Course syllabus

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Course-PM for PPU090 Industrial design engineering: theory and practice

Study period 1, 2019, 7.5 credits

Course aim and content:

The aim of the course is that the student should develop further knowledge of the theories, processes and methods that characterize product development work.

The content of the course will encompass the following topics:

  • the individual designer: the abilities and skills of the creative individual, the designer's responsibilities; 
  • the design team: cross-disciplinary collaboration, cross-cultural collaboration, creativity in teams; 
  • the designing organization: orientations in product development, different kinds of processes, organizational prerequisites for creativity; 

as well as

  • research approaches in design and product development; past and current themes in design research;
  • academic literacy, writing academic texts

 Learning outcomes

After completion of the course the student should be able to:

  • differentiate between different research approaches; specifically, research for, research on and research through design and product development
  • reflect upon current research on the themes and topics addressed in the course 
  • compare theories on design and product development work to own empirical findings, and to own and others practice
  • review and extract relevant information from academic papers
  • produce an academic paper comprising the relevant basic components
  • discuss similarities and differences between different processes of design and product development
  • discuss the preconditions produced by the organisation, for different types of design and product development work
  • discuss which abilities and competencies that characterise design and product development work, as well as how to make the most of them
  • reflect upon the role(s) of the individual in design and product development; including the roles in relation to sustainability and ethical aspects
  • reflect on the problems and opportunities associated with collaboration and teamwork in product development work, especially in cross-disciplinary and cross-cultural product development work

Link to the syllabus on Studieportalen: Study plan

Schedule

TimeEdit

Course literature

The literature consists of scientific papers and book extracts, which will either be made available here on Canvas or in e-book format via Chalmers library (lib.chalmers.se). The assignments also require students to find their own relevant literature. 

Examination form

Examination of the course is based on compulsory participation in seminars and the completion of 4 assignments comprising exercises, oral presentations and written reports. Assignment descriptions are available under Modules and contain the full details for each assignment including their connections to the learning outcomes and hand-in formats.

Assignment 1 and 2 are Pass/Fail and judged according to the criteria listed on the assignment descriptions. Assignments 3 and 4 will receive a grade F(ail), 3, 4, or 5 judged according to the criteria listed for each assignment. To pass the course, all assignments must be passed. The final grade F(ail), 3, 4 or 5 will be based on an average of the results of the assignments, where assignment 3 counts for 40% and assignment 4 60%. A failed assignment will need to be revised. Revised assignments can only achieve grade 3.  

Contact details

Course is offered by the department of Industrial and Materials Science. 

Examiner, Lecturer: Helena Strömberg, Ph.D., Design & Human Factors, Industrial and Materials Science, Chalmers, e-mail: helena.stromberg@chalmers.se, tel: 031 - 772 1047

Lecturer: MariAnne Karlsson Ph.D., prof., Design & Human Factors, Industrial and Materials Science, Chalmers, e-mail: mak@chalmers.se, tel: 031 – 772 1108

Lecturer: Fjollë Novakazi, Ph.D. candidate, Design & Human Factors, Industrial and Materials Science, Chalmers and Volvo Cars, e-mail: fjolle@chalmers.se

Lecturer: Andreas Dagman, Ph.D., Product Development, Industrial and Materials Science, Chalmers, e-mail: andreas.dagman@chalmers.se, tel: 031 – 772 

Course assistant: 

Guest lecturer: 

Guest lecturer: 

    Changes made since the last occasion

    The course retains the structure and content of 2018, with some small modifications:

    • The section on how to review and judge research and academic paper/studies has been revised and extended
    • More active workshop-style lecture formats have been implemented to encourage more discussion

       

      Course summary:

      Date Details Due