Lesson video

Hello.

My name is Mr. Donnelly.

I'm one of the design and technology teachers for Oak Academy.

In this lesson, we're going to develop a specification so that we can use it to design a product for our para-triathletes that focus is on the function and the form of the item that we're going to design.

If you've followed along so far, you'll know that in lesson one we focused on writing good design and specification and worked out how to write one.

Lesson two, we focused on adding ergonomic and anthropometric considerations to our specification.

Now that we've got lesson one and two under our belt, lesson three will focus on developing the use of a specification to work on the function under the form of the product that we're going to design for our para-triathletes.

So in this lesson, there are three things that we're going to focus on.

The first thing is that we're going to develop our specification and use it to design.

The second part of the lesson, we're going to make sure that we use our specification to work out how we can develop a product focusing on the function.

And then the last point, you've probably guessed we're going to focus on the form of the product that we designed.

As always for my lessons, there were two things that you're going to need.

Firstly, it will be some plain paper and a pencil or pen.

If you've not got those things, pause the video, go and get them, come back, get comfy and we'll crack on with the lesson.

In this lesson, there are three key words and terms. Understanding them now will help with the lesson.

The first one is initial ideas.

You may be able to guess what this means but every time you design a product there's always something that springs to mind first.

Whether you draw it or model it they are your first thoughts.

So, initial ideas are the first thoughts that a designer has.

The second term is function.

You may know this already, but if not, then the function refers to the purpose of the product or object and it focuses on how it actually works.

So, what does the products do? And then the last term is the form.

This normally is related to the shape of a product.

So, we've got initial ideas, first thoughts, function, what does the product actually do? And then lastly, form, how does it look and what shape is it? I thought I'd produce a slide just to set the scene so you know where I'm up to with the development of my product, 'cause I'm working along in the lesson at the same pace as you.

This is lesson three, in lesson one, we focused on developing a specification.

Lesson two, we focused on anthropometric and ergonomics.

And if you've missed any of that work, it's important to do lesson one and two first so that you're at the same stage as me.

I have decided to develop a coffee or tea cup holder for a para-triathlete to fit onto a residual limb so that they can carry a cup of coffee whilst on the move.

So that's the point that I'm working at now.

I know the product and I've got some specification points and I've got some measurements for lesson two.

What we're going to do is use a feature called ACCESS FM to help develop the product.

So, you may know this already, I'll pop them on and you can be reading them as they appear on your screen and I'll have a little chats about each of the eights boxes.

So, ACCESS FM is an acronym.

An acronym is a word, but each letter of the word represents another word so that we can remember them.

So, rather than remembering eight words, we know ACCESS FM and we can use these to develop specification points and evaluate products that we look at.

So A is the aesthetics, how will our product look? How much will it cost? This isn't just to buy, it's cost to maintain.

We've got the client is our para-triathletes.

We must always focus on the environment, so the environmental impacts of sourcing materials, manufacturing, and then disposal at the end are ideally put into another use.

We've got the size, safety, the function and then the materials.

If you can always use ACCESS FM, I'll have some of those points in the back of your mind.

It will make sure that your design work is thorough.

My current design specification is shown on the screen here.

And it's written as a short list of bullet points.

So you could read through those points now and they're the ones that are my main specification points.

So it must fit the residual limb of my particular clients.

It must hold a coffee cup.

The size must be adjustable.

It must be a lightweight and not cumbersome.

It must have no sharp edges.

And my client would like it to be black so that it matches sort of the other equipment.

Some points are to do with function or form.

So on here, can you spot, which is the difference? So, of those points which ones do you think are related to function? And which ones do you think are related to the form? So, have a read through now so that you get to know the difference between how something works and how something looks.

So, do you think that to fit the residual limb of my client is a point related to function or a point related to form? Choose one now, make a commitment and I'll show you the answer.

It's the function.

So bear that in mind, that one point so far you can keep a tally of where we are up to.

One point so far is to do with function.

Next statement, hold a coffee cup safely.

Do you think this is to do with function or form? Make a choice.

Yeah, I'm sure you will have got that one right.

That's to do with function as well.

So, function two, form nil so far.

Next one, be adjustable in size.

Do you think this has to do with the function or the form? To do function, but obviously the way that something is adjusted will have an impact on the way that something looks.

So, to design something that is adjustable you might have to be really clever to make sure that it is adjustable and functions, but also looks neat and not cumbersome as well.

Next statement, be light weight and not cumbersome to use.

Do you think that's part of its function or part of its form? Make a choice.

Again, it's the function.

These are measurable things.

You could weigh the product and then test whether it's cumbersome or not in use.

