Technological Design and Problem Solving
Domain 2: Technological Design and Problem Solving
This domain tests the engineering design process: defining problems, specifying criteria and constraints, generating and selecting ideas, prototyping, testing, evaluating, and communicating. It also checks whether you can troubleshoot and improve designs rather than treating design as a single linear step.
Core concepts
- Design criteria are goals the solution must meet; constraints are limits such as budget, time, materials, safety, codes, and available tools.
- The process is iterative: testing reveals information that sends you back to earlier steps.
- Divergent thinking generates many options; convergent thinking selects among them.
- Prototypes can be physical, virtual, or mathematical. Models are simplified representations, so their assumptions matter.
- Optimization balances competing criteria; a trade-off accepts less of one desirable quality to gain another.
- Troubleshooting uses symptoms, tests, and elimination to find root causes.
Worked example
Design a jar opener for people with limited grip strength. Criteria: opens common lids, requires low force, is safe, and costs under 15 dollars. Constraints: available materials, one week, no powered tools, and food-contact safety. Generate alternatives: strap wrench, lever clamp, and rubber cone. Select by a decision matrix weighted for grip force and cost. Build a foam-and-rubber prototype, test with five users, measure torque, and revise the handle. The credit-earning reasoning is explicit: criteria and constraints are separated; test data drive the next iteration; the design is communicated with drawings and results.
Traps
- Treating the process as strictly linear.
- Confusing criteria with constraints.
- Skipping testing or evaluation because the idea looks right.
- Ignoring user needs, safety, or life-cycle impacts.
- Failing to document revisions and evidence.