Types of Engineering Design

Original Design: Innovative design. It employs an original innovative concept to achieve a

need. Successful original designs occur rarely. Design of microprocessor was one such
Adaptive design: This form of design occurs when the design team adapts known solution to
satisfy a different need to produce a novel application. Adopting ink jet printing concept to
spray binder to hold particles in place in a rapid prototyping machine. It involves synthesis and
are relatively common in design
Redesign: much more frequently, engineering design is employed to improve an existing
design. The task may be redesign a component so as to reduce its cost of manufacture. Often
redesign a component so as to reduce its cost of manufacture. Often redesign is accomplished
without any change in the working principles or concept of the original design. Modified shape
to reduce stress concentration. New material to reduce cost or weight. When redesign is
achieved by changing some of the design parameter, if is often called variant design

Selection design: Most designs employ standard component such as bearings, small
motors/pumps. In this case design task consists of selecting the component with the needed
performance, quality and cost from the catalogs of potential vendors
Industrial design: This form of design deals with improving the appeal of a product to the
human sense especially its visual appeal. This type of design is more artistic than engineering.

1881

The Otto dicycle

Redesign?
Most of the new products are not completely new inventions but are new applications and
combinations of existing technologies

Packing Design

Courtesy http://www.technocrazed.com/

Design Problems
`

Design problems are multidisciplinary

Design problems are nested

Design problems are iterative

Design is multidisciplinary

``
Hydraulicshock
shockabsorber
absorber
Hydraulic

Design problems are nested

Every element of a design problem contains and is contained within, another related of that
design problem
The concept of nesting is similar to series of nested boxes or onion like concentric shells

Redesign of gas-turbine powered fast yacht

Design problems are iterative

Solution process is iterative rater than the structure of the problem
Fundamental nature of design problem is such as to require an iterative process in order
to generate workable solutions

The Design Process

Basic Procedure of Design of

Machine Element

Design problem
can be divided into four basic types
Linear technical problems
Linear procedural problems

Closed problems
Nested problems
All design problems can be subdivided into one or more likely some

combination of these four basic problem types

Linear technical problems

Easiest category of problem
Consists of a basic chain of quantitative technical steps, mainly calculations, supported by
well-known engineering and physical laws. These are well accepted and therefore not in
dispute
Such problems will normally have a substantial amount of given information which will be
readily available in a form that can be used-there will not be much uncertainty about the
accuracy of this given information

Here the problem solving process

is
linear,
each
measured
quantitative sub step follows on
from the last on a single levelthere are few, if any, iterative or
retrospective viewpoints involved

Conceptual layout of a linear technical problem

Technical transparency combined

with single technical level is the
characteristics of the linearity

Linear technical problem methodology

Use continuous and rigorous theory
Calculations need to be accurate and consistent. Order of magnitude estimates and

approximations will not be good enough

Consult technical references
Group effort is not the best way. An individual approach is effective
Keep looking forward, Start at the beginning of the problem and work through the

steps to the end, checking as you go

Procedural elements have an important part to play in many design situations: design costing,
project management, value engineering and quantitative design techniques such as failure
mode analysis and reliability assessment are influenced by procedure
Consider a problem of poor interchangeability
Left hand end represents the given information(components for which interchangeability has
been found to be poor) and the left to right path the solution to this problem
Find following three constrains , they are procedural not technical
Measurement: interchangeability problems can be solved easily by measuring the components.
But on real vehicle assembly line there is insufficient time for 100 % measurement
Product range: Best solution would be to make and sell only a single vehicle model, but
commercially not a viable
Quality Assurance: QA principles can be used to address poor interchangeability problems. .
However they are encapsulated in such as ISO 9000 series of standards which cover many
different technologies

Conceptual layout of a linear procedural problem

Linear Procedural Problems- Methodology

Check whether the problem is linear procedural problem. It must have low people
involvement to qualify
Work through the procedural steps one by one accepting and responding to the constrains
that exist

Use established procedural techniques such as costing methods, QA and various quantitative
techniques

Keep group involvement to a minimum

Closed Problems
Comprise a range of problems rather than a single identifiable type
Applicable to two groups of design problems; failure investigation and new product
development
Examples
Design a more user-friendly keyboard
Better design for the failure of high intensity halogen bulbs
No hint of the content of the expected
solutions or even of their form
Where to start?
when to finish?

Where is the details?

Detail of closed design problems comes
from YOU
Technical and procedural paths to follow
are mystery

 Significant input must be dedicated to opening up the problem

Despite the simplistic look of closed problems, they only appear simple because the
complexity is hidden, not because it does not exist!
Closed problems have high complexity

Methodology of closed problems

Opening up the problem is essentially an investigation process, the objective being to amplify
the content and character of the problem until its complexity is revealed

Look for the common nesting levels

Make list of the variables and technical parameters . This will need an appreciation of
common engineering and design principles
Think around the problem-this means an active attempt to look for complexity
Group input will be helpful-closed problems do not respond too well to the individual
approach. If the problem is not opened up fully, good solutions or even sub solutions cannot
be obtained

Use estimates and order of magnitude assessments rather than exact calculations

Nested Problems
Nested technical level
Common model for closed failure
investigation problems(Redesign of gas-

turbine powered fast yacht)

Central level(1) is completely surrounded by

the second level. Technical issue of level 2

affect the level 1 happenings.

Note links that connect levels 1 and 2. Direct

connections based on proven engineering
calculations, principles and laws

Nested procedural level

Design and project management which contain a high
degree of procedural complexity
Project structure and basic design responsibilities lie at
level 1 of the model
Other relevant aspects are represented by the outer
levels 2,3 and 4 , each with progressively increasing
complexity
In this example the definite of the multiple technical
interfaces that form a part of all large and
multidisciplinary design projects

Space vehicle project methodology

Systemic problem

It is not so straightforward; it contains a few

principles which are more ingrained with the
technique of systems thinking

The core task, either technical or procedural lies

at the center(level1)
This is surrounded by only one level of other
problem satellite elements each relating to level

1 via a single link

Radial links are technical and the circumferential
links that join the level 2 satellites are procedural
Several areas of design have a tendency to follow
this type of model
Creative design activities such as graphic
design and aesthetic design
Architectural design
Aircraft flight control