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Design Challenge 4:Happy Meal Toy

Tic Tac Toy(Revised by Dan Yanes)

Team X-Surge: Group 10Dan Yanes, Ryan Merriner, Shomik Verma

Team X-Surge: Dan Yanes, Ryan Merriner, Shomik Verma.

To: EGR CorporationFrom: Team X-Surge: Dan Yanes Ryan Merriner, Shomik Verma (Team 10)Subject: Happy Meal Toy Proposal Date: Tuesday November 10, 2015

Proposal Evaluation Board

This memo was created for EGR Corp. as a response to Fluke Toy Corporation’s request to provide a new design for a Happy Meal toy to be launched in 2016. Team X-Surge hopes this memo provides EGR Corp. with a worthwhile and detailed analysis of the “Tic-Tac-Toy.”

Executive Summary

X-Surge is confident that this memo will convince EGR Corporation that the “Tic-Tac-Toy” has the potential to be McDonald’s most successful Happy Meal toy to date. X-Surge was tasked with designing a Happy Meal toy to be released in late 2016. While focusing on making the toy fun, low cost, and safe, the team developed a wide range of ideas in a collaborative brainstorming session. In a thorough ideation refinement process, X-Surge assessed the safety, practicality, and entertainment value of each of its ideas. Using weighted matrices, cost calculations, and SolidWorks modeling, the team concluded that a tic-tac-toe board would be the basis on which it would develop its idea. The game board would consist of a frame on which axles would support nine 3-sided game pieces; each side would either be blank or contain an “X” or an “O”. X-Surge further refined its idea by analyzing additional features to include; the team decided to give each toy a popular theme, a scoring mechanism, and perforated cutouts from the Happy Meal box. X-Surge believes that the “Tic-Tac-Toy” has the potential to be a worldwide success given its global appeal and its low production cost of $0.28 per unit.

Approach Description

Ideation TechniquesX-Surge began the brainstorming process by discussing what it was trying to

accomplish in general terms, and then the team used a how-why diagram to narrow its ideas into specific toys. Team members discussed what they would want in a Happy Meal toy, and they researched previously successful Happy Meal toys to help generate ideas. X-Surge continued the brainstorming process by creating a how-why diagram. The team identified the three most critical criteria of its design as practicality, entertainment value, and, most importantly, safety. By continuing to ask the question “how?” to these three critical criteria, X-Surge was able to find ways to make its toys safe and practical, as well as appealing to the consumers receiving the toys. The team’s complete how-why Diagram can be found in Figure 1 on the next page.


Figure 1: How-Why Diagram: Initial Brainstorm

Using the aforementioned brainstorming techniques and the how-why diagram above, X-Surge was able to generate a diverse list of potential Happy Meal toys. Below in Figure 2 is an isolated section of the ideas X-Surge generated in its initial brainstorming process. A complete list of all ideas can be found in Appendix Figure 2.

Figure 2: Initial Brainstorm (Isolated section from Appendix Figure 2)

Ideation Refinement and Selection Techniques


After compiling many potential toy concepts ranging from mind puzzles to popular movie characters, X-Surge more deeply analyzed its top six choices. After sketching and further exploring each of these six ideas, the team created a weighted value analysis matrix to compare the ideas. The matrix (see Appendix Figure 3) was based on the principle of identifying key criteria, weighing these criteria based on relative importance, and comparing alternatives using these criteria. The methodology included assigning a score (ranging from 1-5) to each toy for each criterion, then multiplying the scores by the weights (ranging from 1-6) and adding these scores to obtain the final score. The results of the weighted matrix can be seen in the table below.

Tic-Tac-Toe

Tangrams Snoopy with doghouse

Calvin and Hobbes

Pokémon with Pokéball

Nintendo Characters - Mario

Weighted Total

139 122 130 133 123 113

Figure 3: Value Analysis Matrix Results (Isolated section of Figure 3 in Appendix)

Due to its versatility, the Tic-Tac-Toe idea scored the best in the matrix, and after a final discussion, all group members were happy with the decision to pursue this idea, which the team later named the “Tic-Tac-Toy.”

