Earthenware Water Filter: A Double Edged Sustainable Design Concept for India

Abstract

The objective of this research is to understand the use of internal analogies in the early phases of engineering design. Empirical studies are used to identify the following: type and role of analogies in designing; levels of abstrac- tion of search and transfer of analogies; role of experience of designers on using analogies; and, effect of analogies on quantity and quality of solution space. The following are the important results: analogies from natural and artificial domains are used to develop requirements and solutions in the early phases of engineering design; experience of designers and nature of design problem influence the usage of analogies; analogies are explored and unexplored at different levels of abstraction of the SAPPhIRE model, and; the quantity and quality of solution space depend on the number of analogies used.