4006ME Engineering Problem Solving

Lecture 3 – Being Creative and Generating Solutions

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9 Dot ProblemDraw four or fewer straight lines, without lifting the pen from the paper, that will cross through all nine dots.

9 Dot ProblemDraw four or fewer straight lines, without lifting the pen from the paper, that will cross through all nine dots.

Today’s Lecture

• Consider techniques to encourage creative thinking

• Consider techniques for generating ideas

Sketch of a Reflecting Telescope by Isaac Newton

Drawing of a light bulb from Thomas Edison’s notebook 1880

A page from Charles Darwin’s note book showing the beginnings of one of the most

revolutionary ideas in science and philosophy – the tree of evolution

BLOCKSPart 1:

Rescuing a Table Tennis Ball

• Two pipes, which serve as pole mounts for a volleyball net, are imbedded in the floor of the gym.

• During a game of Table tennis, the ball accidentally rolls into one of the pipes because the cover was not replaced.

• The pipe diameter is 4mm bigger than the ball, which is resting at the bottom of the pipe.

Rescuing a Table Tennis Ball

• You are one of six people in the gym, along with the following objects:• A 9m extension cord• A carpenters hammer• A chisel• A bag of crisps• A file• A wire coat hanger• A flash light

10 MINUTES

Types of Block

• Perceptual – Stereotyping, Imposing limits, information overload

• Emotional – Fear of risk taking, Hate chaos, Judging rather than generating ideas, Lack of challenge

• Cultural – Social taboo

Cultural an example...

• The subject of toilets is a taboo in much of Western society• Research shows that all traditional toilet bowls are too

high• Ideally people should assume a lower squatting

position• An American company designed a new lower bowl• In spite of the obvious medical advantages it was

rejected• The cultural block was too great

Types of Block

• Environmental – Distractions, Facebook, Mobile, PS3, Xbox

• Intellectual – Lacking technical knowledge, Afraid to ask for help

• Expressive – The inability to communicate your ideas

GENERATING IDEASPart 2:

Morphological Charts

Mindmaps

Brainstorming

• Comments that reduce brainstorming to braindrizzling:• That wont work• Its not our job• We don’t have enough time• That’s too much hassle• We cant solve this problem• ..........................

Osborn’s Checklist

Adapt?................... How can this (product, idea, plan, etc.) be used as is? What other uses could it be adapted to?

Modify?.................. Change the meaning, material, colour, shape, odour, etc.?

Magnify?................ Split up? Take something out? Make lighter, lower, shorter, etc.?

Substitute?.............

Who else, where else or what else? Other ingredient, material or approach?

Rearrange?............

Interchange parts? Other patterns, layouts? Change positives to negatives? Turn it backwards or upside down?

Combine?...............

Combine parts, units, ideas? Blend? Compromise?

Adapted from: Felder, R.M., ‘Creativity in Engineering Education’. Chemical Engineering Education, 22(3), 1988.

Bissociation

• Arthur Koestler invented this term to distinguish the type of analogical thinking that leads to the acts of great creativity from the more pedestrian associative (purely logical) thinking, with which we are so familiar in our everyday lives.

• Victor Papenek helped to develop the following approach to aid creativity.

Bissociation

• Object to be designed/problem listed to the left of a vertical line

• On right 6 - 7 response nouns, arbitrarily selected

• Solutions discovered put on right and classified as follows:

Bissociation

• Now – a product / system that can be made immediately

• 2-5 Years – a concept not quite ready for production

• 5-10 Years – a longer term solution• R & D – a reasonable solution that requires

further work by RD• Gimmicks / others – an idea results nothing to

do with the product in question

Bissociation - Example

Bissociation - Example

Bissociation - Example

Lateral Thinking

• View from someone/thing else’s perspective

• If an adult, look as a child

• If a designer, look as the end-user

• If an engineer, look as the machine