| 1. |
- Ekströmer, Philip, 1991-
(author)
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A first sketch of Computer Aided Ideation : Exploring CAD tools as externalization media in design ideation
- 2019
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Licentiate thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- Even though Computer Aided Design (CAD) tools have changed the way designers work in most parts of the design process, designers still mostly use pen-and-paper sketching when generating design ideas. Previous studies exploring the use of CAD tools for design ideation have concluded that the tools available at the time did not support reflective conversation, serendipitous interpretation and creativity, making them unsuited for design ideation. However, many of these studies used tools now considered obsolete, implying that the conclusions might no longer be valid. With the variety and capabilities of current CAD tools, there is an opportunity for a new exploration of CAD tools in design ideation.The aim of this licentiate thesis was to explore the use of CAD tools as externalization media in design ideation, what effect this has on the ideation process and how CAD tools might support design ideation. To this end, the thesis explored the use of CAD tools in design ideation in four studies. The first study consisted of a literature review on the strengths and weaknesses of sketches and CAD tools and a focus group discussion with three design experts. The second study compared master theses to explore how design representations used in the design process affect the breadth of design space exploration. The third study was a case study with two cases featuring the use of game engines and Virtual Reality for automotive lighting design and the fourth study compared the workflow in VR-sketching and pen-and- paper sketching.The results of the studies in this thesis suggest that the notion that CAD tools are not useful for design ideation is no longer true. Based on expert evaluations and case studies, this thesis concludes that there are several opportunities for the use of CAD tools in design ideation. This is certainly true in design fields where it is difficult to make sketches. The potential strengths of using CAD tools for design ideation includes the ability to design in full scale and the ability to perform instantaneous transform operations, such as scaling and deforming. However, the ability to instantly undo in CAD tools has been identified as both a potential strength and potential a weakness for design ideation. While being able to rapidly undo mistakes could be beneficial to the ideation process, achieving a faster workflow with less time redoing and more time working on creating, this might also result in fewer opportunities for reinterpretation.The conclusions in this thesis provide arguments for the use of CAD tools in design ideation, which could lead to new ways of generating, working with and thinking about design ideas. The findings also act as a stepping stone for further studies in the area of Computer Aided Ideation.
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| 2. |
- Ekströmer, Philip, 1991-, et al.
(author)
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In search of lost materiality; the case for physical modelling in Industrial Design Engineering education
- 2018
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In: Proceedings of NordDesign 2018, Linköping, Sweden, 14th - 17th August. - : The Design Society. - 9789176851852
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Conference paper (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Over the recent years, Industrial Design Engineering students at Linköping University havefrequently been observed to go directly from sketches into CAD, without making simple sketchmodels for evaluation in the early stages of their design process. This workflow gives them lessinformation in their decision-making process and they lose the materiality of physical models,which is an aspect that many designers and researchers consider crucial for the development ofform. This discussion paper explores whether this is an increasing trend and if so how it affectsthe breadth of design space exploration. In total, 25 master theses, covering a period of nineyears, on Design and Product Development from Linköping University have been analysed.The design representations used and the diversity of the ideas across the product developmentprocess were visualized in graphs. This mapping supports our preliminary observation that theuse of physical models is declining and suggests this decline correlates to a narrowerexploration of the design space.
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| 3. |
- Ekströmer, Philip, 1991-, et al.
(author)
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Shedding Light on Game Engines and Virtual Reality for Design Ideation
- 2019
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In: Proceedings of the Design Society. - : Cambridge University Press. ; , s. 2003-2010
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Conference paper (peer-reviewed)abstract
- While pen-and-paper sketches is generally considered the best tool for design ideation, there are certain areas of design where the ideas being generated do not easily lend themselves to sketching. This study reports on two cases that explores the use of game engines in combination with Virtual Reality (VR) to visualize lighting in the automotive industry. In the first case, the exterior lights of a car were visualized using Unreal Engine 4 and evaluated using research through design and expert interviews. In the second case, Unreal Engine VR Editor was used to explore ideation and concept development of interior lighting in long haulage trucks. The insights from the cases suggest that game engines and VR can be used to quickly develop and display ideas, concepts and scenarios in the early phases of the lighting design process. These strengths suggest that game engines and VR also have the potential to support design ideation for other types of design.
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| 4. |
- Vistisen, Peter, et al.
(author)
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Sketching Immersive Information Spaces : Lessons learned from experiments in '˜sketching for and through virtual reality'
- 2019
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In: Proceedings of the 7th eCAADe Regional International Symposium. - : eCAADe. ; , s. 147-157
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Conference paper (peer-reviewed)abstract
- This paper presents the lessons learned from a design workshop exploring methods for early exploration of immersive information spaces, such as Virtual Reality (VR). The methods explored cover design situations both designing for VR, and designing through VR, in varying degrees of fidelity. The workshops shared the common factor of attempting to enable a feedback loop between sketching activities and the more didactic and time consuming prototyping processes. From our analysis, we found that to achieve true ‘sketchiness’ in an immersive VR settings, tool proficiency naturally becomes a decisive factor, since a lot of new techniques needs to be learned and gained experience with. Furthermore, it is evident that the mental shift, from flat to 360 degree design, was challenging, but also the enabler of new creative constraints from which the designer can explore the boundaries of the design space. We conclude by arguing for the development of more formalized patterns, materials and tools to not just enable immersive sketching, but also enable grasping the immersive design space itself by motivating the explorations and happy accidents when ‘doodling’ in the immersive space.
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