A TOP-DOWN BIOMIMETIC DESIGN PROCESS FOR PRODUCT CONCEPT GENERATION

There are solved functions in nature that can be used as a basis for novelty in products with a high potential for innovation. This paper shows an alternative methodology of product conceptualization based on biomimetics. Known methods based on functional analysis and creative tools are discussed and related to the proposed methodology. Biomimetics provides new solutions to be applied to product design, making it more creative and original, with innovative features drawn from analogies in nature. Functional research aimed at product innovation can take advantage of the biomimetic approach, incorporat-ing it into the design process and gaining from it new formulae and methods in the search for functions that are distinctive solutions. The improved methodology is obtained through the integration of intermediate phases in the design process, establishing criteria in the search of key functions, and then applying biomimetics research to fi nd natural solutions. Some conceptual projects have been carried out to test the new design methodology