Now, obviously by making something not cumbersome I'd be looking at a product which was close fitting to the residual limb and not too bulky.

That is also in a way related to the form of the product.

So it's not too big, but it's definitely related to the way that the item we design functions.

Have no sharp edges.

Do you think this is function or form? Make a choice.

This one is form.

So once you've designed something to remove sharp edges that would be the way that it looks and the shape of it rather than the way it functions.

But also, in having a product with no sharp edges that's also a safety feature because you're less likely to just get scratched.

So it does work well with the function but it's definitely a form point.

Be black.

My client has a lot of equipment, which is already black.

So what do you think, do you think its function or form? Make a choice.

I think one's a little bit more straightforward.

So it is very much to do with the way it looks whilst it's not shape it is to do with aesthetics and the way that the product looks.

So that one is form.

So, my initial idea is to hold a coffee cup on a residual limb.

So I've got here three photos.

One of them is actually my arm held out and the middle photo is my arm held out holding a coffee cup.

And then the last photo actually shows a prosthetic arm being fitted onto the residual limb of a para-triathlete.

What I've decided to do is use that photo, there's something called an underlay.

So I'm going to take a photograph of it, which I have.

And I'm going to use that to trace over because it's actually quite a complicated drawing to produce.

You may decide that you want to make a model.

So when I was producing this lesson, I did think about modelling something out of cardboard to hold a cup and then using that as my initial idea.

But I found it faster just to hold the product, take a photo and I'm going to use that as a tracing an underlay to make sure that I get the proportions correct for my design work.

So now you can see what I've done.

From the previous slide, the middle photo showed my arm holding a glass coffee cup.

What I've done now is I photocopied the photograph, printed it out, and then I've traced over my arm holding the cup.

And I've used that to try to come up with some sorts of form that could slide onto the residual limb of a para-triathlete and yet still have a grasping part of it where you could put a coffee cup.

So, what do you think my focus is for this photo? Do you think at the moment I'm focusing on the function or focusing on the form? Make a choice.

I think this is a tricky one.

Go for it now.

You may have thought form, because I'm focusing on the way that it looks, but as the lesson progresses and you see how this develops this is actually a focus on the function.

My first thought is, how can I hold the coffee cup? The form will come later on.

So, eventually my design work will get slightly more refined where I focus on the form of the product.

At this stage I'm purely focusing on the function, but with that because it is a physical product that would be in existence, form does come into play.

But really we definitely focus in at this point on the function, getting something to work before I focus on how it will look.

So by now, you will have seen the run-up in this lesson to the main task.

You're going to produce some initial ideas.

Remember that was one of our key words, your first thoughts.

So you should have your own design issue that you're trying to solve for your para-triathletes.

You should have a specification from lesson one.

You should include anthropometric and ergonomic considerations from lesson two.

And now we're thinking about the function and the form of the product that you're actually going to work on.

The slide previous to this shows where I'm up to with my design work.

The slide after this shows my initial idea so far.

So what I'd like you to do is to get your pencil and your pen, pause this slide and have a good read yourself and then if you need to look at my example on the next slide you can do, but you're going to produce a set of ideas, your initial thoughts that show where you're up to with your design at the moment.

So, this is my example.

In the photo, which is just there.

That shows my initial idea, my first thought.

So what I did was take the photo of me holding a cup and I traced over it.

Now what I've done, is taken that a step further and developed it into a selection of different forms and products but all of them solving the same design issue.

It would be fantastic to be able to add some of the things that I have in the lower paragraph below.

How nice would it be always to think, we will have a robotic feature.

Could it be that the prosthetic arm and cup holder have got some sort of temperature sensor so that when you pick something up you actually know whether the product is hot or not.

Would it be nice to think of a antibacterial nano material coating to make sure that the product is always clean.

A designer could go on and on trying to add as much technology as they can but sometimes the designer needs to focus on limitations such as budget, time and then the skill of the designer themselves.

So at this stage, we're focusing on designing a product which works, with a form which we think is good and later on, we'll try to see in the lesson if we can add any other technology and thoughts to our product.

So now we're at the end of the lesson I was thinking it's important to go back and recap on some of the keywords.

The first one was initial ideas.

So you should be at the point now with this lesson where you've got some initial ideas about the design solutions to the item that you're working on.

And we're going to need those, before we move on to the next lesson Function, you should now have a product in mind that you've drawn initial ideas off, and you should think, how is it going to work? What's it's main purpose? And then lastly, you should know what the form is, or roughly the form.

So you should have your first thoughts, clear drawings that show how the product will work, that's the function.

And then some development on how the products may look.

So what shape and form might it take? I hope you've really enjoyed this lesson.

I've loved making it and I'll see you in the next one.