In this second part of the article series ‘Understanding Strong Materials’ we will explore physical design strategies to optimise the strength of products you design. Sometimes we need to make compromises between strength and weight to strike a balance that is fit for purpose. Reading the first article will be helpful understanding certain material properties so this [...]
In this first part of the article series ‘Understanding Strong Materials’ we will explore the properties of material strength. In material science the strength of a material is characterised by its ability to withstand an applied stress without failure or breakage. It is imperative as an industrial designer to get the most out of the [...]
When we observe an object with our eyes we make immediate judgments on what the objects function is and how it behaves. We also make judgements on how that product is positioned in the market. Does it look like a premium or budget product? Does it look modern or traditional? Does it look like it [...]
Many times people ask me how much should I charge for Industrial Design Contract Work? Like many questions in life there is no definitive answer. In this article I hope to give you an idea of how much you could charge based on a number of factors. Details aside in this article, if there was [...]
Design presentations and pitches are an integral part of the industrial design profession. As what is a great idea when there is no one to sell it? In fact many great ideas in our time haven’t come into fruition due to poor communication. A lot of the time within small to medium businesses we find [...]
Unless you have been living under a cave the last couple of months you would know about the impending Apple release next week supposably featuring a new Apple Tablet potentially called the ‘ISlate’ ‘IPad’ ‘ITablet’ or for apple enthusiasts ‘Newton 2′. Despite countless rumours from Macrumours, Apple Insider, Endgadget, Gizmodo (all which are great sites [...]
As product designers sometimes we need to place an image or decal on our product in perfect perspective. For example if you have been working on a cool packaging label and need to put it on a product, how do you do it? Need to put a recycle sign or the material type logo on [...]
In Australia Solidworks has almost become an industry standard for hardcore product development and product engineering modelling. Designers often have a real love/hate relationship with Solidworks, whether it be its constant crashing or slow performance, there has got to be more things to love in 2010 than to hate. I have seen Solidworks, once a [...]
In this post I will provide some handy tips and tricks that may prepare you for your industrial design major project. As well helping you get your project finished on time I will also provide guidance for getting your project to be of a professional standard. This will be helpful for students in their final [...]
I have had the pleasure of using Maxwell Render now for around 3 years and it is a beautiful program to use especially if you are a Solidworks user. Maxwell Render is a standalone rendering program for 3D applications, but with a free download from the Maxwell Render website a whole array of plugins are [...]
