This paper examines the role of product design in digital age-inclusivity. As digitalisation accelerates, older adults face persistent exclusion. We argue that interaction-level tensions between the intangible nature of screen-based systems and embodied human perception contribute to this divide. We introduce the Embodied Inclusion Framework as a structured approach to enhancing physical accessibility, cognitive usability and somatic safety in digital interaction.

Battery packs in BEVs are multidisciplinary design challenges balancing cost, weight, volume, range, and charging time. As the heaviest and most expensive component, their reliability and safety under vibration and shock is critical. This contribution presents an indicator to cluster measured vibration data of BEV battery packs based on coupling with the car body, enabling identification of representative designs and generalization of vibration behavior for future, more integrated architectures.

Large infrastructure projects often face misalignments that Delays outcomes. This paper presents a co-design workshop addressing such challenges in a European railway project. Guided by complexity theory, the workshop enabled participants to reflect and co-create strategies for alignment. Pre/post surveys and facilitator observations show increased confidence and engagement, with notable awareness in addressing misalignments. These findings highlight co-design’s value as an adaptive, participatory approach for creating recognition and managing complexity in interorganizational projects.

Divergence and convergence are central to design processes, but can these patterns be made visible, and what might they reveal? This paper examines design team dynamics through NLP by tracing cognitive trajectories in weekly reflections. Textual data are transformed into numerical values and plotted in a Synergy Diagram, enabling instructors to monitor team bands. This paper consists of a four year study covers 48 project teams and 250 participants, comparing team bands across multiple bandwidth measures and showing how they vary against a design outcome, such as total grades (TG).

Do short design exercises boost confidence equally for males and females? In a 7-semester study (n=426; 201F, 225M), females reported lower initial confidence (p<.001, g=0.31) but matched males in final confidence and gains after four applied exercises (yield, creep, impact, fatigue). Regression showed no sex differences in final or Δ confidence (p=.42, g=0.03). Active design integration in engineering science courses may reduce sex-based disparities in engineering confidence and self-efficacy. Sex balance in the cohort may suppress typical gaps, highlighting context as key to equity.

This paper addresses the increasing complexity of interfaces in multi-brand product development processes (PDPs). By conducting a systematic literature review and validating findings through industry expert workshops, we assess and compare existing modeling approaches. Seven criteria for effective interface management are derived and applied to model clusters. The results reveal that only integrated, multi-level modeling strategies can adequately capture technical, organizational, and governance challenges in multi-brand PDPs, highlighting key gaps and future research needs.

Connected and Autonomous Vehicles (CAV) are increasingly complex, making resilience hard to guarantee. Resilience means maintaining functionality and availability despite disruptions while ensuring safety. Designing a resilient system requires system-level analysis early in the concept phase to identify and mitigate risks, thereby securing reliability and availability. This paper introduces the Automotive Resilience Maturity Model (ARMM), which evaluates automotive systems’ resilience levels based on their system architecture.

Climate instability and socio-ecological inequality demand design methodologies that integrate material, biological and cultural systems. While Regenerative, Participatory and biodesign have expanded the scope of design practice, they often lack approaches for integrating material development within culturally situated contexts. This paper introduces Material Re-Mixing, a novel biodesign methodology grounded in place- and culture-based material investigation, biological integration and participatory co-creation. The methodology is developed through a case study in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, focusing on bio-composite innovation for traditional wool felt gers. Combining textile testing, biomaterial experimentation, ethnographic research and stakeholder workshops, the case study demonstrates how mycelium-based composites can enhance performance while maintaining cultural continuity and how culturally grounded material investigation and innovation can catalyse systemic healing at the community level. Material Re-Mixing contributes a transferable system that foregrounds material agency, cultural knowledge and circular biological processes, offering a pathway towards more situated approaches to ‘wicked’ socio-ecological challenges (Rittel H and Webber M (1973) Dilemmas in a general theory of planning. Policy Sciences (4), 155–169.).

Implementing novel interaction modalities to CAD systems is raising questions about suitability of types of thinking employed and appropriateness of existing workflows used in CAD in this new context. The study reported in this paper explores the potential for introduction of alternative activities into existing workflows, proposed by designers interacting with 3D shapes using gestural interaction. Findings propose introduction of sculpting and forming paradigms that may reduce the amount of work required to create more complex forms.

Remanufacturing can be facilitated by design activities considering value creation, preservation, and recovery. Design-related decisions for remanufacturing can affect the performance of business models, but there is a lack of literature to identify these barriers or enablers. Through an analysis of selected remanufacturing cases, an initial step to bridge this gap is provided. Findings highlight the potential of design for remanufacturing for enhanced value creation processes and new service offerings, and present recurrent barriers and enablers to remanufacturing in the cases.