Toy Description and Documentation

Overview of Toy Features

In this section X-Surge will discuss and analyze the major design features of the toy. These features include the board and pieces, a scoring mechanism, varied themes for each board, and the use of the Happy Meal box. When developing the design features of the toy, X-Surge continually referred back to its three critical design criteria (practicality, entertainment value, and safety) in order to create a successful Happy Meal Toy.

Board and Pieces (See Prototype in Appendix Figure 4) X-Surge’s toy is a small tic-tac-toe board, which will fit well within the

dimensions of the box, only filling about 8.4% of the box’s volume. The board is structured using a square frame with 3 rods that hold the 9 tic-tac-toe pieces. Much like a tic-tac-toe board that would appear in a park playground, the pieces will each have three sides; one for each player, and one blank side for spaces that have not yet been used. These pieces will provide users with a simple way to play tic-tac-toe, and after each game, the board can easily be reset and played on again.Scoring Mechanism


On either side of the board there will be an additional axle with 5 sliding beads. This feature can be used for players to keep a tally of their wins, much like a foosball table’s goal tracker. A prototype of the scoring mechanism is seen in Figure 5 below.

Figure 5: Prototype of Scoring Mechanism

Board Themes Each tic–tac-toe board will have a theme in which players can choose to be one

of two characters taken from popular culture. Examples of this could be Batman vs. Superman, or Gru vs. the minions. Each side of the board will feature the images and colors of its respective characters, so players know which character they are playing as. Additionally, rather than using X’s and O’s as the game pieces, the sides of the pieces will use symbols corresponding to the featured characters (i.e. for Batman and Superman, their logos would be printed on the pieces). These themes will also allow for a product line of various boards while using the same design structure and molds. The boards will feel different aesthetically, but it won't be costly to mass-produce the “different” toys.

Use of Box The Happy Meal box itself will contain perforated cut outs that relate to the

theme of the board that they come with. These will augment the board themes and allow kids to more deeply connect with the game, without increasing production cost or space by adding plastic. For example, if the theme is Calvin & Hobbes, the perforated figure could be Calvin’s wagon or imagination box; if the theme was Despicable Me, the cutout may be the glasses the minions wear. Without adding much production cost, the kids are essentially receiving a second toy.

Critical-to-Fit/Function (CTF) DimensionsCritical-to-fit dimensions are dimensions that required high precision and if

improperly manufactured, can easily lead to issues with the toy parts not fitting or functioning properly. Because of this, X-Surge sought to minimize the number of CTF dimensions, as well as account for the CTF dimensions that it could not avoid.

The main CTF dimension is the diameter of the rods. The diameter being too small should not be a problem, except for possible stability and strength issues. However, if the diameter is too big, there is a risk of the rod not being able to fit in the holes in the frame or the triangular X-O pieces/counters. Thus, the other CTF dimensions


are the sizes of the holes in the frame and the sizes of the holes in the triangular X-O pieces and counters. If the sizes are too small, the rod will not fit through the pieces.

Similarly, an additional CTF dimension is the distance of the holes in the frame from the sides of the frame. If the tolerances are too high for each of the holes, a minor error in the first hole may cause a drastic change in the placement of the final hole. A solution to circumvent this issue would be to define each hole location as a distance from the side of the frame, instead of in relation to the other hole locations. This would make it harder to change the shape of the toy, but it would save money by decreasing the number of CTF dimensions.

SolidWorks ModelingThe prototype of the “Tic-Tac-Toy” (see Appendix Figure 4) was modeled and

dimensioned using SolidWorks. All part drawings and cross sections can be found in Appendix Figures 6 through 10; these figures include three-view layouts and label the CTF dimensions. A 3D exploded view of the toy assembly can be found in Appendix Figure 11, and an isometric view of the completed assembly can be found below in Figure 12.

Figure 12: Isometric View of Completed SolidWorks Assembly

Part Material SpecificationsBecause the prototype was 3D printed, all of the cost calculations were done

assuming the plastic is ABS, with an approximate price per pound of $1.00. If this part were mass-produced, X-Surge would keep most parts made of plastic, so the cost would be approximately the same. The team originally discussed making the inside rods metal for stability purposes, but a review of McMaster prices showed a 3.25 in. length of aluminum metal rod would cost about $0.22. This was significantly higher than the $0.03 required by injection molding, thus the team decided to stick with plastic.


