Identification of Need

This  first  step is often  done  for  you by  someone,  boss  or client,  saying  "What  we  need is

... " Typically this statement will be brief and lacking in detail. It will fall  far  short of providing you with a structured  problem  statement.  For example,  the problem  statement might  be  "We  need  a better  lawn  mower."

Background Research

This is the most important phase in the process, and is unfortunately  often  the  most ne- glected. The term research, used in this context, should  not conjure  up  visions  of white- coated scientists mixing concoctions in  test  tubes.  Rather  this  is  research  of  a more mundane sort, gathering  background  information  on  the  relevant  physics,  chemistry, or other aspects  of the  problem.  Also  it is desirable  to find  out  if this,  or a similar  problem, has been solved before. There  is  no  point  in  reinventing  the  wheel.  If  you  are lucky enough to find  a ready-made  solution  on  the  market,  it will  no  doubt  be  more  economi- cal to purchase it than to build your  own.  Most  likely  this  will  not  be  the  case,  but you may learn a great deal about the problem to be solved by investigating the existing "art" associated with similar technologies and products. The patent literature and technical publications in the subject  area  are obvious  sources  of information  and  are accessible  via the worldwide web. Clearly,  if you find that the  solution  exists  and is covered  by a  patent still in force, you have only a few  ethical  choices:  buy  the  patentee's  existing  solution, design something which does not conflict with the patent, or drop the project. It is very important that sufficient  energy  and  time  be expended  on  this  research  and preparation phase  of the  process   in order  to  avoid  the  embarrassment   of concocting   a great solution to the  wrong  problem.  Most  inexperienced  (and  some  experienced)  engineers  give  too little attention  to this phase  and jump  too quickly  into  the ideation  and invention  stage  of the process. This must be avoided! You must discipline yourself to not  try  to  solve  the problem   before  thoroughly   preparing   yourself   to do so.

Goal Statement

Once the  background  of  the  problem  area  as  originally  stated  is  fully  understood,  you will be ready to recast that  problem  into  a more  coherent  goal  statement.  This  new prob- lem  statement   should  have  three characteristics. It should  be concise,  be general,  and   be uncolored by any terms which predict a solution.  It should  be couched  in terms  of  func- tional visualization, meaning to visualize  its function,  rather  than  any particular  embod- iment. For  example,  if the  original  statement  of need  was  "Design  a Better  Lawn Mow- er," after research into the myriad of  ways  to  cut  grass  that  have  been  devised  over the ages,  the  wise  designer  might  restate  the  goal  as  "Design  a  Means  to  Shorten Grass." The original problem statement has a built-in trap in the form of the colored words "lawn mower." For most  people,  this  phrase  will  conjure  up  a vision  of  something  with whir- ring blades and  a noisy  engine.  For the  ideation  phase  to be most  successful,  it is neces- sary to avoid such  images  and  to  state  the  problem  generally,  clearly,  and  concisely.  As an exercise, list 10 ways to shorten grass.  Most  of them  would  not occur  to you  had  you been  asked  for  10 better  lawn  mower  designs.   You should  use  functional    visualization to avoid  unnecessarily    limiting   your creativity!