The ability to solve technical problems depends on the frequency and skills with which the researcher has faced similar problems previously. Consequently, this ability is fundamentally based on knowledge, since the objective is to reuse previously acquired knowledge in similar situations.
application-of-the-theory-root-in-the-development-of-a-new-productInventive Problem Solving Theory or TRIZ theory is an approach capable of assisting this process and, consequently, very useful to accelerate the innovation process. This article presents the TRIZ theory, its foundations and also an example of its application in the development of a new product.
Introduction
Currently, companies face various changes that require them to constantly search for new alternatives, products that allow them to have a competitive advantage that positions and distinguishes them in the market. Experience has shown that what a company needs to survive is to systematically innovate its products, processes or services (Trott, 2008). This is possible through the materialization of new ideas or concepts in products, services or processes with the aim of increasing productivity (Orloff, 2008). An essential element of innovation is its successful application in the commercial field. To innovate it is not only necessary to invent something, but also to introduce this new product to the market, so that people can enjoy it.
In this work, innovation is seen as the process of putting creativity into practice. In other words, innovation is the transformation of new concepts or ideas into new consumer goods or services. This transition, from an idea to a new product or service, requires the knowledge and contribution of various disciplines, various areas that make up the company or organization. This characteristic transforms innovation into a social, creative and technical process, in which knowledge is exposed, shared, created and transformed to generate value (Cortes et al., 2009). There are many techniques and tools that are used to help the innovation process, although there is a consistent lack of effectiveness when facing problems that require a strong relationship between knowledge and creativity (De Bono, 1993),(Leonard-Barton, 1998), (Eversheim, 2008). However, in the last two decades, a more balanced approach to solving problems has expanded globally: the TRIZ theory or Inventive Problem Solving Theory. TRIZ was developed in Russia by Genrich S. Altshuller in the 1940s. TRIZ is a huge knowledge capitalization effort that combines scientific knowledge as well as technical insight about technical and creative solutions obtained from various fields or areas of knowledge.Altshuller in the 40's. TRIZ is a huge knowledge capitalization effort that combines scientific knowledge as well as technical insight about technical and creative solutions obtained from various fields or areas of knowledge.Altshuller in the 40's. TRIZ is a huge knowledge capitalization effort that combines scientific knowledge as well as technical insight about technical and creative solutions obtained from various fields or areas of knowledge.
Therefore, TRIZ has the versatility to combine with other techniques, such as Robust Taguchi Design, QFD, 6 sigma, Theory of Contradictions (TOC), Design for Manufacturing and Assembly (DFMA) and other methodologies and tools, increasing the efficiency of these methods when seeking to obtain competitive advantages (Rantanen et al., 2007), (Terninki et al., 1998)
issue
The present project arises from detecting the need to use two different tools for the following actions:
• Broom: sweeping
• Brush: carving and mopping.
A previous activity to sweep it is necessary to spray water on the floor to avoid the dispersion of dust in the air, which leads to loading and moving within the entire area that you want to sweep a bucket with water. The problems detected when carrying out this action are the following:
• Discomfort when moving the bucket with water and the broom, within the area in which it is being swept.
• The movement generated when moving the bucket between point and point causes spills of water in greater quantity to those in need, causing the need to mop or in a second case generating even more dirt (mud).
• The bucket occupies a space within the area to be swept, for which it is necessary to move it from side to side, in order to sweep the entire area.
• When the bucket is filled with water, the running time of the sweeping activity increases considerably.
• It is necessary to immerse the user's hand in the water to spray on the floor. It should be noted that in some cases the water is mixed with chemical substances, which can generate certain reactions on the skin if these are not washed in time.
It is important to highlight that neither of these two tools (broom - brush) allow cleaning areas where vertices are found, in addition to cleaning both utensils is unpleasant and unsanitary.
Justification
Currently the company demands the carrying out of activities (whatever they may be) in the shortest possible time and ensuring their obtaining and / or better results. In the same way, the need for increasingly less complex execution procedures is demanded, for which the demand is answered with the least amount of accessories necessary to carry out the activities.
The above explained is transferred to the needs of users of brooms and brushes, who need tools that allow them to carry out activities in a more efficient way.
TRIZ Theory Application
Product definition
This project proposes the solution to the problems mentioned above.
The Nimbus 3000 brush-broom eliminates the need to have two different objects to carry out sweeping and carving, eliminates the need to use one more object to carry out the dispersion of water prior to sweeping, eliminates annoying water spills from the tray and eliminates the fatigue of moving the tray from side to side.
The Nimbus 3000 brush-broom combines the action of sweeping, carving and spreading water in one product. It provides a better grip of the user to the product support, giving it better comfort and thus avoiding continuous abuse of the user's hands.
The Nimbus 3000 brush-broom ensures the cleaning of areas with corners to be cleaned, it is light and easy to move, with greater resistance on the support and provides greater ease of cleaning.
