Technical Sessions

Prof. Prakash Unakal, M.S. Ramaiah School of Advanced Studies, India

Vehicle Concepts generated in Europe or US are normally transplanted as solution in India with some cosmetic changes. These vehicle concepts which are normally designed for context like wide roads, systematic traffic management, dustless environment, social dynamics etc. which is unreal in India where narrow roads, chaotic traffic , dusty environment, more interactive etc. are few requirements not considered.

This is a first attempt to apply TRIZ combined with design for bottom of pyramid to generate vehicle concepts for India. This approach leads to very viable yet different vehicle concepts suiting Indian context. This paper explores and attempts to generate vehicle concepts using TRIZ (Theory of Inventive Problem Solving) to resolve conflicting requirements for bottom of pyramid in India.

TRIZ is a thinking methodology to generate alternative & innovative design concepts, to stimulate innovations & achieve breakthroughs in design. As per TRIZ - The strongest solutions transform the unwanted or harmful elements of a system into useful resources moreover the strongest solutions also actively seek out and destroy the conflicts and trade-offs most design practices assume to be fundamental.

Applying Four Pillars of TRIZ for vehicle concept generating: Using TRIZ´s Problem redefinition through 9-windows approach to resolve conflict using contradiction matrix by applying inventive principles of TRIZ, to arrive at system model for vehicle concept generating for bottom of pyramid in India. Contradictions: TRIZ researchers have identified the fact that the world's strongest inventions have emerged from situations in which the inventor has successfully sought to avoid the conventional trade-offs that most designers take for granted. Ideality: The simple definition of IFR is that the solution contains all of the benefits and none of the costs or 'harms' (environmental impact, adverse side-effects, etc Functionality: Three aspects are worthy of particular note: 1) The idea that a system possesses a Main Useful Function (MUF) and that any system component which does not contribute towards the achievement of this function is ultimately harmful. 2) TRIZ places considerable emphasis on plotting both the positive and the negative relationships contained in a system, and, more importantly, on using the function analysis as a means of identifying the contradictions, in-effective, excessive and harmful relationships in and around a system. Function and attribute analysis thus becomes a very powerful problem definition tool. 3) Functionality is the common thread by which it becomes possible to share knowledge between widely differing industries. 'Solutions change, functions stay the same' is a message forming a central thread in the TRIZ methodology: People want a hole not a drill. Use of resources: In TRIZ terms, a resource is anything in the system which is not being used to its maximum potential. TRIZ demands an aggressive and seemingly relentless pursuit of things in (and around) a system which are not being used to their absolute maximum potential.

This is an innovative and explorative attempt to generate creative concepts using TRIZ considering needs of India.

This abstract is supplemented by a PDF, which can be viewed here.

Session: Vehicle Development