
Wouter EgginkUniversity of Twente | UT · Faculty of Engineering Technology (ET)
Wouter Eggink
Dr. Ir.
Assistant Professor Human-Technology Relations
About
96
Publications
62,046
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Introduction
My Topics are Design, History and Meaning. I am especially interested in the relationships between Design, Technology and Society. I research this topic by combining Research Through Design with Philosophy of Technology Theories. We call this "The Practical Turn".
Apart from all that I am an expert in course and curriculum Development for the Design Disciplines.
Additional affiliations
March 2007 - present
Education
July 2007 - September 2011
University of Twente
Field of study
- History of Industrial Design
September 1990 - June 1996
Publications
Publications (96)
Designing requires great social and moral responsibility as we are sur-rounded by products and services that shape -and simultaneously get shaped by- the way we live. This asks for active reflection on ethical issues. However, with the classical top-down approach, ethics may be perceived as restrictive, setting boundaries for what is allowed and wh...
In a collaboration between the University of Twente and the Saxion University of Applied Sciences ethics education is explored from a tool-based, practical perspective. In this ongoing project the focus lies on the question if and how practical tools for ethical deliberation can be helpful in ethics education for engineering students. To adhere to...
Design is a medium that allows for storytelling, at the same time design can be inspired, informed, or improved by stories. In Design Education, past year's efforts have been made to let the content speak more vividly to the students. We introduce the Future Scenario Development Play and Design methodology as a process for Research through Design....
Design is a medium that allows for storytelling, at the same time design can be inspired, informed, or improved by stories. In Design Education, past year’s efforts have been made to let the content speak more vividly to the students. We introduce the Future Scenario Development Play and Design methodology as a process for Research through Design....
The Dutch research project “Wijs met techniek” (Tech-Wise) explores ethics education from a toolbased, practical perspective. Especially if and how practical tools for ethical deliberation on the impact of technology can be helpful in ethics education for engineering students. The approach is first intended as a variation on theories in ethics and...
In the context of the environmental crisis and the Anthropocene the connections between us humans and our technical culture to earth/nature must be recognized as very important. After the technological flight of modernity it is time to land again, “down to earth”, so Bruno Latour. The shared challenge of design and philosophy is to find a new balan...
The introduction of innovations can be more successful when launched under an established brand name, e.g. as a brand extension. However, the role of the appearance of the design is often underexposed, whereas the visual appearance of products is known as a critical determinant of consumer response and product success. Based on current literature,...
In the context of the designers responsibility for the impact of technology, ethical considerations are important. However, these considerations are often seen as limiting innovation and the freedom of the designer. Is it possible, on the contrary, that ethics can also foster creativity in design? The research project Tech-Wise is about a practice...
Designing requires enormous social and moral responsibility as our surroundings -full of products and services that we shape- in turn shapes the way we live. Not only do these products and services serve utilitarian functions and guide our actions, they also influence our norms and values in often unforeseen ways. The challenge of responsible desig...
Design education has looked for different approaches to teaching ethics and ethical behaviour. In this paper I want to add an approach that is coming from the collaboration between design research and
philosophy of technology. Philosophy of Technology has produced a substantive amount of theories and reflections about the impacts of technology and...
In this paper we explore designerly ways of doing history. By combining a design study with two design history case studies we will investigate the concept of domestication of technology. With our research-through-design approach we aim to convert lessons from design history into useful practices for contemporary designers. In doing so we want to c...
This paper reflects on the interpretation of design histories for use in contemporary design practice. After the introduction and advocacy of STS approaches in design history by Fallan in 2010, I started to become interested in using these approaches for understanding contemporary design challenges. This interest resulted in the development of hist...
Our research aims to contribute to the mutual and constructive collaboration between philosophy of technology and design research: a practical turn in the philosophy of technology. This means a variation and extension to the ‘empirical turn’ in the philosophy of technology. After the turn from abstract thinking about the essence of technology towar...
Imagine yourself going shopping. It is a Saturday afternoon, you
are walking in the centre of a big city. It is crowded, there are
many people who had the same idea, strolling around the city
centre. You are not looking for something specific, but in the
distance you see the Rituals store; the large Japanese blossom
tree, the calming colours and th...