The Nimbus 3000 brush-broom excludes the concept of being only "The broom" and becomes "My broom" (each broom is customizable with prints of the client's taste, if he so desires).
Application of TRIZ in conceptual design
To deal with this problem, a five-step process is proposed:
Step 1. Recognition of customer needs. This information was obtained from local customers who use brooms and brushes for cleaning purposes. Likewise, international information was collected on the types of brooms in the market. It is important to highlight that the TRIZ theory does not have a tool for detecting needs. Step 2. Definition of the problem. The available information on customer needs provided the basis for the definition of the "problem design" involving aspects such as materials, means of production, ergonomic specifications, the market itself and in general all those resources necessary for the elaboration of said product. Step 3. Development of ideal concepts that could satisfy the dimensions of the product. Step 4.Relates to the concept of validation. Step 5. Transformation of the selected concept into product specifications and production requirements.
Fast
With the help of this tool we will be able to graphically identify and display the functions of the product to be elaborated through the following questions: How? Why?. The diagram of our product is presented below.
Step 1. Recognition of customer needs
As a first step it was necessary to understand the client, for which surveys were applied in the city of Orizaba from where information was obtained on the potential market and its characteristics. The results are shown concentrated in the table shown below:
E * Means that this information comes from the client or through his observation.
I * It is information that has been inferred by the work team.
Required product functions
Simultaneously, a functional analysis of the new product was carried out to identify the functions that should be considered in the design process.
These functions could be negative, essential or superfluous.
1. Clean surfaces (sweep)
2. Carve surfaces
3. Handle
resistance 4. Bristle resistance
5. Ease of cleaning the bristles
6. Attractive design
7. That the product does not weigh
The information obtained from the surveys served as the basis for the development of this new product, with which the team proceeded to start the design process.
Another of the tools used in Step 1 was QFD (Quality Function Deployment), since it is useful to transform customer needs into design parameters (Akao, 2004).
The application of this tool gave rise to a series of design characteristics that should be satisfied in order to cover the largest possible number of markets, which are shown below.
Defining the parameters
IFR: The ideal product is one that can be a broom and brush in a single product, that each of these functions is present when needed, that is capable of cleaning on corner surfaces, that is light and resistant. This concept is used as a reference for the generation of new solution concepts.
Step 2. Definition of the problem.
Analyzing the data obtained so far, contradictions were identified, which represent a problem for product design, since it must:
• Be resistant, but the effort to load it must be minimal.
• Large but small water container at the same time.
The reduction or elimination of these contradictions are of vital importance, since this ensures compliance with the objective set at the beginning of this project.
To resolve the second contradiction, the use of the contradiction matrix was necessary, one of the most popular TRIZ tools. The purpose of this is to reduce the space of solution to find potential solutions more quickly, for this the solution principles associated with the contradiction must be analyzed, which are found in a basis of principles.
The contradiction described above cannot be analyzed under these terms in the matrix, so they must be raised again based on the characteristics that are to be improved and those that are to be worsened, as shown in the matrix. So the team again defined the contradictions, obtaining the following:
• Tension / pressure against weight of a moving object.
• Amount of substance versus ease of operation.
The remainder of this section describes how this tool was applied and what solutions were found.
Contradiction 1: Tension / pressure versus weight of a moving object.
The principles applied to resolve this type of contradiction are 40, 35, 31 and 10; Which indicate the following (Principle 40 and 31 were the ones that provided a solution to the problem raised in this case).
40. Composite materials
to. Replace homogeneous materials with compounds
35. Transformation of the physical and chemical states of an object
to. Change an object's aggregation state, density concentration, degree of flexibility, temperature
31. Use of porous material
to. Make a porous object or use additional porous elements (inserts, covers, etc.)
b. If an object is already porous, fill its pores with some substance
10. Previous action
to. Take the required action in advance in full, or at least in part
b. Order the objects in such a way that they can take action without wasting time waiting for the action
Solution: Applying principle 40, it was decided to use aluminum material for the manufacture of the product handle since it satisfies the requirements (resistant and light), in addition to using plastic materials for the other components of the same.
Applying principle number 31, it was decided to take advantage of the structure of the product handle (which is hollow) as a container for the liquid.
Contradiction 2: Amount of substance against form.
The principles applied to resolve this type of contradiction are 3, 30, 31 and 36,; which point out the following (Principle 3 was the one that provided a solution to the problem posed in this case.):
3. Local Quality
to. Transition from a homogeneous structure of an external object or environment (external action), to a heterogeneous structure.
b. Have different parts of the object perform different functions.
c. Place each part of the object in the most favorable conditions for its operation.
For example a pencil and an eraser are a unit.
31. Use of porous material
to. Make a porous object or use additional porous elements (inserts, covers, etc.)
b. If an object is already porous, fill its pores with some substance
30. Flexible film or thin membranes
a. Replace the usual constructions with flexible membranes and thin films
b. Isolate an object from the external environment with thin films or thin membranes
36. Phase transition
to. Implement an effect developed during the phase change of a substance.
