Product Specifications and Concept Generation

This set of flashcards covers essential concepts related to product specifications, their establishment, and the concept generation process.

What are your metrics in product specifications?

Metrics are measurable characteristics reflecting how well a product satisfies customer needs.

What is the definition of product specifications?

Product specifications precisely describe what the product must do without detailing how to achieve those goals.

What are target specifications?

Target specifications are preliminary performance goals the team establishes based on expected customer needs before knowing technical constraints.

What is a specification?

A specification consists of a metric and its corresponding value with appropriate units.

What is the ideal value in the context of target specifications?

The ideal value represents the best possible performance the product could achieve.

What is competitive benchmarking?

Competitive benchmarking is the process of comparing a new product's metrics against existing competitors to determine market positioning.

What does the need-metrics matrix illustrate?

The need-metrics matrix shows the relationship between customer needs and the associated metrics that reflect those needs.

What is a two-stage process in specification establishment?

The two stages involve setting initial target specifications after determining customer needs, followed by refining these specifications based on selected product concepts.

What is the House of Quality?

The House of Quality is a method used in Quality Function Deployment (QFD) to relate customer needs to the technical specifications of a product.

What is the purpose of the selection matrix in concept screening?

The selection matrix evaluates and prioritizes concepts based on customer-centered criteria to narrow down options for development.

What does Fdefinitely and Fprobably represent in demand forecasting?

Fdefinitely is the fraction of respondents likely to definitely purchase a product, while Fprobably represents those who might probably buy it.

What do we mean by 'exactly X' in setting specifications?

'Exactly X' refers to a specification that requires a precise value, which is often discouraged due to design constraints.

What are dependent variables in product design?

Dependent variables are performance metrics that designers aim to achieve, which arise from independent decisions like material choices.

What step comes after establishing initial specifications in product design?

The next step includes developing technical models to predict performance based on design decisions.

What are trade-offs in finalizing specifications?

Trade-offs are crucial decisions made between competing product characteristics, often needing to balance performance, cost, and technical constraints.