Estimated Production Costs and VolumeThe estimated cost per toy is $0.28, as derived from the cost calculator given

(Appendix Figure 13). The volume calculations can be found in the Appendix (Figure 14). The cost calculator also shows an annual output of approximately 50 million parts, at a total cost of approximately $9 million per year. This ratio will be used later to determine what the actual total cost of production will be, depending on how many units are produced. For specific information on actual production cost and volume, refer to the “Manufacturing Plan”.

The Public Health Advocacy Institute estimates that the average production value for happy meal toys is around 43 cents, approximately half the cost of the Happy Meal. Because of this, it is critical that the cost per unit is kept to a minimum, making a 28-cent toy advantageous. McDonald’s total sales for 2014 were around 30 billion dollars, with about 10 percent of sales coming from Happy Meals. The New York Times estimates McDonalds sells roughly 1.5 billion Happy Meal toys a year. This means that if McDonalds were to sell X-Surges Happy Meal toy for a year it would save over 200 million dollars a year on production due to larger margins.

Additionally, X-Surge believes that McDonald’s can further increase its margins by making money off the advertising used in the different themes. Given McDonald’s global reach, many of the large film production companies would love to partner with McDonalds, and would be willing to pay McDonalds a significant amount of money in exchange for the advertising it will receive.

Tolerance AnalysisTo safeguard production against the CTF dimension of rod and hole diameters is

to define the dimensions such that the largest possible rod diameter is still smaller than the smallest possible hole. The rod and hole fit can be classified as a close sliding fit, as the rod does not need to move once it is locked in place. For the rod CTF, the diameter of our rod was 1/8 or .125 in, and X-Surge also defined the size of the holes as .125 in. The team assumed a margin of error of ±.004 in. as given. It would thus be beneficial to instead define the diameter of the rod to be .121 in. and the diameter of the frame holes to be .129 in, so even with maximum error, the rod would still fit.

For the triangular piece and counter part holes, the size difference should be even more significant because it is a sliding fit that requires the pieces to rotate and slide. Thus, the team defined the rod diameter to be .125 - .008 or .117 inches, and it defined the part hole diameter to be .125 + .008 or .133 in. Assuming maximum error, this would still allow for .129 - .121 or .008 in. of space between the two parts, which should be enough to allow for free rotation and sliding.

Manufacturing PlanAssembly is simple and the toy could be mass-produced on an assembly line in

the following process: (1) one half of the frame would be laid vertically, (2) a machine would drill the 5 holes, (3) the rods and parts would drop in, (4) a second identical half-


frame would be glued, (5) the base would be glued on from the side, and (6) the board themes would be stickered onto the board to finish the “Tic-Tac-Toy.” This process allows for rapid and cheap production, costing roughly 28 cents for materials as well as manufacturing.

The New York Times estimates that McDonalds sells roughly 1.5 billion Happy Meal toys a year, and McDonalds reports that it offers about 10 happy meal toy proposals a year. Given these estimates, X-Surge recommends that the “Tic-Tac-Toy” be released for a total of 6 weeks in which it will be expected to sell roughly 170 million Happy Meal Toys worldwide. This puts the total cost of production around 30 million dollars. Over this six-week release period in late 2016, there will be 4 different themes featured for the tic-tac-toe boards based on 2016’s top children’s movies. Currently, X-Surges recommends featuring Kong Fu Panda 3, Batman vs. Superman, Zootopia, and Finding Dory as these films have been predicted to be successful amongst a diverse audience of children. These specific themes are subject to change depending on the success of the movies, and can be adjusted later in 2016 before manufacturing begins.

