InImpact: The Journal of Innovation Impact

Publisher Future Technology Press
Vol. 7 No. 2 KES Transactions on SDM I - Sustainable Design and Manufacturing 2014
Volume Editors KES International
Journal ISSN 2051-6002
 
Article TitleExploring Sustainable Design Using Image Schemas
Primary AuthorObokhai Asikhia, PhD student
Other Author(s) Rossitza Setchi; Yulia Hicks; Andrew Walters
Pages 67 - 78
Article ID sdm14-038
Publication Date 01-May-16
AbstractAbstract: Sustainable design aims to minimise the impact of new product development by considering the whole product life-cycle, including product use. Sustainable design strategies encompass selection of materials and optimisation of production techniques, material use, distribution system and the product lifetime. Usability is an important aspect of sustainable design. Users’ behaviour, in particular, plays a very important role because if a product fails to accommodate users’ preferences, attitudes, habits and routines, it is likely to be discarded before the end of its life. This paper reports a study that uses image schemas as a means of exploring sustainable design. Image schema is a recurring pattern within the human cognitive system that structures the way people understand the world. An experiment was conducted to identify users’ behaviour in terms of interactions with a product. The experiment involved forty-two users and another individual who is experienced in the use of the product and was used as a reference point for the designer intent. The contribution of this paper is the developed approach based on image schemas for capturing interactions, identifying potential design flaws and exploring usability issues within the concept of sustainable design.

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