If your car can turn it`s wheels in 90 degress to accomodate itself in parking space you will be delighted. If you are saved in severe accident by alert push-n-tight belt system which is automatic you will be eager to know about this technology. Even it sounds novice in Artificial Intelligence, the technocrats are trying to design the cars which will talk to drivers in effort to avoid the accident.
Getting to know the philosophy of a technical process of industrial designing turned out to be very intersting. It is a combination of great perseverance, hard work and patience. NISSAN motors,Japan recently convened a workshop on Industrial Design in IIT Delhi. On the sidelines of worshop they have also organised a design contest and exhibtion of the winner`s ideas of future automobile.
The buzzwords of the design vocabulary of any ideal design process are as follows: Clear, Creative, Consistent and Customer Focussed...I tried to enter in the mind of the designer when I talked to Parag who hails from MS Ramaiah Institute Of Tehnology, Bangalore who also bagged second award in this competition. He says that even though it is expected fundamental technological understanding of the automative engineering to start career in designing, what you need is good vision of customer and understanding of their needs and difficulties in operation of pertiuclar product. Good ability of imagination and visualisation about the functional sttributes of the cars will be very helpful. He was explaning to me this by indicating towards his design where he has tried to take in account Indian needs of family, wheather and traffic.
NISSAN representatives focussed in their articulation on their efforts to adapt what they call the Japanese DNA in the design process of all new models they bring out in the market.
One representative said, " Simple stuff has more functions. We in our globally spread design labs in Japan, Korea, Taiwan try to achieve simplicity which is purified by culture and philosophy of "Land of Rising Sun i.e. Japan"
Any design has to be symbolic, refined, clear, iconic, fresh from the standpoint of users by knowing changing aspirations of the consumer. A good design process consists of following process:
a) Exploratory Design Process
b) Project Design Phase
c) COO-CDM
d) Production Stage CEO -CDM
e) Project Design Phase
The major finding of this workshop was the realisation about new mantra of design industry that previously it was "Form Follows Function"....These days the modern user frinedly vheicles are adapting to the standard of "Form Follows Emotion".