Basic Design-for-Manufacturability FeaturesEven though the Happy Meal toy contains 27 different pieces, it is easily

manufactured because it only requires 5 molds (frame, base, rods, counters, triangles). All of the pieces conform to basic injection molding requirements, and would thus not require any special and expensive molding processes. A notable design-for-manufacturability feature is splitting the frame into two identical parts instead of four, which reduces assembly cost, as fewer parts have to be attached. A step-by-step production process can be found above in “Manufacturing Plan.”

Marketing SheetA take away marketing sheet can be found in Appendix Figure 15. This sheet

outlines the design’s major features and attributes.

Marketing Analysis

Target Customers/DemographicsTic-tac-toe is played all over the globe and it appeals to all ages, genders and

ethnicities. Tic–tac-toe is a simple and universally understood game, and the majority of customers will not need any instructions to learn how to play. That being said, a small instruction manual will be included with the toy, outlining key design features as well as the rules of the game. The toy itself will require no written language, and images of popular characters such as Batman and Superman will be relatable for all customers. Additionally, if a certain geographic region is not familiar with a particular board theme, the board can be altered so that the board features characters from popular culture that customers will be familiar with.


To help X-Surge better understand its targeted audience, it generated fictional characters to see how they would react to the “Tic-Tac-Toy.” Appendix Figure 16 contains four potential consumers of the Happy Meal toy. Despite the variation within this sample group, the Happy Meal Toy would be well received by all of the consumers. While many of X-Surge’s other ideas were very appealing to a specific segment of the population, the “Tic-Tac-Toy” is well received by almost everyone. Below in Figure 16 is an example of one of the characters X-Surge generated.

Figure 16: Consumer of Happy Meal Toy (Isolated section of Figure 16 in Appendix)

Sarah (8 years old) is patient and mature, and would enjoy playing a puzzle while she ate her meal. She is not very excited by the movie character themes of the board, but she simply ignores them and focuses on the game itself.

Greg (3) is young and reckless and although he might quickly get bored of the game itself, he would still enjoy spinning the pieces and looking at his favorite movie characters on the sides of the toy. He would also enjoy playing with the perforated cutouts from the box. Greg is susceptible to choking and injuring himself, but there is no reasonable way he could choke or hurt himself given the design of the toy.

Ashley (6) is from China and she is a bit of a wild child with a twin brother. The toy would be effective at calming Ashley down, and she would love to compete against her brother. Even though she is from China, she would still understand the rules of the game, and would be able to recognize the characters on the sides of the board, just as someone from America would.

Jason (44) is an English teacher and a father of three reckless children. As a parent, he likes the tic-tac-toe board as it keeps his children calm when they eat. Jason is also happy that the toy is intellectually stimulating, and it takes little effort for him to play against his children. He is always looking for ways to interact with his children, instead of ignoring them as they play on their mobile devices.


Greg Simpson

Male 3 year old From New Jersey Aggressive Impatient Loud Loves movies and

Superheroes Reckless Cries a lot Cranky Breaks many things

Production Volume and DurationThe 3D injection molds will be relatively simple for the toy’s parts, as most all

shapes involve using very simple geometric structures. The toy requires no more than 5 of these basic shapes, and the entire assembly is relatively small; it will be very easy to fit both the food and the Happy Meal toy in the Happy Meal box. The size and simplicity of the individual parts will make it easy to mass-produce this toy, with minimal assembly being required. See “Estimated Production Costs and Volume” as well as “Manufacturing Plan” in “Toy Description and Documentation” for details and calculations.

Parent-Friendly FeaturesParents will be happy with the “Tic-Tac-Toy” for several reasons. First, it is a

mind puzzle, which challenges kids and stimulates their brains. The toy is a single part so it is easy to keep track of, and it is easy to store when a customer brings it home. Often kids will want to play with their toy as they eat their meal, and tic-tac-toe is an easy game to play while one eats. The toy also requires very little physical activity, and it should pacify kids as they eat. This toy is easy for customers to bring back to their cars, and kids can continue playing as the parents drive. The toy also makes no noise, which prevents irritating parents. The toy also provides parents with an easy way to entertain their kids without requiring too much effort. Most importantly, the toy is very safe for children of all ages, and the parents will not have to worry about their kids choking or injuring themselves with the toy.

