Industrial Design with AI: Design Research
Artificial intelligence is revolutionizing the product design process, offering new ways to generate and refine concepts quickly. This guide will explore practical methods for using AI in your design workflow.
Establishing Design Parameters
Before diving into AI-assisted concept generation, it's crucial to define clear design parameters. For instance, if designing a garden speaker, you might specify:
User-friendly interface
Use of recycled materials
Water resistance
These parameters will guide your AI prompts and help evaluate generated concepts.
Creating Moodboards with AI
Mood boards are essential for establishing the visual direction of a product. ID AI Image Generation can generate impressive mood boards with simple text prompts.
How to use ID AI to generate mood boards:
Add the prompt: "a mood board of product designs" followed by relevant keywords
Include color directions (e.g., "natural colors" or "green")
Mention related products (e.g., "garden tools")
The following images were generated at https://app.idai.tools/interface/image_generation
Prompt: a mood board of product designs, natural colors, garden tools, inspirational moodboard with sections
Prompt: a mood board of product designs, greens, inspiration moodboard for garden tools, inspirational moodboard with sections
Pro tip: Experiment with different prompts to fine-tune your results and get inspiration that aligns with your vision.
Basic Concept Generation with AI
Many AI tools allow you to generate product concepts from text descriptions. Here's a general approach:
Start with a basic product description
Gradually add details in subsequent prompts
Experiment with materials, colors, and forms
Visualize the product in its intended environment
Example progression:
"Minimalist garden speaker"
"Minimalist garden speaker, recycled plastic, green and brown colors"
"Minimalist garden speaker, recycled plastic, green and brown colors, in a lush garden"
The following images were generated at https://app.idai.tools/interface/image_generation
Prompt: Minimalist garden speaker
Prompt: Minimalist garden speaker, recycled plastic, green and brown colors
Prompt: Minimalist garden speaker, recycled plastic, green and brown colors, in a lush garden
Pro tip: Most AI tools don't require special commands. Simply input your prompt in the provided field.
‘Training’ AI Models
Some advanced AI tools, like ID AI's Moodboard-Controlled Image Generation, allow you to create concepts inspired by existing products or styles. This doesn’t actually train a model, but it can feel like it! By inputing a collection of images that are all kind of similar, you can generate new products images.
General workflow:
Collect images representing your desired aesthetic
Upload these images to the AI tool
Input a prompt describing your product
The AI generates concepts blending your prompt with the uploaded aesthetic
The following images were generated at https://app.idai.tools/interface/moodboard_controlled
Moodboard to input
Products generated
This technique is particularly useful for maintaining brand consistency or drawing inspiration from related product categories.
Refining and Iterating Concepts
To maximize the benefits of AI in concept generation:
Generate multiple concepts using varied prompts
Explore different aesthetic directions using moodboard-controlled tools
Combine elements from different generated concepts
Refine promising ideas with more detailed prompts
Practical Considerations
While AI tools are powerful, it's important to remember:
AI-generated concepts may not account for all practical aspects like ergonomics or manufacturing constraints
Output quality depends heavily on input quality (garbage in, garbage out)
Human judgment remains crucial in evaluating and selecting concepts
Best practices
Use AI-generated concepts as inspiration, not final designs
Always evaluate concepts against your initial design parameters
Combine AI-generated ideas with traditional sketching and prototyping
Experiment with different prompt structures to find what works best
Conclusion
Here's how you might incorporate AI tools into your workflow:
Define design parameters and gather inspiration
Use AI for initial concept generation
Refine concepts using moodboard-controlled generation
Evaluate and select promising concepts
Further develop chosen concepts through traditional methods
AI tools like those offered by ID AI are revolutionizing concept generation in product design. By understanding how to use these tools effectively and being aware of their limitations, designers can enhance their creative process and explore a wider range of possibilities more efficiently.
Remember, AI is a tool to augment your creativity, not replace it. Your expertise as a designer remains crucial in creating products that truly meet user needs and solve real-world problems.
