Industrial design prototyping vs simulations - IDology #21

IDology · 30 Apr 2024 · 38m · Episode 21

What this episode covers

Piotr Dalewski and Mikołaj Wiewióra of Mindsailors discuss the strategic balance between physical prototyping and computer simulations in industrial design. They explain that while prototypes validate ergonomics, assembly, and tactile feedback, simulations like Finite Element Analysis (FEA) and ray tracing optimize mechanical stress and optical properties before tooling. The guests emphasize that both are necessary investments to mitigate risk, with the choice depending on project scale, cost, and the specific physical phenomena being tested.

Most relevant to

early-stage companies

Topics

Mentioned

Companies: Mindsailors
Tools: Finite Element Analysis, Keyshot
Also: Piotr Dalewski, Mikołaj Wiewióra, 3D printing, Injection molding

Other shows on the same ground, closest first.

Designing in the Wild1 Mar 2022 · 1h 22m
#010: Andre Brown - Principal Engineer on Amazon's Transportation Sustainability Team - Digital vs. Physical Prototyping, Creating Flat Hierarchies within Teams, Innovating Faster, Designing in Virtual Reality, Eggs and Vacuum Cleaners, Procedural Design.
Andre Brown, Principal Engineer at Amazon’s Transportation Sustainability team and former R&D lead at Dyson and Shark, discusses the strategic balance between physical prototyping and high-fidelity simulation in product development. He details how Amazon uses massive CFD simulations to optimize aerodynamic fairings for its fleet, while contrasting this with Dyson’s cardboard prototyping and Shark’s customer-centric testing for vacuum cleaners. Brown also highlights his work on open-source race cars, the use of Gravity Sketch for VR design, and biomimicry-inspired innovations like the egg-protected Dyson robot vacuum.
Prototyping & iteration Industrial & consumer product design
10 chapters
The Manufacturing Executive21 May 2024 · 32m
How Simulation Technology is Reshaping Product Design w/ Dr. Masha Petrova
Dr. Masha Petrova, CEO of Nullpace, explains how engineering simulation (CAE) allows manufacturers to design thousands of variations digitally before manufacturing only a few, replacing costly physical prototyping. She discusses the industry's shift from a few legacy providers like ANSYS and MSC Software to a consolidation trend driven by AI and chip industry demands, noting that venture capital has historically overlooked this rigorous field. Petrova highlights the challenge of tool adoption, where engineers lack time to evaluate new software, and proposes that companies must incentivize this exploration to keep pace with innovation.
AI & machine learning Debugging & failure analysis
6 chapters
Product Startup26 Apr 2024 · 17m
223: Mechanical Prototype Parts vs. Pre-Production Parts for Plastic Inventions
Tim Uys, Director of Design at MAKO Design + Invent, explains the critical differences between mechanical and pre-production prototypes for plastic hardware. He details how mechanical prototypes validate function and material strength, while pre-production prototypes apply specific manufacturing constraints like draft angles for injection molding. Uys warns that skipping these stages or adding feature creep exponentially increases costs, advising startups to keep initial features minimal to ensure a robust path to mass production.
Prototyping & iteration Design for manufacturing & NPI
5 chapters
Product Startup9 Nov 2022 · 25m
149: How to Professionally Prototype your Invention Idea
Mike Morton, former Senior Principal Industrial Designer at Dell, HP, and Sunbeam, explains the critical role of prototyping in product development. He details the progression from rough mock prototypes to refined mechanical and pre-production samples, emphasizing that early, iterative testing prevents costly errors in tooling and manufacturing. Morton advises startups to involve manufacturers early in the design process to ensure designs are manufacturable and to use short pilot runs to validate the production line before full-scale launch.
Prototyping & iteration Design for manufacturing & NPI
8 chapters
The Builder Circle23 Jan 2024 · 1h 06m
S2 E5: Rapid Prototyping Deep Dive with Greg Paulsen
Greg Paulsen, Director of Applications, Engineering and Marketing at Xometry, discusses the complexities of rapid prototyping and the transition to mass production. He details the pros and cons of various 3D printing technologies, including filament-based FDM, powder bed fusion (SLS, MJF), and resin-based methods (SLA, DLS), explaining how each affects design constraints and scalability. Paulsen highlights common hardware horror stories, such as designing for 3D printing without considering injection molding requirements, leading to prohibitive costs and tooling issues. He emphasizes the importance of clear communication with manufacturers and using AI-driven tools to optimize designs for manufacturability early in the process.
Prototyping & iteration Materials & manufacturing processes
8 chapters

The summary, chapters and topics are generated from the episode’s audio by this directory, not written by IDology. The episode itself belongs to its publisher.

Industrial design prototyping vs simulations - IDology #21

What this episode covers

Most relevant to

Topics

Mentioned

Related episodes from other shows

#010: Andre Brown - Principal Engineer on Amazon's Transportation Sustainability Team - Digital vs. Physical Prototyping, Creating Flat Hierarchies within Teams, Innovating Faster, Designing in Virtual Reality, Eggs and Vacuum Cleaners, Procedural Design.

How Simulation Technology is Reshaping Product Design w/ Dr. Masha Petrova

223: Mechanical Prototype Parts vs. Pre-Production Parts for Plastic Inventions

149: How to Professionally Prototype your Invention Idea

S2 E5: Rapid Prototyping Deep Dive with Greg Paulsen