Engineering Product Design Research Articles

Product low‐carbon design, manufacturing, logistics, and recycling: An overview

AbstractDue to the worsening world climate crisis, reducing carbon emissions throughout product operations has become an issue that the manufacturing industry must face. In order to gain competitive advantage, this paper aims to explore low carbon design techniques for product life cycle: including low carbon design, low carbon manufacturing, low carbon logistics and low carbon recycling, as they are highly relevant to reducing carbon emissions. This paper proposes a portfolio structure for low carbon operations, consisting of a target layer, a strategy layer, and a support layer, aimed at improving energy efficiency and reducing carbon emissions. To emphasize the maximization of economic, environmental, and social advantages, the objective layer establishes a system of goals for low‐carbon product design. The strategy layer proposes four low‐carbon product design technologies: low‐carbon product design, manufacturing, transportation, and recycling. The support layer emphasizes the importance of operational systems and support platforms for low‐carbon products, such as low‐carbon design systems, energy information collection systems, energy optimization support systems, carbon emission monitoring and control systems, and low‐carbon management systems. However, successful implementation of low carbon manufacturing is challenging due to the complexity of low carbon manufacturing and the uniqueness of each company. Therefore, this paper suggests applying a life‐cycle‐oriented low‐carbon operation model to various manufacturing enterprises and exploring models that reflect actual manufacturing practices to achieve the goal of low‐carbon manufacturing.This article is categorized under: Sustainable Development > Goals

Handel Design for Wok Frypan Type Pan

ABSTRACT Yogyakarta metal SMEs are required to continue to innovate and develop technology to be able to adapt to market demands. Metal IKM is under the auspices of the Yogyakarta Metal Technical Implementation Unit (UPT). Metal UPT is responsible for carrying out research and studies on metal quality as well as studies on the development of metal product design technology. A large number of products from abroad makes metal SMEs must be able to compete in the market. Metal SMEs must be able to provide superiority to their products, one of the advantages that is built is presenting cookware designs, especially frypan works so that they have a competitive advantage. This study aims to determine the attributes and technical responses of the Wok Frypan-type handle product and to create a product prototype. Product technical attributes and responses were searched using the QFD method based on consumer desires. To overcome the problem of contradictions in QFD, the TRIZ method is used. The research resulted in a prototype design based on 11 attributes and 12 technical responses to the wok frypan-type Handel product. Keywords: Handle, QFD, TRIZ, Wok frypan.

Photovoltaic Deployment Scenarios toward Global Decarbonization: Role of Disruptive Technologies

To totally decarbonize global electrical systems using photovoltaics (PVs) in the 2050–2060 decade, the world would need to install 63.4 TW of PV. This article models and explores how a PV manufacturing ramp‐up trajectory toward this goal can be achieved while assuming that investors continue to make financially rational decisions avoiding stranded production assets and therefore protecting their return on investment. The model effectively exploits experience curve benefits in both the scaling of the manufacturing process and continued progress in product design technologies. The scale‐up challenge is amplified because trajectories that achieve this goal require an unprecedented ramp‐up of production capacity over just two decades, followed by relatively modest demand to maintain the installed base and support continued population growth. It is demonstrated that sustainable ramp‐up of manufacturing is indeed possible and shown that the deployment of the requisite manufacturing capacity can be accelerated and accomplished at lower total capital cost by the introduction of disruptive technologies that have lower capital intensity, embedded energy, or higher efficiency.

Особенности конструкции и технологии производства куполообразных твердотопливных газогенераторов с одноступенчатым срабатыванием системы пассивной безопасности автомобиля

Airbag pyrotechnic gas generators occupy a key position in the vehicle passive safety system with all the importance of the other components. Despite the abundance of various types of the airbags, single-stage pyrotechnic gas generators for the driver and passenger airbags are most interesting to the domestic vehicles manufacturers due to the budget cars leading positions in the domestic market. For proprietary design, development and production of the airbag gas generators, it is necessary to combine efforts of specialists in the chemical industry and in general engineering. At the same time, it should not be forgotten that production of the pyrotechnic airbag gas generators is subject to strict national and international regulation. Therefore, comprehensive system analysis of the pyrotechnic gas generators design by foreign manufactures used in the modern vehicles becomes important and necessary to form scientific and technical base for design and development of the proprietary commercial gas generators and localizing the full cycle of mass production of such devices in the territory of the Russian Federation. General classification of the airbag gas generators is provided, key features of the product design and production technologies for the main components of the dome-shaped solid fuel gas generator with a single-stage airbag response are considered, and technological schemes of the assembly processes and basic assembly operations are analyzed using the example of gas generators of different generations. Results of the study are of interest to the automotive industry specialists