Proposed Solution:
It is based on principle 3, in which it was decided to include the water sprinkler on the broom as a single unit.
Step 3. Conceptual design
Once the principles were identified and the contradictions resolved, the design team proceeded to turn them into solutions by using their previous experience and knowledge, thus creating a conceptual design that meets all the characteristics demanded by the user. In addition, several functions were added that were not specifically declared by the client, but that by adding them it is expected to have a greater impact on it, as well as differentiate the product from the others.
Based on the above, the product design is as follows:
In the previous drawing you can see the dimensions of the object which were previously specified, as well as its shape. The product is described in more detail below.
Mango
The diameter of the handle is 8 cm and the length of the handle is 103 cm. The handle of the brush-broom is made of aluminum, covered with a plastic layer, thus ensuring the client's specifications of lightness and resistance, caused by the natural properties of the material.
It is important to note that the handle provides two main functions which are:
• Provide a support where to exert force to execute an action (carve or sweep).
• Liquid container.
The handle structure has a padded area that allows a better grip and provides greater comfort for the user in that area.
Sprinkler
In order to spread water, you need to decide between two options: Want to spray the water from the top, that is, with the help of the atomizer, or from the bottom, that is, directly from the brush. The first option will be explained below.
The Sprinkler is attached to the handle to be able to spray liquid, it is necessary to turn the sprinkler if you want to adjust or remove it from the handle. In order to spray water, it is necessary to lightly press the lever located under the area where the liquid comes out. Along the handle, on the inside, there is a very thin hose, which is part of the sprinkler and its length is equivalent to that of the handle. Its main function is to obtain the liquid contained in the mango to be able to spread it later.
If we choose the option of wanting to spray water from the brush, we have that as a component of the sprinkler, there is a piece placed on top of the brush, its main function is to allow or not, the passage of water, how is this accomplished?, pressing a button included in the same piece.
Brush
The brush –Broom as its name says, is made up of soft bristles and hard bristles. Yellow bristles are soft, since this condition is necessary for sweeping; Red bristles are tough since this condition is necessary for carving. Both are in the same quantity. The brush-broom has an angle of inclination which ensures the power to sweep in areas with vertices. The brush length is 30 cm, the width is made up of two values because one part is longer than the other for the reason explained above. Its measurements are: 11cm and 9cm respectively.
Broom cleaning
An important part of the cleaning activities is the collection of the garbage that could accumulate after carrying out this action, for which it was decided to complement the product with a dustpan.
The need to keep the broom or brush clean was the occasion of having to remove the accumulated garbage between the bristles with your hands. Due to this, a comb was included in the dustpan that facilitates the removal of these remains. For which you only have to introduce the bristles in the comb and then pull up the broom-brush so that the residues are contained in the dustpan. The dustpan is shown below.
Attractive broom design
To satisfy this objective outlined at the beginning of the project, it is proposed to integrate various styles of stamping the Nimbus 3000 brush-brooms, for which a wide range of patterns of different colors and styles must be available. The following images present some models of covers proposed.
Conclusions
This article proposes the design of a new product by applying several fundamental concepts of the TRIZ theory. In addition, it is shown how TRIZ is combined with techniques such as QFD, Theory of Contradictions (TOC) and Functional Analysis in order to accelerate the design process, obtaining criteria that allow the selection of potential solutions in a short period of time.
Due to its nature, TRIZ has the versatility of being applied to various fields of study where solving a problem is required, either in the industrial sector or even in the basic sciences. This TRIZ capability explains the vast number of applications in processes, products and services in various fields. That is why TRIZ is a powerful useful tool being designed or supported in the process of developing new products.
With the application of TRIZ, the design team achieved the creation of a different product that meets the most important requirements of customers and, in addition, was able to add features that they do not expect from the product.
In relation to the application of the tools and concepts developed in TRIZ, it is necessary to highlight that they are very valuable in the creation of knowledge. Ideality has the power to focus the mental models of individuals in the same direction as well as the possibility of generating synergy through the application of IFR-Contradiction, with which you have the ability to direct creative efforts towards the development of solutions that are get closer to the ideal design. Therefore, contradictions create creative chaos where new concepts are generated.
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Taylor & Francis Group Guillermo Cortes Robles, Stéphane Negny ny, Jean Marc Le Lann, Design acceleration in chemical engineering.
Chemical Engineering and Processing 47 (2008) 2019–2028 Guillermo Cortes Robles, Ste´phane Negny ∗, Jean Marc Le Lann, Case-based reasoning and TRIZ: A coupling for innovative conception in Chemical Engineering.
Chemical Engineering and Processing 48 (2009) 239–249 Guillermo Cortes Robles, Workshop: Development of new products, TRIZ theory of inventive solving problems. A innovation perspective based on knowledge.
Instituto Tecnológico de Orizaba.Michael A. Orloff, Inventive Thinking through TRIZ, a practical guide. Second Edition. Springer.
