INNOVATION &

DESIGN THINKING
Course Code: 23IDT18

Dept. of Mechanical Engineering,

MCE, Hassan.

1
COURSE OBJECTIVE:
• The objective of this course is to make students choose real life
problems and generate innovative ideas to solve them through design
thinking approach.

2
COURSE OUTCOMES (COs):
Upon completion of the course, students shall be able to:
• explain the different stages in design thinking
• generate solutions to real life problems by applying the design
thinking approach

3
COURSE CONTENT
MODULE –1
• Introduction: Innovation, Design, Early man as a designer, Design
thinking levels: Component or product level, System or community
level. Morphology of Design: Divergence or Explorative phase,
Transformation or Creative phase, Convergence phase. Sustainable
Development Goals.
MODULE –2
• Fundamentals of Design Thinking: Design Thinking Process: Different
Phases. Empathize: Observation, Interview, Literature Survey.
Define/Analyze: 5 Why's technique, Conflict Analysis.

4
MODULE –3
• Ideate: Eskimo nine dot problem, Theory of Inventive Problem Solving
(TRIZ method), Brain storming. Prototype: Methods of Prototyping.
Testing: Self-reflection, Interviewing real customer.

ACTIVITIES:
• Identifying real life problems through observation & interaction with
real world
• Literature Review
• Brain Storming session to generate ideas for the chosen problem
• Skill building to prepare a prototype
5
TEXT BOOKS:
1. Dr. Bala Ramadurai,” Karmin Design Thinking”, Mudranik Technology Private Ltd.
ISBN 978- 93-5419-0I0-0.
2. V. Gupta and P. Murthy, An Introduction to engineering design method, Tata
McGraw Hill, 2000. ISBN-0070964416.
REFERENCES:
3. [Link], Stephen O’Brien and John P. Hutchinson, “Engineering Design”,
Cengage learning (International edition) Second Edition, 2013.
4. Roger Martin, "The Design of Business: Why Design Thinking is the Next
Competitive Advantage", Harvard Business Press , 2009.
5. Hasso Plattner, Christoph Meinel and Larry Leifer (eds), "Design Thinking:
Understand – Improve – Apply", Springer, 2011
6. Idris Mootee, "Design Thinking for Strategic Innovation: What They Can't Teach You
at Business or Design School", John Wiley & Sons 2013.
6
7
INTRODUCTION
MODULE –1

8
CONTENT
• Introduction: Innovation, Design, Early man as a designer, Design
thinking levels: Component or product level, System or community
level. Morphology of Design: Divergence or Explorative phase,
Transformation or Creative phase, Convergence phase. Sustainable
Development Goals.

9
 Curiosity

Inputs

Existing Knowledge
Scientific Enquiry
Technical Facilities

Hypothesis

Analysis
A better
understanding of
Experiments our world

Scientists
10
 Inputs
Need Science
Technology
Ergonomics
Engineering Design
Aesthetics
Process
Sociology
Psychology
Economics
A better world
for us Ecology

Engineers
11
What did you understand from the
previous two slides?

12
• Scientists study the world as it is.

• Engineers create the world that never has been.

• While a scientific enquiry begins from curiosity, a design

process starts from a need.

13
Who are engineers?
People who plan,
design, or build
according to
scientific
principles.

14
What is
innovation?
the practical implementation of ideas
that result in the introduction of new
goods or services or improvement in
offering goods or services 15
What is designing?

16
 To suggest or outline ways to
The process by which we put together man-made
generate ideas in response to things, or to suggest
a certain need, and then carry modifications in man made
out their transformation into things to satisfy optimally
reality. (under the given constraints)
some specified human needs.

17
• Through the ability to create and fashion naturally available materials to
suit his requirements, man has created for himself a material world where
everything has been developed to serve his needs.

• Designing is much more than getting a brilliant idea.

• An idea is worth nothing if it is not put into use to serve man and society.

• Designing must see the idea through its development into a material form,
or at least demonstrate beyond reasonable doubt that the idea is feasible.

18
• What a designer aims for is not the ideal design but only the best under
the given constraints.

• Engineering design being practical in nature, must be concerned with what

is feasible. Considerations of physical realizability, or economic and
financial feasibility are a necessary requirement.

• The design process is not a recipe, a prescription, or a formula which if

followed can guarantee a result. The process, if understood and practised
consciously, only increases the possibilities of a successful design.

19
EARLY MAN AS A DESIGNER

20
• When man learned to walk on his two feet, he was not better
endowed physically than many other animals of the forest.
• He learnt to change his surroundings to suit his requirements and to
gain advantage over other creatures.

21
22
Pottery, clothing and shelter

23
24
25
• Man has throughout the ages been bettering his means for survival by adding,
at first slowly and then at increasing rates, to his tools and techniques.

• The history of civilization is the story of man’s never ending design activity
through which he meets his ever expanding desires and needs.

26
27
28
DESIGN LEVEL

Earlier
• Component or product level

Now
• System or community level

29
30
31
• Earlier Individual houses were designed, then a road system was
imposed on them. Power supply, water supply and sanitation were all
later piece meal additions with the result that all such services are
very inefficient and subject to breakdowns.

• Now town planning handles the problems of the city at the

community and system level and even tries to anticipate the problems
which may arise with future developments.

