Design Fundamentals
FoundationDesign creates plans to meet needs. Taking products apart reveals components, materials and working principles; designers weigh material, colour, shape, size, weight, function, aesthetics and ergonomics.
- Design creates plans to meet needs and solve problems
- Dissect a product in three steps: components, materials, working principle
- Design considerations: material, colour and shape, size and weight, function, aesthetics
文體小知識：科技知識說明文解釋產品設計的概念和考慮因素，引導讀者有系統地分析和評鑑日常用品。
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1Design is the process of turning ideas into workable plans to meet people's needs and solve everyday problems. Water bottles, schoolbags, Octopus cards and mobile apps are all results of design. Design is not the same as art: art stresses self-expression, while design must fit the real needs of users. For example, a good water bottle must not only look nice but also be leak-proof, easy to grip and easy to wash — all matters of design.
2Taking products apart is a great way to learn design: break a product into its components, materials and form, then analyse how it works. Components are the parts that make up the product; materials are what each part is made of; the working principle is how the product achieves its function. For example, opened up, a stapler has a base, a staple channel, a pusher, a top cover and springs. The metal base takes the impact, the spring flicks the cover open, and every part must work together to drive the staple into paper.
3The basic considerations of design include the material used, colour and shape, size and weight, function and aesthetics. Function comes first; beauty is conveyed through colour, line and proportion, and visual language is the designer's tool of communication. Designers record ideas with drawing tools such as pencils and rules, as sketches following basic drawing conventions, so ideas can be discussed and improved. For example, a cup for the elderly needs a thick easy grip, clear bright colours and a moderate capacity that never gets too heavy.
4Human factors in design cover ease of use, safety and ergonomics — designing around the sizes and habits of the human body so users feel comfortable and exert less effort. We must also see both sides of technology: mobile phones ease communication yet invite overuse; attractive packaging wins customers yet creates mountains of waste. Designing, producing and selling all affect the environment, so choosing recyclable materials and cutting excess packaging are a designer's duty to society.
1Summary 重點摘要
Design creates plans to meet needs. Taking products apart reveals components, materials and working principles; designers weigh material, colour, shape, size, weight, function, aesthetics and ergonomics.
2Vocabulary cards Vocabulary
The process of creating plans to meet needs.
The parts that make up a product.
How a product achieves its function.
The factors weighed in design, such as material, function and aesthetics.
What a product can do for its user.
The beauty and appeal of a product's appearance.
Communicating ideas through line, colour and shape.
Designing products around the size and habits of the human body.
A freehand drawing that quickly records design ideas.
Breaking a product down to understand its design.
3Step by step Steps
- The nature of designDesign is the process of creating plans to meet people's needs and solve everyday problems, covering everything from a product's looks to how it is used. Unlike pure art, which expresses feelings, design must fit users' real needs within limits of material and cost. For example, an umbrella must block rain and wind, fold small and stay light; a pretty umbrella that flips inside out in any breeze is a failed design. Good design starts from a problem and aims at solving it.
- From problem to ideaThe first step of design is defining the problem clearly: who uses it, in what setting, and what inconvenience arises? Then several ideas are generated and compared before a plan is chosen. Ideas should be recorded quickly — a freehand sketch with a few notes is enough, using the most basic drawing tools of pencil, rule and set square, and following basic drawing conventions so others can read it. For example, finding that rulers always snap inside a pencil case, the problem is lack of protection; one idea is a ruler case with a snap cover, sketched with its shape and clip.
- Three steps of product dissectionDissect a product systematically: first list the components, then note the material of each, and finally analyse the working principle. Take it apart carefully, recording the order of assembly so it can be rebuilt. For example, taking apart a stapler lists the base, staple channel, pusher, top cover and springs; the base and pusher are metal, the cover plastic; the principle is that pressing the cover drives the pusher forward to fire a staple. Afterwards you can criticise it — is changing the staples convenient, for instance?
- Basic design considerationsDesigners weigh the basic considerations: the material used, colour and shape, size and weight, function and aesthetics. Function comes first because a product must work; material and cost interact; colour and shape convey style; size and weight decide carrying and storage. For example, a student schoolbag needs enough compartments for function, hard-wearing waterproof material, broad soft straps and colours as bright as you like — but it must stay light, or it fails however pretty it looks.
- Aesthetics and visual languageAesthetics follow principles, not whim: line, colour, shape, proportion and contrast all carry messages and moods. The same product in different colours can feel completely different; rounded corners feel safe and friendly while sharp angles suggest speed or warning. For example, children's medicine bottles use rounded shapes and bright colours to put children at ease, while safety signs use yellow-and-black contrast because strong contrast catches the eye fastest. Designers use visual language so products say the right thing.
- An introduction to ergonomicsErgonomics studies the fit between people and products, designing around body size, strength and habits so that products are easy, safe and comfortable to use. Key points include whether grips suit the hand, whether operating forces are moderate and whether interfaces are clear. For example, kitchen scissors with enlarged, soft-cushioned handles spare elderly users aching hands; a mouse curved to the palm resists fatigue in long use. Human-centred design shows its care in small details.
- Two sides of technology and the environmentTechnology affects people both positively and negatively, so designers must weigh moral and environmental questions. Packaging keeps products clean and attractive yet creates waste; electronics renew quickly and old sets become e-waste. Every stage of design, production and sales touches the environment; protection includes recyclable materials, less excess packaging and durable, repairable products. Moreover, manufacturing processes apply across fields: laser cutters and 3D printers are widely used in making products, and operating them calls for safe and correct attitudes.
4Diagrams Diagrams
5Worked example Example
Example: dissect the design of a glue bottle — list its components, materials and working principle, then give one design strength and one improvement.
- List the components → bottle body, cap, nozzle, sponge tip (or fine tip)
- Name the materials → body of soft polyethylene, cap of harder polypropylene, tip of porous sponge
- Analyse the principle → squeezing the body forces glue through the nozzle; the sponge spreads it evenly
- Criticise → strengths: soft body easy to squeeze, tip controls the amount; improvement: the nozzle clogs and is hard to wash
- Answer: A glue bottle consists of a body, cap, nozzle and sponge tip. The body uses soft polyethylene because it is squeezed repeatedly, light and safe, while the harder polypropylene cap withstands twisting. Pressing the body pressurises the glue, which flows through the nozzle and spreads evenly from the sponge. Strengths include easy control of force and amount; the nozzle, however, gathers dried glue and is hard to clean — a removable nozzle or an anti-drying seal would make the bottle better.
6Common mistakes Mistakes
7Quick check Quick check
Q1Name three things analysed when dissecting a product.
Q2List at least four basic considerations of design.
Q3Why does a cup for the elderly need a thick handle?
Q4What environmental problem does packaging design cause, and how can it be improved?
Q5What is the main difference between design and pure art?
8Recap Recap
- Design creates plans to meet needs and solve problems
- Dissect a product in three steps: components, materials, working principle
- Design considerations: material, colour and shape, size and weight, function, aesthetics
- Ergonomics designs around the human body for ease, safety and comfort
- Technology cuts both ways — design must weigh ethics and the environment