Engineering Design Graphics: Sketching, Modeling, and Visualization, 2nd Edition

CHAPTER 1

ENGINEERING DESIGN

INTRODUCTION

Design is the central activity of the engineering profession. Engineering design can be defined as a set of decision-making processes and activities that are used to determine the form of a product, component, system, or process, given the functions desired by the customer.¹ The term function refers to the behavior of the design, that is, what does the design need to do? Form, on the other hand, has to do with the appearance of the design. A product's form refers to its size, shape, and configuration, as well as the materials and manufacturing processes used to produce it.

Engineering design is a part of the larger product realization process. As we see in Figure 1-1, product realization starts with a customer need and ends with a finished product that satisfies this need. The product realization process consists of design and manufacturing processes that are used to convert information, materials, and energy into a completed product. The stages of the product realization process include sales and marketing, industrial design, engineering design, production design, manufacturing, distribution, service, and disposal. Product development refers to the first stages of the product realization process up to manufacturing. Product development includes engineering design, as well as sales/marketing, industrial design, and production design.

ASPECTS ...