The development of new design concepts for ship bridges on modern offshore vessels is a considerable challenge for engineering and design professions. Such ships perform advanced missions in extreme environmental conditions that are very different to those in which most design processes take place. Although site visits can help narrow this gap, such opportunities are limited by both funding and access constraints. We suggest the use of design simulators as tools for conceptual design, mediating collaboration between various disciplines and users. This paper reports on work in progress, in which we analyse and explore possibilities and challenges regarding the use of a simulator for the design of ship bridges, comparing the nature of conceptual design with the current use and capabilities of existing maritime simulators. Through this analysis, we suggest there is potential for combining training simulators with tools and techniques from conceptual design processes in ship bridge design. We also discuss some challenges regarding the effective use of simulators as a design tool.
Modulating surface wrinkling is important for a variety of engineering applications. It has been known for more than two decades that the wavelength of surface wrinkles occurring in a metal film−soft polymer system scales linearly with the deposited film thickness. In the current experimental study of ultrathin gold film (0.2−8 nm) deposition on polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS), an unexplored thickness-dependent wrinkling phenomenon is found. By manipulating the deposition sequence as a degree of freedom for tailoring surface topography, we discovered a morphology memory effect where the wrinkle evolution in the subsequent deposition step inherits the surface pattern already formed in the previous step. Moreover, a stepwise deposition targeting 1 nm thick film can lead to 1 order of magnitude higher surface roughness than the one in the continuous deposition. By programming the sequences within 8 nm Au deposition, a surface strain map varying drastically from 0.2% to 27% is realized. Instructed by the strain map, we show the great potentials of tailored wrinkles in alternating surface wettability, enhancing surface Raman scattering, and on-demand tuning of surface adhesion.
The aim of this paper is to investigate Verganti’s framework for design-driven innovation (DDI) in the context of design practice and to discuss, elaborate and deepen the understanding of DDI, especially on aspects related to design. To meet this aim, an in-depth longitudinal case study of a DDI project for developing a radical new vision for an offshore ship bridge concept is performed. DDI is generally recognised as an in-depth research process, but we also approach it as a highly creative, generative process of design in which design artefacts serve as knowledge production and exploration. Therefore, Verganti’s divide between research and creativity and his critique of user centredness are challenged. The paper adds complementary understandings to Verganti’s framework, particularly regarding the role of design, and the Generative Design-Driven Innovation framework is developed.
In the effort of developing sensible ways for interaction between humans and automated equipment the use of commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) products is shown to be fruitful in the learning process. The development in the field of consumer electronics has lead to increasingly more elaborate facilities for interaction with the human user. Modern cell phones and game technology are typical representatives of this trend. In this work such equipment has been explored in the aim to achieve easy and natural interfaces between humans and
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