UNIT III PRODUCT CONCEPTS

UNIT III
PRODUCT CONCEPTS
A: Concept generation, product configuration, concept evaluation
and selection, product embodiments. B: Quality function
deployment, product design specification, physical prototypes-
types and technique, dimensional analysis, design of experiments.
 CONCEPT GENERATION
A product concept is an approximate description of the technology,
working principles, and form of the product. It is a concise description
of how the product will satisfy the customer needs. A concept is
usually expressed as a sketch or as a rough three-dimensional model
and is often accompanied by a brief textual description.
COMMON DYSFUNCTIONS EXHIBITED BY DEVELOPMENT
TEAMS DURING CONCEPT GENERATION INCLUDE:

 Consideration of only one or two alternatives, often

proposed by the most assertive members of the team.
 Failure to consider carefully the usefulness of concepts
employed by other firms in related and unrelated
products.
 Involvement of only one or two people in the
process, resulting in lack of confidence and commitment
by the rest of the team.
 Ineffective integration of promising partial solutions.
 Failure to consider entire categories of solutions.
CONCEPT EVALUATION
What is Concept Evaluation?
Concept evaluation is the process of grading & evaluating
concepts for determination of their relative merits. Concept
evaluation is done using both qualitative and quantitative
approaches for determining the technical, financial, and
marketing feasibility of a concept. This requires,
1. A ranked set of criterions on which each concept is rated,
2. a reference design that is used as a control and against which
comparisons are made, and
3. selection of method to rank concepts with respect to the criteria
that is both effective and efficient.
The ranking of concepts leads to determining
which concept is most likely to succeed and
should move ahead in the new product
development process. Concept fitness is
defined as a parameter overall rating that
beats all the other available concepts, with
respect to the requirements.
IMPORTANCE OF
CONCEPT EVALUATION
Concept evaluation helps us choose the best among many
concepts.
It provides us with different methods to measure the concept
fitness based on which it lanes down one particular concept
according to our required criterion.
The most fit concept is hence chosen. Since fitness doesn’t have
an objective scale for measurement therefore concepts are
compared or ranked or both to assess the most fit concept in all
terms.
The concept rated best in comparison or ranked first I called
the most fit concept. Concept evaluation is very important due to
concept fitness.
Weight as a criterion is far more significant in aerospace
engineering than automotive engineering;
Safety is far more important in engineering medicinal
products than in the engineering of office equipment.
Therefore, the relative importance of requirements effects the
choice of concepts and their fitness.
Hence, requirement evaluation is necessary to determine
which one is most important. The relative importance of
requirements is done by assigning weights to them.
MEASUREMENT SCALE FOR
CONCEPT EVALUATION

The ranking of concepts with respect to a reference design we

have to be able to assign values with some confidence, predicting
that one concept is better than another.
Therefore, a kind of quantitative scale captures the range of values
with which we assess the concepts. The range of the scale for
concept evaluation is small in the range of single digit numbers
mostly for easier analysis.
Since the concepts are vaguely defined at this point so the level of
precision available in a large-range scale will lead to unnecessary
assessments. On the other hand, a concept evaluation scale with
too few values doesn’t work too, otherwise it becomes difficult to
distinguish sufficiently well between the alternative concepts.
Value Meaning

-2 Much less fit than the reference

-1 Slightly less fit than the reference

0 Roughly of equal fitness as the reference

+1 Slightly more fit than the reference

+2 Much more fit than the reference

A five-point scale has been rated good for providing sufficiently fine
measurements without being overly precise. The scale is linear and
ranges from -2 to +2 mostly.
CONCEPT SELECTION
INTRO
We’ve done voice-of-the-customer research and tried to identify the
needs of our users, their jobs-to-be-done, and/or the outcomes they
care about.
We’ve detailed the problem space as much as possible, though we
know there is still more to learn because we haven’t even begun
prototyping our own solutions.
We wrote a Marketing Spec and used divergent thinking to come up
with a lot of solution concepts.
WHAT DOES CONCEPT SELECTION
LOOK LIKE?

It can look like a whole lot of different things.

