Talking with experts - from research to objects: using academic research as the basis of collaborative and cross disciplinary projects for design students

The role of design is changing and after postmodern design, in which design seemed to be more related to production, business and marketing, we are currently looking at ‘the translation of scientific and technological research into tangible objects that change people's lives’ as one of the most fundamental roles of design [1]. In the majority of Higher Education institutions a significant amount of research takes place and there is considerable potential to develop applications from the results of these activities, many of which are not fully exploited. The primary aim of this project was to investigate how design methods can be used to bridge the gap between the abstraction of research and the tangible requirements of everyday life. A project targeted second year students was developed to explore this concept; it was also an opportunity for students to challenge their familiar working methods by being collaborative and interdisciplinary. First they formed teams and identified examples of scientific and engineering research expertise; they then contacted the research active academic staff working in these fields and carried out a video interview. They analysed their findings and gave a presentation outlining their approach and design development for an appropriate context. Finally the teams presented educational videos that explain and promote their design proposals to expert and non-expert audiences. The paper includes several examples of these design proposals and illustrates the benefits of collaboration for students and to researchers who see how their work can be interpreted and developed into real world tangible applications.