Evidence of the Contribution of the Technological Progress on Aquaculture Production for Economic Development in China—Research Based on the Transcendental Logarithmic Production Function Method

Technology includes hard technology and soft technology. Material technology embodied in production conditions and working conditions such as machinery, equipment and infrastructure is called hard technology, referring to the technology directly used in the development and production of means of production and means of subsistence, such as product design technology, equipment manufacturing technology, etc. Non-material technology, which embodies the experience, skills and management ability of process management, decision support and information technology, is called soft technology. Hard technologies make things easier and faster, while soft technologies promote flexibility and creativity. However, hard technologies take time to produce and have negative environmental impacts, while soft technologies are simple to produce but hard to use. Hence, finding the right balance between hard and soft technology investment is important for the sustainable increase of productivity. In recent years, China has continuously increased its investment in science and technology in aquaculture industry. However, the majority of the investment has gone to hard technology, which has hampered the long-term development of the industry. This paper aims to look at the status quo of the scientific and technological progress of the aquaculture industry in China and explore how the advancement of hard and soft technologies play a role in the economic growth of the aquaculture industry. Transcendental logarithmic production function is employed to calculate the contribution rate of technological progress on China’s aquaculture industry, and the contribution rates of hard technologies and soft technologies are examined separately. The results indicate that, from 2012 to 2020, the contribution rate of overall technical progress on aquaculture in China was 80.159%, of which 71.720% came from the progress of hard technologies, while only 8.439% came from the progress of soft technologies. Based on this conclusion, the paper calls for a balance of hard and soft technologies in the aquaculture industry in China to ensure a healthy and sustainable aquaculture industry. Policy suggestions are also put forward.

Current topics of interdisciplinary cooperation between engineering and human sciences

In this article, we highlight current research directions in the Technikpsychologie research area, using the example of the interdisciplinary research work of FAI (Work and Engineering Psychology Research Group at the Technical University of Darmstadt) and the articles included in this special issue. To this end, we relate the articles in this special issue from the research areas of road traffic planning (Hupfer et al.), usable IT security and privacy solutions (Renaud), social aspects of technically mediated communication (Diefenbach), human-centered interface design (Mucha et al.), aviation safety (Santel), human-centered design of autonomous vehicles (Lindner & Stoll), and perceptual psychology-oriented product design (Zandi & Khanh) to current research projects at FAI.Practical RelevanceTechnical products only offer added value by efficiently supporting users in achieving their goals if they have been developed appropriately for the context of use and the individual characteristics of the users. The human-centered design of—especially technical—products reflects this through an iterative and participatory development process. In this article, we describe nine examples of such human-centered design of technology products. The research results and the methods presented provide insights for developers and decision-makers in the fields of transportation, IT, vehicle development and general product design.

Integrating kansei engineering and interactive genetic algorithm in jiangxi red cultural and creative product design

To show the unique charm of Jiangxi’s traditional culture, it is of great importance to apply Jiangxi’s unique red culture to products’ creative designs. This paper aims to apply Kansei Engineering (KE) and interactive genetic algorithm (IGA) to extract the apparent symbol elements of Jiangxi red culture and then transform them into the creative watch design with modern culture. First of all, KE is used to extract customers’ emotional resonance to red culture, and 16 pairs of Kansei image vocabulary pairs are preliminarily collected. The theory of semiotics is used to extract symbols such as shapes, colors, and patterns from the perspective of Jiangxi’s red architecture. Secondly, through the designers’ subjective aesthetic thinking, these cultural symbols are broken up and reconstructed, thus forming the morphological deconstruction table combined with the case of the watch. Finally, IGA is implemented to code and decode the cultural symbols, thus building a product form’s evolutionary design system. Through biological genetic manipulation, cultural symbols of refinement, particularity, and regionality are retained. Then these superior cultural genes are integrated into the innovation of the watch to get creative products with the characteristics of Jiangxi red culture. The model proposed in this paper optimizes the decision-making process of cultural creative product design, and also explores a sustainable development path of culture.