Philosophy of Technology has produced a substantive amount of theories and reflections about the impacts of technology and innovations on our daily lives and social behaviours. Combining this conceptual toolkit with design, with its capability of actually changing things, promises a powerful approach to developing critical future-making practices....
Industrial Design Engineers have a social responsibility by the very nature of their activities, bringing new products and services into the world of the user. Within the design related research chairs of our university we strive to shape this responsibility in the context of the design of Human Technology Relations. This paper will report on the e...
Designers have responsibility by the very nature of their activities; bringing new products and services into the world of the user. Recently there is also raising interest in specifically addressing social issues by deliberate design interventions. Within the University of Twente, we strive to shape this responsibility in the context of the design...
This paper describes the Pastiche+ learning method for design skills on a master education level. By using philosophies and stylistic elements of art and design movements the method tries to extend ones skill and knowledge about design tools, principles and processes in an elaborate way. The paper describes the purpose and context of the method in...
This chapter presents and discusses the historical development of PV-powered products, such as pocket calculators, lamps, and charging devices. The timeline goes from the 50s until 2015 and includes a comparison with product designs of “normal things,” such as televisions, lamps, and furniture. By zooming in to the historical development of solar-p...
Conventional design practices regard gender as a given precondition defined by femininity and masculinity. To shift these strategies to include non-heteronormative or queer users, queer theory served as a source of inspiration as well as user sensitive design techniques. As a result, a co-design workshop was developed and executed. Participants sup...
The combined philosophy and design approach called Philosophy-through-Design (PtD) is proposed using an exemplary project about being-in-the-world in the digital age. PtD is a practical way to do philosophy through designing interventions, and involves various people in the exploration of philosophical concepts. It stems from the overlapping questi...
This paper describes the Pastiche+ learning method for design skills on a master education level. By using philosophies and stylistic elements of art and design movements the method tries to extend ones skill and knowledge about design tools, principles and processes in an elaborate way. The paper describes the purpose and context of the method in...
Human-technology relations are one of the key issues in design innovation and the shaping of our future. Also in the Philosophy of Technology human-technology relations are a central theme. New insights in the complex interplay between humans and technology can be gained from collaboration between Design and Philosophy of Technology, especially in...
Within the Bachelor's programme Industrial Design Engineering we created a 15EC elective research module "Scientific Challenges". One of the possible research subjects of this module is “Author Driven Design project”, which means exploring the Design of objects from your own intrinsic motivation, rather than from an external demand driven assignmen...
Conventional design practices regard gender as a given precondition defined by femininity and masculinity. To shift these strategies to include non-heteronormative or queer users, queer theory served as a source of inspiration as well as user sensitive design techniques. As a result, a co-design workshop was developed and executed. Participants sup...
Conventional design practices regard gender as a given precondition defined by femininity and masculinity. To shift these strategies to include non-heteronormative or queer users, queer theory served as a source of inspiration as well as user sensitive design techniques. As a result, a co-design workshop was developed and executed. Participants sup...
The combined philosophy and design approach called Philosophy-through-Design (PtD) is proposed using an exemplary project about being-in-the-world in the digital age. PtD is a practical way to do philosophy through designing interventions, and involves various people in the exploration of philosophical concepts. It stems from the overlapping questi...
Collaboration between Design and Philosophy of technology can generate new insights in the complex interplay between humans and technology. These so-called human-technology relations are one of the key issues in design innovation and the shaping of our future. Design Innovation can use the frameworks of philosophers to theorize the findings from pr...
In this educational research project I have investigated how we can best strengthen the position of design research within the Industrial Design Engineering (IDE) master curriculum. By analysing the way in which design research is actually implemented in the courses I have built a clear picture of the scientific component of the programme. By inves...
This paper presents concrete examples of possible directions for a sustainable future of fashion. Sustainability is a complex issue that affects all aspects of the fashion domain. From growing and sourcing cotton, to recycling fabrics, to second-hand-clothing, to even less polluting cleaning methods. Key factor that all these aspects have in common...
