Table of Contents

Introduction vii

Part One: Design Fundamentals 1

1 The Activity of Design 3

What Designers Say 3

What Designers Do 5

Case Study 9

2 The Nature of Design 15

Design Problems 15

Problem Structures 18

How Designers Problem-Solve 21

3 The Process of Design 27

Descriptive Models 27

Prescriptive Models 30

Integrative Models 37

Part Two: Design Practice 41

4 Design Procedures 43

Systematic Procedures 43

Design Methods 44

Creative Methods 46

Rational Methods 53

5 Identifying Opportunities 57

The User Scenarios Method 58

6 Clarifying Objectives 73

The Objectives Tree Method 74

7 Establishing Functions 87

The Function Analysis Method 88

8 Setting Requirements 99

The Performance Specification Method 100

9 Determining Characteristics 113

The Quality Function Deployment Method 114

10 Generating Alternatives 129

The Morphological Chart Method 130

11 Evaluating Alternatives 143

The Weighted Objectives Method 144

12 Improving Details 161

The Value Engineering Method 162

13 Design Strategies 179

What is a Design Strategy? 179

Strategy Frameworks 183

Strategy Control 185

Learning to Design 186

Developing Expertise 188

Part Three: Design Thinking 191

14 Design and Innovation 193

Product Planning 193

Systems Design 198

References and Sources 203

Index 205

About the Author

Nigel Cross is Emeritus Professor of Design Studies at The Open University, UK, where he pioneered distance learning in design. He was also Professor of Design Methodology at Delft University of Technology, The Netherlands. He has an international reputation in design education and research in design methodology, design thinking, design expertise and the nature of design ability.