Convolutional Neural Network Models Combined with Kansei Engineering in Product Design.

This study aims to combine deep learning technology and user perception to propose an efficient design method that can meet the perceptual needs of users and enhance the competitiveness of products in the market. Firstly, the application development of sensory engineering and the research on sensory engineering product design by related technologies are discussed, and the background is provided. Secondly, the Kansei Engineering theory and the algorithmic process of the convolutional neural network (CNN) model are discussed, and theoretical and technical support is provided. A perceptual evaluation system is established for product design based on the CNN model. Finally, taking a picture of the electronic scale as an example, the testing effect of the CNN model in the system is analyzed. The relationship between product design modeling and sensory engineering is explored. The results show that the CNN model improves the "logical depth" of perceptual information of product design and gradually increases the abstraction degree of image information representation. There is a correlation between the user perception impression of electronic weighing scales of different shapes and the design effect of product design shapes. In conclusion, the CNN model and perceptual engineering have in-depth application significance in the image recognition of product design and the perceptual combination of product design modeling. Combined with the CNN model of perceptual engineering, product design is studied. From the perspective of product modeling design, perceptual engineering has been deeply explored and analyzed. In addition, the product perception based on the CNN model can accurately analyze the correlation between product design elements and perceptual engineering and reflect the rationality of the conclusion.

Retracted: Research on Computer-Aided Product Design Technology.

[This retracts the article DOI: 10.1155/2022/7770690.].

Flames of Aegean: the ec(h)o screams of nature: A 3d printed luminaire series according to sustainability product and lighting design principles

This paper documents the design process for the creation of a 3d printed luminaire series based on the principles of sustainable product and lighting design. In order to formulate the elements of what sustainable luminaire design should be, the lighting designer, made a recursion contemporary post-industrial design approaches, and concluded to state-of-the-art current trends in sustainable product and lighting design standards, technologies and materials. As a result of this interesting study of the principles of sustainable product and lighting design, this paper presents the design process step-by-step, as well as the sustainability design standards, which led to the final outcome, a series of original lighting fixtures entitled: Flames of Aegean.

ДОСЛІДЖЕННЯ КОНКУРЕНТОСПРОМОЖНОСТІ ПРОВІДНИХ МАШИНОБУДІВНИХ ПІДПРИЄМСТВ

The basic principles of the functioning of the leading engineering enterprises have been revealed, which foresee the possibility of producing in-demand products in the future, which are based, on the one hand, on the provision of a complex of services for the design, manufacture and service of engineering products, and on the other hand, on the long-term experience of foreign economic activity, which allows to supply own products to the foreign market. The expediency of using the methodology of the theory of effective competition in researching the competitiveness of engineering enterprises is justified. The main aspects of the formation of competitiveness were considered - the efficiency of production activity, financial position and sales of products, as a result of which the formation of an integral indicator of the competitiveness of the enterprise was formed. It was established that the indicators of high efficiency of production activity were ensured due to the growth of production volumes. Ensuring sufficient values ​​of the indicators of the financial condition was based on the basis of increasing the use of the funds involved, which, by investing in effective work, allowed to increase the financial results in an extensive way. Product sales indicators showed the absence of trends in the growth of profit from sales and net income (revenue) from sales, which indicates the different efficiency of engineering enterprises in separate periods of time, which can also be caused by different types and features of production at enterprises. As a result of the analysis, a set of unstable trends in the activities of the studied enterprises was revealed, which was reflected accordingly in the fluctuations of the integral indicator of the competitiveness of the studied enterprises for the period 2016-2020.

