INVESTIGATION AND SUPPORT OF EVOLUTIONARY DESIGN

Current research proposes a distinction between evolutionary and revolutionary approaches aimed at supporting design. Earlier investigations showed that in design of one-off products but also serial production products evolutionary processes can frequently be identified. However, one important insight of the presented research was also the identification of a lack of research into evolutionary design processes. This paper aims to address this discrepancy by means of an analysis of different sources of insight concerning evolutionary design. This sources range from a literature review of analyses of single designers and design teams over observations of design teams in design education to three kinds of design in industrial practice: design of one-off products and of serial products (hand-held construction tools and automotive components).