Design and Planned Obsolescence. Theories and Approaches for Designing Enabling Technologies.

Abstract

Abstract:We are currently living in a decade where smart objects and Internet of Things (IoT)-based devices are becoming part of daily life in different contexts. This research seeks to investigate and verify, by using a formal literature review methodology, the most visible aspects of technological development, within the Industry 4.0 and IoT scenario, in relation to the theories of the so called "Planned Obsolescence". This study covers a defined number of works on Design theories and practices on how to face the issue of built-in obsolescence of devices in the era of the Connected Devices. The majority of the works studied are useful to create substrates of essential knowledge that strengthen the concept of premature ageing of technological devices and it has been noticed that the discipline of Design can be used as an incentive to extend life, improve the usability of existing products and empower user abilities.

Assessing relations between Circular Economy and Industry 4.0: a systematic literature review

“…Wang, Zhang, and Zuo 2016) x (J. Xu 2009) x (Zallio and Berry 2017) x T o t a l 7 4 3 3 2 2 1 Thomas, and Trentesaux 2013) x (Deschamps et al 2018) x (He, Xu, and Xu 2010) x (Karastoyanov and Karastanev 2018) x (Kuik, Kaihara, and Fujii 2016) x x x x (Panarotto, Wall, and Larsson 2017) x (Rönnlund et al 2016) x (Schäfers and Walther 2017) x (Schroeder et al 2016b) x (Schroeder et al 2016a) x (Siddiqi et al 2017) x (Simons 2017) x (Sun and Wang 2011) x (Trentesaux and Giret 2015) x x (Turner et al 2016) x (van van Schaik and Reuter 2016) x (van Schalkwyk et al 2018) x (X. V. x x (Zhao, Dang, and Zhang 2011) x Total 6 6 5 4 2 2 1…”

“…x (Thoben, Wiesner, and Wuest 2017) x (Trentesaux and Giret 2015) x x (Turner et al 2016) x (Y. Wang, Zhang, and Zuo 2016) x (Zallio and Berry 2017) x Total 9 7 7 6 2 3 (Holligan, Hargaden, and Papakostas 2017). The IoT can be also useful for developing new assessment methods that quantify environmental impacts related to smart infrastructures (Mashhadi and Behdad 2018), new energy management tools (Y.…”

Smart design engineering: a literature review of the impact of the 4th industrial revolution on product design and development

“…Changeable products and PSSs are potential solutions to decreased lifecycles and resource scarcity (Richter et al 2010;Xing and Belusko 2008) and are also ways to deal with obsolescence issues (Zallio and Berry 2017). Van Rhijn and Bosch (2017) conclude that closed-loop systems will increase future customer demand for easy upgrading, which requires a highly modular and operator-friendly product design in addition to early-stage testing and the ability to implement upgrades, while the product is in use anywhere in the world.…”

Electronic textile reparability

“…Built in obsolescence in clothing and electronics has benefitted industry (Zallio and Berry, 2017) but legislation is now being created to counteract this. Shortening the life of products has been made illegal in France (Maitre-Ekern and Dalhammar, 2016).…”