On design concept validation through prototyping: Challenges and opportunities

Prototyping is widely used as a means to illustrate and exemplify design requirements and intents and interact with designers and users. This paper aims to review the role and function of prototyping particularly in design concept validation. It reveals that prototypes offer interactive communication of concepts where the sense and perception of design concept intended by users is of primary importance. Our review also illustrates the rising trend from a physical prototyping approach to a more digital or mixed prototyping means. Accordingly, product attributes, whose values are presented by a prototype in conceptual design, are categorized into two major groups, namely sensed attributes and experienced attributes. The values of sensed attributes are directly received by human physiological senses and the values of experienced attributes are perceived through man-product\service interaction. Finally, by summarizing many existing research efforts including the communication of attribute values, this paper presents several major challenges in design concept validation through prototyping. It opens up a discussion regarding potential opportunities associated in this direction.