Design

Published by the University of Pennsylvania. Copyright © 2005–2011 by Karl T. Ulrich This work may be reproduced free of charge under a Creative Commons license so long as (1) the reproduced excerpt is at least one complete chapter in length, (2) full citation is made of the complete book, and (3) no charge other than the actual cost of reproduction is passed along to end users. Edition 1.0 PDF version formatted for 8 ½ by 11 printing Other formats available at http://www.ulrichbook.org/

ISBN 978-0-9836487-0-3 Written, designed, illustrated, and photographed by Karl T. Ulrich, except where noted. Cover Photo: Glen Mullaly (collection of spindle adapters for 45 rpm records)

DESIGN creation of artifacts in society

Karl T. Ulrich

Contents
Preface 1. Introduction to Design 2. Problem Solving and Design 3. Design Problem Definition 4. Exploration 5. Users, Experts, and Institutions in Design 6. The Architecture of Artifacts 7. Aesthetics in Design 8. Variety 9. Conclusion Acknowledgments About the Author Colophon

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Preface
As a freshman entering MIT I intended to be a physician, but early in my first year I made new friends who were taking mechanical design courses. They were always carrying around bags of interesting components and displaying metal parts they had made in the machine shop. I was bitten early by the design bug and took all the courses I could on the subject. My identity as designer was solidified in 1979 as a winner of the MIT “2.70” design contest (now 2.007), an outcome that gave me near celebrity status in the hacker-designer crowd at MIT. I was fortunate to have as professors Ernesto Blanco, Woodie Flowers, David Jansson, Warren Seering, and others who were deeply committed to design education.

Karl Ulrich, age 19, winning the MIT “2.70” design contest. Source: MIT.

I did my doctoral work in the MIT Artificial Intelligence Lab, focusing on fundamentals of design theory and machine learning, and developed a whole