Function and Form

Form Versus Function

• Characteristics of a good user interface include:
• Simplicity
  • Simple design allows for clarity on how the design can be used.
• Ease of use / learnability
  • How easy it is to learn to use a product or how intuitive a product is to use.
• Intuitive logic and organization
  • Novice users of a product should be able to learn all its basic functions within one or two hours.
• Low memory burden
  • The user does not need to have to memorize many features, how to use it, etc.
• Affordance
  • The perceptions, feelings and opinions about a product by a user.
  • The extent to which the user understands what to do.
• Constraints
  • Limitations on how the product can be used.
• Visibility
  • Controls should be easily accessible to the human eye.
• Mapping
  • The correspondence between the layout of the controls and their required action.
• Feedback
  • The provision of information as a result of an action, this can be a audio, visual or aesthetic response.

• These characteristics allow for a good function and form.

Form

• Considered as the three-dimensional space that a product takes up, in the context of classic design, form relates to the shape of a product and the aesthetic qualities that the shape implies.
  • Form increases pleasure of using an object.
  • Pursuit of appearance over functionality might lead to guilt or second-thoughts.

Function

• Functionality focuses on the practical aspects of a product.
• Products can be considered classic designs based on how well they fulfil the task that they have been designed for.
  • Help alleviate stress by meeting functional needs
  • Giving up on functionality evokes feelings of guilt.

• For a design to become a classic design, the form can transcend the function.
• The images of classic designs are iconic and consumers and firms are often unwilling to change them, preferring to sacrifice function for form.

ATC Model

• The ATC-model is a framework for creating designs that improve the relations of users with a product and intentionally trigger emotional responses.
  • The attract part of the model is aesthetics oriented.
  • The converse part of the model is interaction oriented.
  • The transact part of the model is function oriented.
• When all three elements are addressed, products can become desirable, usable and useful.

Practical Function

• Mostly concerned with criteria related to the performance of the product, such as dimensions, weight and ease of use.

Psychological Function

• Mostly concerned with the different emotional reactions or attachments people have with products such as their favorite clothing item.

Don Norman's 3 Levels of Emotional Appeal

• Dan Norman's framework aims to include 3 aspects that can be combined to make a great design.

Visceral Design

• Design that speaks to people's nature in terms of how they expect products and systems to function and how they expect to interact with them based on appearance.
• Considers psychological function.

Behavioral Design

• Focused on use and understanding, this considers how people will use a product, focusing on functionality.
• Considers practical function.

Reflective Design

• Design that evokes personal memory focusing on the message, culture and the meaning of a product or its use.
• Considers psychological function.

Manufacturing Considerations

• Forms can be dictated by other functions such as design for manufacture techniques.

Design for Manufacture

• Design for manufacture is when designers design specifically for optimum use of existing manufacturing capability.
• Some materials or forms might be preferrable for manufacturing, even if they aren't aesthetically appealing.

Design for Disassembly

• Designing a product so that when it becomes obsolete it can easily and economically be taken apart, the components reused or repaired, and the materials recycled.
• Sometimes aesthetic properties of components or materials might be sacrificed for easier disassembly.
  • However, this comes with the benefit of consumers feeling more responsible for the environment when they purchase the product.

Recycling/Reuse

• Examples of designing for recycling or reuse include dematerialization, cradle-to-cradle or design for disassembly.
• Considering these aspects might lead to some restrictions in material and manufacturing choice, but could also create products with a unique aesthetic appeal.

Retro-Styling

• A design that uses the form and decoration from a particular period of time and/or style.
• Retro product design is an approach that's significantly influenced many industries, particularly fashion and technology.
• Why brands use it:
  • It sets them apart
    • Appealing to customers' nostalgic sensibilities.
  • It creates a more emotional connection
    • It brings together two things that consumers can appreciate, familiarity and innovation.
  • It's consistently popular
    • Nostalgic product design is a remarkably consistent design trend.

• When retro-styling a new product the designer needs to respect and understand the original form and underlying structure before making changes.
• There is a tension between form and function when developing new products based on a classic design.

Form Follows Function

• Some products are so well designed with function as their primary goal, that their use is intuitive.
• Classic design holds “form follows function” as a fundamental principle, but this is not always evident in practice.
• As designers develop new technologies the lines between the form and function of a product continue to blur.

• The balance between function and form is often an area of difficulty for the designer.
• If a product is purely functional, it may be lacking in appeal to consumers, no matter how good it may be at completing its job.
• Often we are drawn to products that have been developed with form as a primary consideration.
  • The human psyche appreciates beauty.