Selecting concepts can definitely look like proceeding with your
first idea, because a lot of people don’t take the time to really
consider the full range of concepts.
Selecting concepts can also look like an extensive, “stage gate”
process with thorough committee vetting and analysis, because
maybe proceeding with the wrong concept could cost you millions
of dollars.
But, selecting concepts might also look like simply building a
minimum viable product that can let you start testing some
assumptions, because more than anything, time is short and
uncertainty is high.
A FIVE-STEP METHOD
STEP 1: CLARIFY THE PROBLEM
Clarifying the problem consists of developing a general understanding
and then breaking the problem down into subproblems if necessary.
The mission statement for the project, the customer needs list, and the
preliminary product specification are the ideal inputs to the concept
generation process, although often these pieces of information are still being
refined as the concept generation phase begins. Ideally the team has been
involved both in the identification of the customer needs and in the setting of
the target product specifications. Those members of the team who were not
involved in these preceding steps should become familiar with the processes
used and their results before concept generation activities begin.
As stated before, the challenge was to “design a better handheld roofing
nailer.” The scope of the design problem could have been defined more
generally (e.g., “fasten roofing materials”) or more specifically (e.g.,
“improve the speed of the existing pneumatic tool concept”). Some of the
assumptions in the team’s mission statement were:
 The nailer will use nails (as opposed to adhesives, screws,
etc.).
 The nailer will be compatible with nail magazines on existing
tools.
 The nailer will nail through roofing shingles into wood.
 The nailer will be handheld.

Based on the assumptions, the team had

identified the customer needs for a handheld
nailer. These included:
 The nailer inserts nails in rapid succession.
 The nailer is lightweight.
PRODUCT EMBODIMENT
A product embodiment refers to a specific implementation or version of a
product idea or invention. It represents the tangible form of a concept, showing
how the product might be manufactured, designed, and used.
In intellectual property and patent law, embodiments are crucial because they
describe the different ways an invention can be realized or constructed, ensuring that
the patent covers a broad range of possible implementations.
For example, if an inventor patents a new type of electronic device, the patent might
include several embodiments showing different configurations or uses of the device.
Each embodiment provides a detailed description of how the invention can be made
and used, often including drawings or diagrams to illustrate the design.
In summary:
Embodiment: A specific version or configuration of a product or invention.
Importance: It helps protect various forms of an invention under a patent, providing a
broader scope of protection.
Examples: Different shapes, materials, or functionalities of a single product idea.
QUALITY FUNCTION
DEPLOYMENT (QFD)
Quality Function Deployment (QFD) is a structured approach used
in product development and quality management to ensure that
customer requirements are systematically translated into specific
technical features and functions of a product or service. It helps
organizations prioritize and focus on critical customer needs,
ensuring that the final product aligns closely with customer
expectations.
KEY COMPONENTS OF
QFD
Voice of the Customer (VoC):
 The process begins with gathering detailed customer requirements, known as
the "Voice of the Customer." This can include customer desires, preferences, and
expectations for the product or service.

House of Quality (HoQ):

The main tool used in QFD is the House of Quality, a matrix that
maps customer requirements to the specific product characteristics
that need to be addressed. It allows for a visual representation of
the relationships between customer demands and design features.
The matrix is structured in a way that resembles a house, with
different sections representing various aspects of the product
development process.
Technical Requirements:
These are the engineering characteristics or specifications that
must be met to satisfy the customer requirements. Each technical
requirement is evaluated to determine how well it meets the
customer needs.

Relationship Matrix:
This part of the HoQ shows the relationship between customer
needs and technical requirements, often using symbols or
numerical values to indicate the strength of the correlation (e.g.,
strong, moderate, weak).
Prioritization:
QFD helps in prioritizing both customer needs and technical requirements,
ensuring that the most critical aspects are given the most attention during
the development process.
Competitive Benchmarking:
The process may also include benchmarking against competitors' products,
comparing how well different products meet the identified customer needs.
Deployment of the Quality Function:
Once the initial matrix is completed, QFD can be expanded into
subsequent matrices to further break down the technical requirements into
more detailed specifications, processes, or materials needed for
production.
BENEFITS OF QFD
Customer-Centric Design: Ensures that the product design process is
driven by customer needs.
Improved Communication: Facilitates better communication between
different departments (e.g., marketing, engineering, production) by
providing a clear understanding of what needs to be achieved.
Reduced Development Time: Helps in identifying potential issues early
in the design process, reducing the need for costly redesigns.
Enhanced Quality: Leads to higher quality products that better satisfy
customer needs.
QFD is widely used in industries like automotive, electronics, and
consumer goods, where aligning product features with customer
expectations is critical for success.