Investigation

The Investigation stage is the first phase of the design process. In this stage, you research about your topic, in this case clocks, and learn what the best possible product would be. The client is also interviewed in this stage and they give some guidelines to follow when designing and building the final product. Then, a design brief is written that briefly explains what you are doing. At the end of this phase, a design specification is written which are the guidelines and requirements for your product.

Positives

My investigation was a very successful process during the Clock unit. I used my time very wisely and well, and did not leave all the work to be completed a night before the due date. I utilized my class time very effectively and I am very happy with my effort throughout this phase of the design process. In the introductory paragraphs, the first part of the Investigation, I used my creativity and established my imaginary client and what my job is. I detailed that my client has recently been promoted to a job that requires him to leave earlier for his job. However, he normally spends this time cooking breakfast for himself. He needs this clock so that he does not get lost and too distracted and for him to make sure that he arrives at work on time. In the “Problem Definition + Choice of Client & Audience,” I also established my audience very well; people who have a passion for cooking. The next positive with my investigation phase was the “Client Interview” segment of this stage. I prepared seventeen questions for my client to answer regarding his requirements for his clock. His answers were brief, but very helpful and he organized the guidelines for my clock, which helped me form my specifications. Finally, my specification and design brief were done well during this Unit, contrary to the Emergency Shelter unit where I did not understand either of these parts. Overall, this investigation stage was filled with positives, but also had a few negatives.

Negatives

As I said before, this investigation stage had its fair share of positives and negatives. The first negative that comes to mind is the “Case Study.” Although I wrote detailed responses under each clock image I selected, the clocks I chose were not very relevant to the designs I initially had in mind. I believe this was a negative. Another negative I noticed in my investigation phase was my “Testing Against Specifications” section. This section was very redundant in my opinion as most of my testing involved the same method: having clients give me feedback on whether it fulfills this specification or not. These are the only negatives I could find in this phase of the design process.

Improvements

The improvements I could have made to this investigation stage include improvements to my “Case Study” and my “Testing Against Specifications.” To improve my “Case Study,” I would need to implement more relevant clock images that fit better with a kitchen theme, as I had selected images that I would never create or make designs for. In the “Testing Against Specifications” section, I could have included more creative ways of testing my specifications because almost all of them included asking clients and the target audience for feedback on whether it fulfilled the specification or not. Overall, these are the improvements I could implement to improve my investigation stage, and that I will consider next time I complete this phase of the design process.