Lesson video

Hello.

My name's Mrs. Taylor, and thank you for joining me for our lesson today.

Our lesson today is proportions and scale: textiles, and this is part of the iterative design unit nature.

The outcome, I can determine and justify the size of my design.

And we have five keywords: specification, justification, proportion, dimensions, and scale.

There are three parts to our lesson today: design decisions, proportion and size, and scale.

Let's begin.

Design development is about constantly seeking ways to improve designs.

Once a designer has decided which design has the most potential, they will take this idea forward in development and eventually manufacture.

A designer can evaluate their design against the original design specification to help them decide which design to take forward and to justify their design decisions.

Let's have a check.

What can a designer evaluate their design against? Is it A, a design specification, B, an existing product, or C, someone else's design ideas? Pause the video and have a go.

Let's check.

That's right, a design specification.

The design specification describes what a design must have or do, and is dictated by the research gathered.

To justify design decisions is to give a reason or explanation for the decisions.

Sofia has been developing ideas for the design opportunity of making the herbs accessible to wheelchair users.

This is the design specification Sofia wrote following on from the research she carried out.

The user specification point is the herb growing system must be suitable for wheelchair users, and the justification is, this is to ensure the user can use the product safely and efficiently.

Materials, the materials must be waterproof and suitable for cleaning.

And the justification for this, the product will need to hold plants, which need watering, and therefore must be waterproof.

Function.

The system must allow herbs to be grown from seeds and also as plants, and the justification for this, some users will want to grow herbs from seeds and others will buy plants.

The specification continued.

Aesthetics.

The system must fit into a modern grey and silver kitchen theme, and the justification is that my user has a modern grey and silver kitchen theme.

Environment.

The system must be sustainable, and the justification for this, my user is very conscious about the environment and would prefer not to cause any damage for future generations.

Safety.

The system must be stable and not topple over, and the justification is that some plants grow taller than others.

Let's have a check.

What is the purpose of a design specification? Is it A, it provides step-by-step instructions for making the design, B, it describes what a design must have or do, or C, it lists personal opinions about the design? Pause the video and have a go.

Brilliant.

Let's check.

That's right, it's B.

It describes what a design must have or do.

These are Sofia's most recent design developments.

"I like the hanging pocket system that goes onto the kitchen work surface, so I'm going to evaluate this against my design specification to see if it meets the points on it." Sofia has completed the table below of whether she thinks she has met the specification points or not met them.

She thinks the user has been met, materials not met, function met, aesthetics not met, environment not met, and safety met.

By evaluating her design against her design specification, Sofia has justified her decision to take the design forward.

She has also been able to review whether she still needs to make any changes or improvements to her design idea.

"I feel that this design meets enough of my design specification points for me to take it through to further development, but I still need to do some improvements to make it meet more of the design specification points." Let's have a check.

What is it called when an explanation or reason is given for design decisions? Is it A, estimation, B, observation, or C, justification? Pause the video.

Let's check.

That's right, it's C, justification.

Sofia has justified and why she thinks she has met and not met each point in her design specification.

So for the herb growing system must be suitable for wheelchair users, her justification, the design goes on the countertop, so is more accessible from a wheelchair than a window sill.

The materials must be waterproof and suitable for cleaning.

The justification is I'm making my design out of timber and fabric.

I will need to cover the timber and choose a waterproof fabric.

The system must allow herbs to be grown from seeds and also from plants.

The justification: the design can hold small potted seeds as well as larger plants.

And the evaluation of design ideas against her specification continued.

The system must fit into a modern grey and silver kitchen theme.

The justification is: it is a modern and clean lined design, but I need to consider the colour choices.

The system must be sustainable.

The product will be made out of MDF, dowel and ripstop nylon.

The MDF and dowel are from sustainable sources, but the ripstop nylon is not.

The system must be stable and not topple over.

The design has a stable base with no way of toppling over.

Task A, evaluate your chosen design against your design specification to help you justify your decisions.

And part two, consider how your design still needs to be improved.

You can lay it out similarly to the table below.

Well done.

Let's have a look at some of the answers you may have come up with.

The herb growing system must be suitable for wheelchair users was met, and the justification, the design goes on the countertop so it's more accessible from a wheelchair than a window sill.

The materials must be waterproof and suitable for cleaning was not met.

The justification, I am making my design out of timber and fabric.

I will need to cover the timber and choose a waterproof fabric.

The system must allow herbs to be grown from seeds and also as plants.

This was met.

The design can hold small potted seeds as well as larger plants.

Fantastic.

Let's move on to learning cycle two, proportion and size.

When designing, it is important to consider proportion, size and scale of a design.

The proportion of a design refers to the balanced relationship between the different parts of a product.

Altering the proportions of a design can change it aesthetically, as well as functionally and ergonomically.

Getting the right proportion and size of a product is important.

Hairbrush one has a very small handle that will be uncomfortable and difficult to hold, and may result in repeatedly dropping the hairbrush when using it.

