The students of the Design Challenge Club from CMR National Public School had the opportunity to interact with Mr. Darshan M.V, Product Designer, Neva Innovation Labs and get an in-depth understanding of design and innovation.
Here is a detailed write up on this talk by Alfred John from Grade X A.
Mr. Darshan gave students a perspective into the different types of designing.
There are two types of designing:
- Product designing
- Fashion designing
Product design mainly involves designing material and machines such as a phone cover, sofa, etc.
Fashion design involves designing fabric, colour and material of cloth such a dress for gala party, etc.
These types of designing have one thing in common and that is to make our lives easier, stylish and comfortable.
For a person to become a designer, he has to sketch the different ideas that may appear in his head. He has to have an imaginative and creative mind. He has to take ideas or get inspired from nature. This is called bio mimicry.
Inventions that were inspired from nature are:
- Bullet trains in Japan: This train has a pointy nose which makes the whole body streamlined. This reduces wind resistance and in turn it reaches faster rates of velocity. This was inspired by the Kingfisher bird which has a pointed beak that is longer than its body. It has a pointed beak because it has to dive into the water at great speeds to catch fish. If the beak was blunt, it would attain injuries to its face and skull.
- Velcro: Velcro is a great idea that makes clothes & shoes convenient to wear. The inventor of velcro took his dog out for a walk and then found burrs stuck to the dog. The burrs are from seeds of a particular plant that helps it pollinate.
When a person designs a product, it doesn’t reach the market immediately due to government protocols. You have to also take permission from your senior designers and then get approval.
Mr. Darshan also spoke about two products that he helped design:
- Microscope in a phone: While designing this product, the computer or coding team, medical team and designing team had to work together. This microscope can be installed in a specific phone which can magnify up to 200 times. This could find where the pathogen is located in the blood. This is very convenient and accurate for doctors.
- Recline bicycle: This bicycle is designed to appear lightweight and comfortable to ride. This bicycle helps you to relax in a comfortable position while riding it. This helps riders a lot as this reduces muscle cramps and back pain.
There are four ways to improve a designed product:
- Identify what the problem is
- Explore different alternatives for improvements
- Work efficiently and test the prototype
- Ask friends for help and collaborate
At the end of the Expert talk, Mr. Darshan explained that everybody could become a designer if they are good sketchers, have a visual mind and are dedicate towards their work.