This study employs a hybrid bibliometric analysis and the TCM (Theory, Context, Method) framework to examine the integration of emerging technologies like AR, VR, and AI in design education. Utilizing VOSviewer and CiteSpace on Web of Science data, it identifies pivotal research clusters and trending topics. The analysis reveals a shift toward immersive representational ecosystems and highlights critical research gaps. Consequently, the paper proposes a preliminary conceptual framework for collaborative design, offering a roadmap for pedagogical and curriculum transformation.

Colour, Material and Finish (CMF) designers face rising circularity demands but lack tools that combine reliable data, traceable reasoning and creative control. This paper reports a case study with automotive CMF designers, identifying pain points in data access, evaluation of circular options, authorship and trust in AI. We propose design requirements and a conceptual model for agentic AI systems that support circular CMF work while preserving designer agency, accountability, and confidence in material decisions.

The prevalence of overweight and obesity in adults is increasing worldwide. Food portion size (PS) is an important environmental determinant of energy intake (EI) and may contribute to the obesity epidemic. However, UK evidence on the typical PS of commonly consumed foods in adults and how these may have changed over time is limited. Using combined data from Years 1-4 (2008/9-2011/12) and Years 9-11 (2016/17-2018/19) of the National Diet and Nutrition Survey (NDNS), this study examined trends in the PS of commonly consumed food groups over the last decade among UK adults. Significant increases in both consumption frequency and PS were observed for pasta, rice & pizza, eggs, oils & spreads, vegetables, fruits, nuts & seeds, and low-calorie carbonated/soft drinks (all p≤0.005). In contrast, bread, potato & potato products, condiments, and fruit juice & smoothies showed significant decreases in both frequency and PS (all p≤0.032). Divergent patterns were also evident: red meat showed increased frequency but reduced PS, while white meat and fish increased in frequency without significant changes in PS. Changes in PS alone were identified for milk and milk products, processed meat, alcoholic drinks, and total beverages.

Although fibre intake increased, recommendations are still not being met. There was no clear evidence that overweight or obese individuals consumed greater PS than those with normal weight. These findings highlight changes in food patterns among UK adults over the past decade and the importance of continued monitoring.

The integration of Generative AI in engineering education requires a deeper understanding of diverse student adoption patterns. This study applies cluster analysis grounded in the Technology Acceptance Model and extended constructs on survey data to create different user profiles. Four distinct user profiles emerged: Empowered Optimizers, Mainstream Pragmatists, Skeptical Minimalists, and Ethical Achievers. The findings challenge one-size-fits-all approaches, providing a student-centred framework for designing tailored instructional strategies, GenAI training, and ethical guidelines.

This study evaluates the efficacy of various freely available Large Language Models (LLMs) in conducting semi-automated purpose-oriented technology searches to support design activities as well as Technology Intelligence for innovation management, using a systematic manual search as a baseline for comparison. The case to run the comparison focuses on identifying water purification technologies suitable for mobile systems. The results show that LLMs can target more technologies than human-based searches, reducing time demands and providing wider entry points for additional technology analysis.

Barriers such as limited repair literacy and design-for-disposability continue to reinforce replacement cultures. This paper introduces AIFixer, an AI-powered interactive tool that guides consumers through electronic repair, promoting sustainable product lifecycles. Using a mixed-methods, user-centred approach, the study evaluates AIFixer’s usability and behavioural impact across real-world repair tasks. Findings show that conversational AI lowers barriers, builds confidence, and generates data for circular design, highlighting opportunities for multimodal and community-integrated development.

In this work, we propose an extension of classical form-finding that incorporates non-design space requirements directly into the process. This enables numerical weight optimization of thin-walled structural components. We present a concrete implementation which relies exclusively on standard structural finite element analysis, promoting integration into existing workflows. The method is validated on benchmark problems with known optimal solutions. Finally, its practical benefits are demonstrated through a more realistic engineering case study.

Dominant designs establish de facto standards for all products within an industry, shaping both competition and innovation dynamics. Studying dominant designs enables firms to make informed decisions for new product development and to anticipate technological shifts. This paper presents a computer-based method that automatically extracts the spatial configuration of components from patent drawings to support the analysis of dominant designs and anomaly detection. A case study on eyeglasses validates the approach, demonstrating its potential for data-driven design innovation.

This study examines designers’ cognitive and emotional experiences during the design thinking process and the effect of time constraints. Using the MetaCogno tool, 83 participants reported moment-to-moment experiences across Problem Analysis, Ideation, Evaluation, and Sketching. Positive experiences dominated, with time-limited designers showing higher enjoyment, focus, and engagement. Findings highlight the dynamic interplay of cognition and emotion, and suggest that time pressure can enhance focus and motivation during design.