By changing the proportion of the handle and making it slightly longer for hairbrush two, it is a more balanced product as well as being more comfortable and easy to hold and use.

Let's have a check.

What is proportion? A, a method for calculating the volume of objects, B, a type of measurement used only in geometry, or C, a balanced relationship between different parts? Pause the video and have a go.

Wonderful.

Let's check.

That's right, the answer is C, a balanced relationship between different parts.

Sofia is worried that her design is too big for a kitchen countertop and will take up too much space.

She has decided she needs to alter the proportions and the size of the product.

To do this, she will need to gather some external data to plan her sizes correctly.

What data do you think Sofia needs? Sofia has gathered the following data: depth of the average kitchen countertop, which is 600 to 650 millimetres.

The height of a one litre plant pot, which is 110 millimetres.

And the diameter of a one litre plant pot, which is 100 millimetres.

With this data, Sofia can now work out the sizes and dimensions of her product.

The dimensions are the sizes of objects or components.

Dimensions are calculated when designing based on research gathered, such as anthropometric and external data.

Dimensions are commonly represented in millimetres for greater accuracy when manufacturing.

Let's have a check.

What do dimensions describe? Is it, A, the weight of an object, B, the size of an object, or C, the colour of an object? Pause the video and have a go.

Let's check.

That's right, it's B, the size of an object.

Sofia has altered the proportions and size of her product by: making it not as deep, making it narrower, and reducing the number of fabric pockets.

Here is a three dimensional drawing with dimensions.

Task B, gather any external data you need to work out the proportions and size of your product.

And part two, sketch out your final design with any changes in proportions and include your dimensions in millimetres.

Wonderful.

Let's have a look at some of the answers you may have come up with.

The data that you may have gathered could include the depth of the average kitchen countertop, the height of a plant pot, or the diameter of a plant pot.

Sofia has gathered this data to make sure the herbs fit onto her planter, and the planter fits into the planned location.

Part two, "I have drawn a side view of my design in 2D to show all of the dimensions, including the size of the dowel, which will hold the fabric pockets.

I used the data I had gathered about the size of the kitchen worktop to work out the sizes.

I have also drawn the idea in 3D, so that I can show all of the dimensions that couldn't be seen in the 2D sketch.

I have done my dimensions in millimetres, so I can manufacture it as accurately as possible." And now we move to the third learning cycle, scale.

When drawing final designs or making prototypes, designers often have to work to scale.

Scale is the ratio of full size.

Scale is used in design and prototyping to represent objects at a different size than their actual dimensions.

It helps designers create accurate drawings and prototypes that are easier to work with.

Let's have a check.

What would a designer use to represent objects a different size than their actual dimensions? Is it, A, proportion, B, scale, or C, dimension? Pause the video and have a go.

Let's check.

Well done, that's right, it's B, scale.

There are standardised scales that are used by designers, engineers, and architects.

These are conventional ratios that are international, so that everyone knows how to interpret scale drawings regardless of where they live in the world.

Some common standardised scales in product design are: one to one, one to two, two to one, and one to five.

Designers have to choose the most appropriate scale to use when drawing or making prototypes.

A one to two scale means the drawing or model is half the size of the real object.

For example, if a car is four metres long in reality, a one to two scale model would be two metres long.

A two to one scale means the drawing or model is twice the size of the actual object.

If a phone is 10 centimetres in real life, a two to one scale drawing would show it as 20 centimetres.

Let's have a check.

If something is drawn five times smaller than it is, what scale would this be? A, one to 50, B, five to one, or C, one to five? Pause the video and have a go.

Fabulous.

Let's check.

That's right, it's C, one to five.

Prototypes can also be made to scale.

It is not always appropriate to make a full-size prototype, and various factors need to be considered: manufacturing space, storage space, cost of materials, time to build, and sustainable use of materials.

Making a prototype in a smaller scale will still allow for the product to be manufactured and tested.

Before making a prototype, designers should ask themselves, do I need to make this prototype full sized for it to be effective? Task C, consider and decide on the scale that you will make your final prototype.

Look at your final design and chosen dimensions to help you decide this.

Part two, explain and justify why you decided to use the scale you have.

Wonderful.

Let's have a look at some of the answers you may have come up with.

"I have drawn my 2D sketch in one to two scale, meaning it is half the size of my actual product, so that it could fit onto an A4 piece of paper.

However, I have decided to make my prototype one to one scale.

I have decided to use one to one scale for my final prototype as it is not a big product anyway.

I will have enough space to make and store it in the classroom, and it will not use up too many materials due to it being quite small." Here we have a summary of our learning today.

A designer can evaluate their design against their original design specification to help them decide which design to take forward and to justify their design decisions.

The proportion of a design refers to the balanced relationship between different parts of a product.

Altering the proportions of a design can change it aesthetically, as well as functionally and ergonomically.

Scale is used in design and prototyping to represent objects at a different size than their actual dimensions.

Well done and thank you for joining me today.