MPA11403

PRODUCT DESIGN & DEVELOPMENT

BY: DR. JUZAIMI BIN NASUREDIN
 CHAPTER 12
PROTOTYPING
iRobot PackBot
 iRobot PackBot
 The iRobot PackBot line of tactical mobile robots was designed by
iRobot Corporation to assist law enforcement and military
personnel in conducting operations in dangerous environments.
 PackBot robots were used to help search for survivors in the
wreckage of the World Trade Center in September 2001 and were
the first robots to enter the damaged Fukushima nuclear power
plant after the 2011 earthquake and tsunami.
 They have assisted military operations worldwide, and they are
used in highly dangerous situations by police for bomb disposal and
by workers to detect hazardous materials.
 The mobile chassis of the PackBot accepts a wide range of
payloads, including a robotic arm that can be fitted with a gripper,
video camera, lighting, acoustic sensors, chemical and radiation
detectors, or specialized equipment such as that needed for
disarming bombs.
 PROTOTYPE
PackBot configured with a robotic
arm, camera, gripper, and fiber-
optic communications tether.

ACTUAL PRODUCT
PackBot ready for use in the field.
 Product Prototype
 Prototype is an early sample or model of a new product built to test
a concept or process.
 It is also the process of developing such an approximation of the
product.
 Industrial designers produce prototypes of their concepts.
 Engineers prototype the design.
 Software developers write prototype programs.
 Two (2) Types of Prototype
(Physical vs. Analytical Dimension)
 PHYSICAL  ANALYTICAL
 Tangible artifacts created to Represents the product in a
approximate the product (look- non-tangible manner,
alike) mathematical or visual
approach (simulation)
 Clay model, sample
 Two (2) Types of Prototype
(Comprehensive vs. Focused)
 COMPREHENSIVE  FOCUSED
 Implements most of the  Implement one or a few
attributes of the product attributes of the actual
 Full scale, fully products.
operational version of the  Foam model, hand-built
product
circuit
Sample to actual customer
 The Purposes of Prototypes
 Within a product development project, prototypes are used for four
purposes: learning, communication, integration, and milestones.

Learning Communication

Prototype

Integration Milestones
Learning
 Prototypes are often used to answer two
types of questions:
 “Will it work?”
 “How well does it meet the customer
needs?”
 When used to answer such questions,
prototypes serve as learning tools.
 Focused-Physical prototypes
Test on particular components, such as wheel
strength.
 Drop test, compressing test, tensile strength
Learning
Communication
 Strengthen communication with top
management, vendors, partners, extended
team members, customers, and investors.
Emphasize the physical prototype (Tangible).
Visual, Tactile, and 3D for being actual
product realization.
Enhance the “Look and Feel” of the
prototype.
Stereo-lithography Rapid Prototyping (SLA)
technology
Communication
 Integration
 To ensure that components and subsystems of the product work
together as expected.
 Comprehensive-Physical prototype
 Known as TestBed, Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Preproduction
 Testing radio component, tracking belt, camera, picking up
 Software integration
Integration
 Milestones
 To demonstrate the product has achieved a desired level of
functionality
To be Comprehensive-Physical prototype.
Tangible goals, showing progress, meeting schedules
To pass “qualification test”
Then “First Article Test”, prior production.
 Principles of Prototyping
1. Analytical prototypes are generally more flexible than
physical prototypes.
2. Physical prototypes are required to detect
unanticipated phenomena.
3. A prototype may reduce
the risk of costly iterations.
Principles of Prototyping
 Principles of Prototyping
4. A Prototype may expedite
other development steps.

5. A prototype may
restructure task
dependencies.
 Prototyping Technologies
1. CAD Modeling and Analysis
2. 3D Printing
 Planning for Prototypes
 A potential pitfall in product development is what
Clausing called the “hardware swamp” (Clausing, 1994).
-caused by misguided prototyping efforts; the building
and debugging of prototypes (physical or analytical) that
do not substantially contribute to the goals of the overall
product development project.
 One way to avoid the swamp is to carefully define each
prototype before embarking on an effort to build and
test it.
 The four-step planning method applies to all types of
prototypes: focused, comprehensive, physical, and
analytical.
Planning for Prototypes
 Step 1: Define the Purpose of the
Prototype
 Recall the four purposes of prototypes: learning,
communication, integration, and milestones.
 The team lists its specific learning and communication needs.
 Team members also list any integration needs and whether or
not the prototype is intended to be one of the major milestones
of the overall product development project.
 Step 2: Establish the Level of
Approximation of the Prototype
 Planning a prototype requires defining the degree to which the
final product will be approximated.
 The team should consider whether a physical prototype is
necessary or whether an analytical prototype would best meet its
needs.
 In most cases, the best prototype is the simplest prototype that
will serve the purposes established in Step 1.
 In some cases, an earlier model serves as a testbed and may be
modified for the purposes of the prototype.
In other cases, an existing prototype or a prototype being built
for another purpose can be utilized.
Step 3: Outline an Experimental Plan
 The use of a prototype in product development can be thought
of as an experiment.
-Good experimental practice helps ensure the extraction of
maximum value from the prototyping effort.
 The experimental plan includes:
-the identification of the experiment’s variables (if any)
- the test protocol
- an indication of what measurements will be performed
- a plan for analyzing the resulting data.
 When many variables must be explored, efficient experiment
design greatly facilitates this process.
 Step 4: Create a Schedule for
Procurement, Construction, and
Testing
 Three dates are particularly important in defining a prototyping
effort.
1) First, the team defines when the parts will be ready to
assemble. (This is sometimes called the “bucket of parts” date.)
2) Second, the team defines the date when the prototype will
first be tested.(This is sometimes called the “smoke test” date
because it is the date the team will first apply power and “look
for smoke” in products with electrical systems.)
3) Third, the team defines the date when it expects to have
completed testing and produced the final results.
 Planning Milestone Prototypes
 The team would prefer to build as few milestone prototypes as
possible because designing, building, and testing comprehensive
prototypes consumes a great deal of time and money.
 However, in reality, few highly engineered products are
developed with fewer than two milestone prototypes, and many
efforts require four or more.
As a base case, the team should consider using alpha, beta, and
preproduction prototypes as milestones.
 The team should then consider whether any of these milestones
can be eliminated or whether, in fact, additional prototypes are
necessary.
 Planning Milestone Prototypes
 ALPHA PROTOTYPES are typically used to assess whether the
product works as intended.
- The parts in alpha prototypes are usually similar in material and
geometry to the parts that will be used in the production version
of the product, but they are usually made with prototype
production processes.
 BETA PROTOTYPES are typically used to assess reliability and to
identify remaining bugs in the product.
- These prototypes are often given to customers for testing in the
intended use environment. The parts in beta prototypes are
usually made with actual production processes or supplied by the
intended component suppliers, but the product is usually not
assembled with the intended final assembly facility or tooling.
 Planning Milestone Prototypes
 PREPRODUCTION PROTOTYPES are the first products produced
by the entire production process.
-At this point, the production process is not yet operating at total
capacity but is making limited quantities of the product.
- These prototypes are used to verify production process
capability, are subjected to further testing, and are often supplied
to preferred customers.
- Preproduction prototypes are sometimes called pilot-production
prototypes.
Planning Milestone Prototypes