Flare-fork collaborative strategy: expanding design space via opportunistic ideation in engineering product design


 
 
 Restricted exploration of design space is a problem that novice designers face when solving engineering product design problems. Consequences of limited exploration can be the generation of sub-optimal solutions and fixation towards the first solution idea or known solution space. Expert designers sift through their vast repertoire of solution alternatives and choose the appropriate solution for the given design problem. Novices, however, lack this vast repository of alternative solution approaches. Therefore, it is good practice for novices to expand the problem and solution space and explore different aspects of the product design problem before identifying solutions appropriate for the design problem.
 Flare-fork collaborative strategy is a design exploration strategy that enables designers to generate opportunistic ideas related to the design problem and integrate them during the design process thereby expanding problem and solution space. The flare-fork collaborative strategy leverages rapid ideation, and semantic analogy thought transformation strategy to generate new ideas, interlinking ideas in design space map (DSM) for the elaboration of ideas, and thought transformer strategy to manipulate ideas for expanding problem and solution space. This paper describes a study to examine how the operationalization of the flare aspect of flare-fork collaborative strategy as an intervention supports the design process of three teams of students. We found that students frequently traverse between problem and solution space via an intermediate bridge space. Also, regardless of where the students begin, they do a comprehensive exploration of problem and solution space while using flare-fork collaborative strategy. Students’ perception of using flare-fork collaborative strategy to explore engineering product design is predominantly positive, with students identifying several ways in which flare aspect of flare-fork collaborative strategy aided them in their expansion of problem and solution space.
 
 

Developing Insulating Polymeric Foams: Strategies and Research Needs from a Circular Economy Perspective.

Insulating polymeric foams have an important role to play in increasing energy efficiency and therefore contributing to combating climate change. Their development in recent years has been driven towards the reduction of thermal conductivity and achievement of the required mechanical properties as main targets towards sustainability. This perception of sustainability has overseen the choice of raw materials, which are often toxic, or has placed research efforts on optimizing one constituent while the other necessary reactants remain hazardous. The transition to the circular economy requires a holistic understanding of sustainability and a shift in design methodology and the resulting research focus. This paper identifies research needs and possible strategies for polymeric foam development compatible with Circular Product Design and Green Engineering, based on an extensive literature review. Identified research needs include material characterization of a broader spectrum of polymer melt–gas solutions, ageing behavior, tailoring of the polymer chains, detailed understanding and modeling of the effects of shear on cell nucleation, and the upscaling of processing tools allowing for high and defined pressure drop rates.

Development of a bespoke 3D-printed spinal brace for lumbar support

Low back pain (LBP) is a significant contributor to disabilities in the UK. Many factors cause LBP, including poor posture, obesity, and spinal fractures, all resulting in spiralling healthcare costs. If spinal fractures are not properly braced, they can lead to weakened vertebrae in the spine and larger risks that can reoccur. There are many problems with flexible, semi-rigid and rigid braces currently available on the market. We present the user-centred design approach undertaken by a multidisciplinary design team consisting of product designers, design engineers, technical specialists, and healthcare professionals to develop a bespoke 3D-printed spinal brace using a digital design workflow.

Research on Computer-Aided Product Design Technology.

As globalization picks up speed, product innovation—the driving force behind business growth and market competition—becomes increasingly important for advancing product design technology. Computer-aided technology is one of the key components of product design, including issues with scientific analysis, creative thinking, problem-solving, and handling conflicts. Product design technology is gaining more and more attention. Computer-aided technology is now a trendy topic that is being studied by many academics due to the quick growth of computer technology. However, most of them focus on the product information model and solution and do not start from the technical methods and innovation of product design, resulting in many problems in the later solution and information description. Therefore, this paper studies product technology problems based on computer-aided technology and briefly explains the CAI technology-driven technology and the establishment of integrated process model. In this model, the assembly information model diagram is constructed to analyze the conflicts and problems in the assembly model, and then, the CAI-driven integrated innovation technology is called to complete the assembly model design. Conflicts in the assembly design can be minimized by using this paradigm. Finally, the qualitative examination of product design reveals that brainstorming is the process that uses the least amount of energy. The shafting assembly system is reviewed and examined at the same time, and the assembly accuracy accounts for the highest 35 percent of the system, completely indicating the extraordinary impact of computer-aided product design.

