is presented and discussed.

Design and sustainability

This is a discussion paper on design and sustainability. It does this by presenting empirical, though entirely personal experiences of sustainable design. The intention is not to present a definitive theory or model of sustainable design but instead to stimulate discussion among its community – which in turn may inform its theory and with luck the resultant methods too. Much has been written about the theoretical fields of ecodesign and sustainable design and myriad methods, tools and approaches have emerged for its practice. Throughout this time the author, and perhaps many other designers, have been left with an uneasy feeling that something is not quite right. Somehow theory and practice of this eco- and sustainable design have largely missed what we know, feel and do as designers. Readers may find themselves asking where is the ‘design’ in eco- or sustainable design? Some of these questions, issues and dilemmas will be discussed in this paper from a designer’s personal perspective. It looks at some of the unique characteristics of this ‘designed sustainability’, paying particular attention to how current sustainable design theory reflects its practice in companies. In doing so it will explore and question some of the myths and realities of the subject. Readers are invited to feedback and comment on the thesis presented – as well as on similar or different experiences.

Multimodal, Multitask Interaction Design: Challenging Long-Standing Unimodal Design Assumptions

As the technology that supports interactive systems advances, the possibility of leveraging a multitude of sensory systems becomes possible. By using multiple sensory processors, substantial gains in the information management capacity of the human-computer integral should be realized, and those with sensory losses can be better accommodated. The question becomes when multimodal information is presented, how should these multiple sources of information be coordinated, particularly when two or more tasks are performed simultaneously? While current design theories developed primarily for unimodal interaction can be drawn on, additional research is required to fully guide multimodal multitask interaction design. The current study seeks to extend unimodal design theories to multimodal systems and identifies some interesting differences in unimodal vs multimodal multitask interaction.

Cognition and complexity: An experiment on the effect of coupling in parameter design

This paper presents experimental results regarding human abilities to solve parameter design tasks. In particular, the investigations focus on how the solution of parameter design problems is affected by coupling among the design variables and the scale of the problem (number of design variables). An experiment was conducted with human subjects who solved parameter design tasks through a simple graphical user interface. It is established that, for parameter design tasks with only two inputs and two outputs, coupling had only a moderate effect on the subjects' solution of the problem. As the number of variables increases, the effect of coupling among variables has a drastic effect on the solution procedures and the completion time. The time for a human to solve a coupled parameter design problem rises geometrically as problem size rises from 2×2 to 5×5. These results are discussed in the context of information processing models of human cognition. The implications for current design theories and methodologies are explored.

Technical Rhetoricians and the Art of Configuring Images

Advances in computing technologies, growth of business involvement on the Web, and our culture's affinity for image-intensive communication have forced technical communicators to become more involved with making and using a wide variety of images in their compositions. Too often our theories about how to write and read images are limited to a functional view, which stresses objectivity, ignores interpretation, and sees design as preset layout formulae. Combining current graphic design theory with rhetoric's understanding of techne, I argue for a configural view of images that stresses their artificiality and cultural significance and articulates design in strategic terms.

Nonlinear Axial Stiffness Characteristics of Axisymmetric Bolted Joints

A critical assessment of the current design theory for bolted joints which is based on a linear, one-dimensional stiffness analysis is presented. A detailed nonlinear finite element analysis of a bolted joint conforming to ANSI standards was performed. The finite element results revealed that the joint stiffness is highly dependent on the magnitude of the applied load. The joint stiffness changes continuously from extremely high for small applied loads to the bolt stiffness during large applied loads, contrary to the constant joint stiffness of the linear theory. The linear theory is shown to be inadequate in characterizing the joint stiffness. The significance of the results in terms of the failure of bolted joints is discussed. A number of sensitivity studies were carried out to assess the effect of various parameters on the axial joint stiffness. The results revealed that bending and rotation of the joint members, interfacial friction, and the bolt/nut threading significantly influence the axial stiffness characteristics of the bolted joint. The two-dimensional, axisymmetric finite element model includes bilinear gap elements to model the interfaces. Special orthotropic elements were used to model the bolt/nut thread interaction. A free-body-diagram approach was taken by applying loads to the outer diameter of the joint model which correspond to internal, uniformly distributed line-shear and line-moment loads in the joint. A number of convergence studies were performed to validate the solution.

Causation and its effect: the blackguard in CAD's clothing

This paper addresses one of the basic assumptions to underpin current design theory in general and computer-aided design research in particular. It is the notion of causation. An argument is presented that design hinges on an understanding of the dependencies and interrelationships which uniquely structure each design problem. Unfortunately ‘structure’ appears to be being interpreted by the wider research community in simple cause and effect terms; possibly because it then merges extremely well within computer technologies such as the expert system. Studies have shown, however, that taking such an over-simplistic view of causation poses fundamental problems. These problems have the potential completely to undermine much of current design research.

DEPENDENCIES IN A PARTIALLY SPECIFIED RELATION

The current schema design theories assume that a database may be regarded as a single relation. From the practical point of view, this is hardly acceptable. However, if a relation is allowed to have unspecified items, any database can be represented as a partial relation. Since the normalization theory is defined with respect to relations, it needs to be extended so that it may become applicable to partial relations. As extensions of dependencies, natural depend encies are defined. They are axiomatized, and the set of axioms is proved its completeness. The schema design based on natural de pendencies solves not only the problems caused by a universal relation assumption but also the update anomalies caused by decomposition of a database.