Conclusion

X-Surge believes that its Happy Meal toy will be exceedingly successful due to its practicality and entertainment value. Through brainstorming, ideation refinement, and modeling, X-Surge has created a product that is cost effective, spatially efficient, and safe for children of all ages. The simple toy can be marketed worldwide, and it will be appealing to a large majority of customers regardless of age, gender, or culture. The 28-cent toy takes up less than 10% of the volume of the box, and it is easy to manufacture. Based on the team’s analysis and research, X-Surge concludes that Fluke Toy Corporation would be enthusiastic and confident in the design, and that it would be advantageous for EGR Corporation to continue the development of X-Surge’s “Tic-Tac-Toy.”


Appendix

1. Pirates of the Caribbean Water Wheel2. Snoopy - Doghouse3. Inside Out4. Big Hero5. Star Wars VII6. Minions7. Spongebob8. Monsters’ University9. Calvin & Hobbes - box series (transmogrifier, duplicator, time machine)10. Pokemon - Pokeball11. Mario - Nintendo12. DC/ Marvel13. Minecraft14. Mind-puzzles15. Tetris16. Tangrams17. Tic-Tac-Toe, Cylinder (playground)18. Spinning tops19. Magnetic cars20. Parachuting movie characters

Figure 2: Initial Brainstorm

Tic- Tac-Toe

Tangrams Snoopy with doghouse

Calvin and Hobbes

Pokémon with Pokéball

Nintendo Characters - Mario

Weight (From 1-6)

Cost 3 5 4 4 3 4 5

Parental Appeal 5 5 5 5 2 2 3

Size 4 4 5 5 4 4 5

Safety 5 3 4 4 3 3 6

Usability 5 4 2 3 5 4 3

“Fun factor” 4 2 3 3 5 4 4

Durability 4 4 4 4 3 3 3

Aesthetics 4 3 4 4 5 3 4

Weighted Total 139 122 130 133 123 113 165

Figure 3: Weighted Value Analysis Matrix (Components Rated from 1 to 5, 5 being best, 1 being worst)


Figure 4: Prototype of Board Frame and Pieces


Figure 6: Base 3-view

Figure 7: Counter Bead 3-view


Figure 8: Counter Shaft 3-view


Figure 9: Spinner 3-view


Figure 10: Counter Shell 3-view


Figure 11: Exploded Assembly


...

Figure 13: Cost Calculation Spreadsheet


Volume Calculations- Frame:

Total outer volume: 3.75*.75*.5 + 3.25*.375*.5 = 2.015625 in^3 Hollowed out interior: 3.65*.7*.4 + 3.15*.325*.4 = 1.4315 in^3 Total Volume = {Total outer volume} – {Hollowed out interior} = 0.584125 in^3

- Platform 3.75*3.75*.01 = 0.140625 in^3

- Triangular Pieces Total volume: .75^2*sqrt(3)/4*.75 Hollowed out interior: .65^2*sqrt(3)/4*.75 Final volume = {Total volume} - {Hollowed out interior} = 0.04546633371 in^3

- Rod (1/16)^2*pi*3.25 = 0.03988350049 in^3

- Counter pi*.2^2*.25-pi*.0375^2*.25 = 0.03031146037 in^3

- Platform 3.75*3.75*.01 = 0.140625 in^3

Figure 14: Volume calculations for input into cost calculation spreadsheet.


Figure 15: Take-Away Marketing Sheet


Greg Simpson Sarah Romans Ashley Jones Jason Brovich

Male 3 year old From New Jersey Aggressive Impatient Loud Loves movies and

Superheroes Reckless Cries a lot Cranky Breaks many

things

Female 8 year old From California Quiet and

Reserved Smart Easily frightened Emotional Hates TV Loves building

things Cares about

fashion

Female 6 year old From China Likes reading Enjoys the

outdoors Likes running

around Has a twin

brother Messy eater Hard to

control Loves to draw Wears Glasses

Male 44 years old New York Father English teacher Sarcastic Creative Values Education Loves comic books Owns a dog Has 3 wild kids all

under 10 years old

Figure 16: Potential Consumers of Happy Meal Toy


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