Full Description
This book provides the reader with a comprehensive, relevant, and visually rich insight into the world of research methods specifically aimed at product designers. It includes practical case studies and tutorials that will inform, inspire and help you to conduct product design research better. Product designers need a comprehensive understanding of research methods as their day-to-day work routinely involves them observing people, asking questions, searching for information, making and testing ideas, and ultimately generating 'solutions' to 'problems'. Manifest in the design process is the act of research. Huge technological advances in information, computing and manufacturing processes also offer enormous opportunities to product designers such as the development of 'intelligent' products and services, but at the same time raise important research questions that need to be dealt with. Product designers are, in many ways, best placed to address these challenges because of the manner in which they apply their design thinking to problems. This book demonstrates in a clear, highly visual and structured fashion how research methods can support product designers and help them address the very real issues the world currently faces in the 21st century.
Contents
Chapter 1 - Introduction Why read this book? / What is research? / What is design research? / Why are research methods important for product designers? / How are research methods used in product design projects? / Research methods for Analysis activities / Research methods for Synthesis activities Chapter 2 - Looking Ethnography / Video diaries / Shadowing / Photo diaries/ journal / Visual anthropology / A day in the life - / Personal belongings / Mapping / Future forecasting / Product autopsy / Case Study 1 - IDEO / Case Study 2 - Sense Worldwide / Tutorial 1 - How to conduct an ethnographic study / Tutorial 2 - How to do mapping Chapter 3 - Learning Cultural probes / Competitor products / Precedent analysis / Literature review / Web searches / Cultural comparisons / Role playing / Try it yourself / Mind mapping / Case Study 1 - Dunne and Raby/ Bill Gaver Cultural Probes example / Case Study 2 - Precedent Analysis [NIKE "Rift" Trainer] / Tutorial 1 - How to do a literature review / Tutorial 2 - How to do a great mind map Chapter 4 - Asking Questionnaire and Surveys / Focus groups / Unfocus groups / User narration / Interviews [semi structured, structured, etc.] / Be your customer/client / Branding research / Market Research / Retail Research / Drawing from memory / Product Camouflage / Name swapping / Image and mood boards / Perceptual mapping / Personas / Product collage / Extreme users / Case Study 1 - Net Objects Hector Serrano and Victor Vina / Case Study 2 - Jaguar Saloon Car Focus Group / Tutorial 1 - How to write a great questionnaire / Tutorial 2 - How to conduct great interviews Chapter 5 - Making [Prototyping] Sketching / Sketch Model / Mock ups / Paper prototyping / Quick and dirty / Experience prototyping / Appearance Model / Empathy tools / Body storming / Rapid Prototyping / Behaviour sampling / Case Study 1 - Dyson Vacuum Cleaner / Case Study 2 - OXO Good Grips / Tutorial 1 - How to conduct experience prototyping / Tutorial 2 - How to do quick and dirty modeling Chapter 6 - Testing Scenario Modelling / Scenario Testing / Product deployment / User trials / Product usability / Test rigs / Case Study 1 - Philips Design; Intel; Motorola "soft" product / Case Study 2 - Berghaus Tent "Extreme Testing" / Tutorial 1 - How to build an ergonomic test rig / Tutorial 2 - How to run good user trials Chapter 7 - Evaluating & Selecting Checklists / External decision / Intuition / Protocol analysis / Product champion / Pros and cons / Matrix evaluation / Case Study 1 - "Intuition" selection Front Design / Case Study 2 - "Rigorous" selection SAMSUNG /Tutorial 1 - How to conduct a matrix evaluation / Tutorial 2 - How to write a checklist Chapter 8 - Communicating Preparing a presentation / Report creation / Presentation boards / Presentation models / Case Study 1 - Bruce Mau data presentation visuals / Case Study 2 - "Exhibition" presentation - Konstantin Grcic / Tutorial 1 - How to prepare a research presentation / Tutorial 2 - How to write a research report Conclusions Summary of theory and recommendations for further study. Bibliography Resources