32
MORPHOLOGY OF DESIGN
(Structure of the design process)

Consists of three phases

1. Divergence or Explorative phase
2. Transformation or Creative phase
3. Convergence phase

33
34
35
36
FUNDAMENTALS OF DESIGN
THINKING
MODULE –2

37
CONTENT

• Fundamentals of Design Thinking: Design Thinking Process: Different

Phases. Empathize: Observation, Interview, Literature Survey.
Define/Analyze: 5 Why's technique, Conflict Analysis.

38
 DESIGN THINKING PROCESS
What is Design Thinking?

“It is the process of solving problems which leads to a product or service.

This is a human centric approach which has got steps such as Empathise,
Define/Analyse, Create (Ideate & Prototype) and Test.”

39
40
EMPATHYZE
How to empathize?
1. Observation
2. Interview
3. Literature Survey
The following points are very important during empathizing
• Without judgment
• With beginner’s eyes
• With curiosity
• Optimistically
• Respectfully
41
LITERATURE REVIEW
• Review of existing solutions to the problem or for similar problems
• Review of work already done to solve the problem or similar
problems

Sources:
• Research journals
• Technical articles
• Books etc.

42
How to search for a research journal?
Go to Google Scholar using the below link
[Link]

43
Type key words related to your problem or project concept

44
Journal articles, book chapters etc. related to the topic will appear

45
Click on individual article links to read, refer or download
• For downloading behind the paywall files, you can try sci-hub

46
Click on links related to sci-hub

47
Copy and paste the URL, title etc. and click on open

48
49
50
DEFINE / ANALYZE
• Finding out the root cause of suffering
• Recognizing a need is in itself a creative process.
• Many of the design problems encountered by a practising engineer
are communicated to him by his employers or customers.
• In all design situations, the first task of the designer is to determine
what exactly is needed.
• Quite often, the designer and sponsors of the design identify a wrong
need and take up a wrong problem to handle.
• It frequently happens that a designer starts thinking of the solutions
even before he has clearly identified the need.
51
52
5 Why's technique – Lady driving to Bengaluru with
her daughter during night time
Q1) Why she was worried when the kid asked to use toilet.
Ans.: Because it was night

Q2) Why she was worried about the night?

Ans.: Because it was an unknown place.

Q3) Why she was worried about the unknown place during night?
Ans.: Because there may be trouble with safety.

Q4) Why she was worried about the safety in unknown place during night?
Ans.: Because she is a lady and alone with her kid.

Q5) Why she was worried about the safety when she was alone with her kid during night in
unknown place?
Ans.: Because of probable attack of robbers/rapist/animals.

53
CAUSE-AND-EFFECT DIAGRAM

• A cause-and-effect diagram (Ishikawa diagram or a fishbone diagram)

is a picture composed of lines and symbols designed to represent a
meaningful relationship between an effect and its causes.
• C & E diagrams are used to investigate either a ‘bad’ effect and to take
action to correct the causes or a ‘good’ effect and to learn those
causes that are responsible.

54
55
56
Conflict Analysis
Two goals which cannot be achieved simultaneously like high quality &
low cost for most of the products

57
IDEATE
MODULE –3

58
CONTENT

• Ideate: Eskimo nine dot problem, Theory of Inventive Problem

Solving (TRIZ method), Brain storming. Prototype: Methods of
Prototyping. Testing: Self-reflection, Interviewing real customer.

59
IDEATE

Eskimo nine dot problem

Connect the nine dots by four straight lines drawn without lifting the
pencil or pen

60
61
IDEATE

Theory of Inventive Problem Solving (TRIZ method)

• TRIZ is a problem-solving philosophy based on logic, data and
research, rather than on intuition.

The Key TRIZ Tools

1. Generalizing Problems and Solutions
• Creative innovations often use scientific effects outside the field
where they were developed.
62
63
To know more about TRIZ follow the link below
• [Link]

To make use of effects database follow the link below

• [Link]

64
2. Eliminating Contradictions
• Another fundamental TRIZ concept is that there are fundamental
contradictions at the root of most problems.
• In many cases, a reliable way to solve a problem is to eliminate these
contradictions.
• Technical contradictions: These are classical engineering "trade-offs,"
where you can't reach the desired state because something else in
the system prevents it. In other words, when something gets better,
something else automatically gets worse.

65
For example:
• The product gets stronger (good), but the weight increases (bad).
• Service is customized to each customer (good), but the service
delivery system gets complicated (bad).
• Training is comprehensive (good), but it keeps employees away from
their assignments (bad).

66
• Physical (inherent) contradictions: These are situations in which an
object or system suffers contradictory, opposite requirements.
For example:
• Software should be complex (to have many features), but simple (to
be easy to learn).
• Coffee should be hot (to be enjoyed), but cool (to avoid burning the
drinker).
• An umbrella should be large (to keep the rain off), but small (to be
maneuverable in a crowd).

67
40 Principles of TRIZ [Link]

68
69
References
• [Link]

• [Link]

70
Brain storming or Brain writing
o This method of generating ideas assume that criticism or fear of
criticism is an inhibiting factor for creative thinking and that two
minds are better than one, because of the reinforcement they provide
to each other.
Scheme or Procedure

1. Select a group of people

2. State the problem as simple as possible
3. Give 10 minutes to each member to write down solutions
4. Each member reads one idea in turn. Every idea is noted down.
5. Rule out judgement
6. Encourage humour
7. Logical classification of ideas
8. Concepts are later evaluated and selected one is further developed
Prototype:
Methods of Prototyping.
• Sketching
• 3D Modeling
• 3D Printing
• Preparing working model
• Developing website or App
• Poster
• Preparing static model using suitable materials

73
Testing
• Self-reflection
• Interviewing real customer

74