Research on Application of 3D Simulation Technology in Industrial Product Design Technology

In order to study the driving effect of industrial product design, a method based on the application of 3D simulation technology in industrial product design technology was proposed. This method introduces the information about the change in industrial product design in industrial enterprises and analyzes the application of 3D simulation technology in industrial product design by taking DIALux, industrial robot, and resource information search system as examples. The results show that the application of 3D simulation system needs to be combined with industrial software, and the development of industrial software business mainly based on 3D simulation technology is emphasized so that the business revenue of enterprises increases from 709 million yuan in 2029 to 1.385 billion yuan in 2021, with a compound growth rate of 25.01%, which has achieved good economic benefits. 3D simulation technology plays an important role in promoting the development of industrial product design technology. It is necessary to actively promote the integration between 3D simulation technology and industrial software.

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AMARETO – Saxon Alliance for MAterial‐ and Resource‐Efficient TechnOlogies

“Why couldn’t we do this more often?”: exploring the feasibility of virtual and distributed work in product design engineering

Lower costs and higher employee satisfaction are some of the benefits driving organizations to adopt dispersed and virtual working arrangements. Despite these advantages, product design engineering teams—those who develop physical products—have not widely adopted this working style due to perceived critical dependence on physical facilities and the belief that it is ineffective to communicate technical details virtually. This paper uses the mass shift in working conditions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic to explore the feasibility of virtual and distributed work in product design engineering. We conducted 20 semi-structured interviews with product design engineers working virtually to uncover current challenges of, and the beginning of promising strategies for, effective virtual engineering work. We categorize and analyze Tangible Design activities, Intangible Design activities, and Communication and Project Management activities throughout the product design process. Contrary to present opinions, we found that much of a product design engineer's work is realizable in a virtual and distributed setting. However, there are still many challenges, especially when attempting Tangible Design activities—those that require physical products and tools—from home. These challenges, missing from existing virtual product design engineering literature, include but are not limited to individuals’ lessened sense of accountability, fewer de-risking opportunities before product sign-off, and limited supervision of production staff. Product design engineers described novel strategies that emerged organically to mitigate these challenges, such as creating digital alternatives for engineering reviews and sign-offs and leveraging rapid prototyping. Recent advances in technology, an increased commitment to reducing environmental impact, and better work-life balance expectations from new generations of workers will only push society faster towards a distributed working model. Thus, it is critical that we use this opportunity to understand the existing challenges for distributed product design engineers, so that organizations can best prepare and become resilient to future shocks.

Optimal Synthesis of Loader Drive Mechanisms: A Group Robust Decision-Making Rule Generation Approach

The objective of this paper is to present a novel, hybrid group multi-criteria decision approach that can be used to evaluate alternatives for the optimal synthesis of loader drive mechanisms. In most product design engineering groups, experts have expertise in different areas and robust decision-making is necessary to integrate a number of opposing opinions, attitudes, and solutions. This study presents the application of an integrated approach for decision-making, i.e., the generation of a robust decision-making rule for group decision-making (RDMR-G) by combining different multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) methods and Taguchi’s robust quality engineering principles. The basic idea behind this article was to create an approach that enables the comprehensive and robust consideration of expert opinions given the existence of numerous objective and subjective methods for determining the criteria weights, which are crucial to the final ranking of alternatives in any decision-making problem. In order to set the optimal configuration of a loader drive mechanism, five experts, all with a high level of experience and knowledge in this field, considered twenty-six different kinematic chain construction solutions, i.e., alternatives, and evaluated them with respect to six criteria. The obtained results and rankings provided by each expert and each criteria weighting method were compared using Kendall’s τb and Spearman’s ρ tests. As an example, this paper demonstrates the practical application of a RDMR-G approach and in doing so contributes to the literature in the fields of product design engineering and decision-making.

On Value Creation, Value Form Transformation and Life of Engineering Value

<p indent="0mm">After the linguistic turn, the philosophical analysis of “ordinary language” and “academic language” has attracted much attention. This paper pays special attention to the application of interdisciplinary analysis methods and the philosophical analysis of the economic research results of engineering value, focusing on the philosophical analysis of engineering value from the perspective of creationism and process theory. This paper briefly analyzes the technical design, value demand design and aesthetic design of engineering products and some philosophical issues raised. At the same time, it also discusses the production subject of engineering activities, production procedures, exchange value and value exchange of engineering products, value form transformation, value realization and life cycle of engineering value, especially the value content and mutual transformation of products, and commodities and consumer goods.