Now that there is an expanding market for design skills into the field of service design and at the same time 'products' become ever more intangible, it becomes relevant to teach and explore this part of the discipline. At the same time, one can ask the question whether the principles of design are so fundamentally different when applied to intangi...
This paper discusses the opportunities and challenges of designing products using luminescent solar concentrator (LSC) photovoltaic (PV) technologies. The focus is on the integration of LSC PV technologies in PV modules, future products and buildings. It is shown that the typical material properties of LSCs — low cost, colorful, bendable, and trans...
In this paper we explore how the collaboration between Design Research and Philosophy of technology can be profitable for both disciplines. From three case studies where Philosophy of Technology theories and methods were applied in a design context we show how these projects profited from a more reflexive perspective. Then we analyse the three case...
In this paper we explore how the collaboration between Design Research and Philosophy of technology can be profitable for both disciplines. From three case studies where Philosophy of Technology theories and methods were applied in a design context we show how these projects profited from a more reflexive perspective. Then we analyse the three case...
Design has a key role in shaping humans. In the design process, an understanding of the complex human and its often conflicting relations could be fruitful to improve the design. Ideas from Philosophy of Technology could offer a different perspective on product design. In this paper it will be explored how a philosophical perspective can support th...
Collaboration between Design Research and Philosophy of Technology seems very promising. The reflective, philosophical perspective brings the societal implications of design to the fore and this is an interesting focus for reinforcing research approaches for design. Since the philosophy of technology in the current of the 'empirical turn' aims to s...
The ever rising role of products and technologies in humans’ lives is increasing the call for ways to understand and investigate their influences, in the form of prospective analytical methods. This paper proposes one such method, based upon the Product Impact Tool. This Tool was developed to combine both philosophy of technology and design for usa...
This paper reflects on the diffusion of sustainable technologies in comparison with other successful technologies from a design history perspective. Historic case studies of three successful technologies (the automobile, the television, and the personal computer) revealed that there is a strong correlation between the appearance of the technology a...
Since Postmodernism, presenting universal guidelines for aesthetics is highly suspect. However, aesthetics can play a significant role in the acceptance of technology and its success in society, so this paper argues for the generating of specific aesthetic guidelines, based on a general perspective. The goal of the research was to find a method of...
This paper shows the results of a design study on possible applications for Luminescent Solar Concentrator PV technologies. The study focused on product integration of LSC PV technologies and was executed by students of Industrial Design Engineering at University of Twente (NL). In total 16 different and highly innovative conceptual designs resulte...
Since Postmodernism, presenting universal guidelines for aesthetics is highly suspect. However, aesthetics can play a significant role in the acceptance of technology and its success in society, so this paper argues for the generating of specific aesthetic guidelines, based on a general perspective. The goal of the research was to find a method of...
Design history Education in the Netherlands has been taught from different perspectives during the last decades. Each perspective resulting in a different view on Design History and subsequently also with different outcomes and contributions to design education and design practice. In short, these perspectives can be characterized by the keywords ‘...
The very definition of a university is a place where research and education are intertwined. When there is no research, a university will look like a place for vocational training, and when there are no students to teach, the university is no more than a research institution. This convention of research and education is firstly explained as a pract...
The pressure of publishing becomes more and more important, while on the other hand we have to deal with hard deadlines when it comes to education. In achieving the difficult balance between a good research track record and appropriate education we are condemned to see how we can implement design research in education. Performing such research can...
Over the last few decades, brand and innovation management have become increasingly important for firms to secure their position on the market and to fuel growth. Company’s continuity depends on the success of the introduction of new product innovations and on the other hand companies use branding to distinguish themselves and to increase their com...
Keynote Speech - On the importance of design, innovation and aesthetics in healthcare, and how to do that.
There are different ways to tell stories with design. This paper shows possibilities of telling stories by envisioning the future. Overall, design has the very ability to envision, visualize and express things that do not exist yet. We introduce the Future Scenario Development Design methodology as a process for research through design. This method...
Project proposal for Program for Science Based Engineering, Post doctoral research grant.
Industrial Design Engineers have social responsibility by the very nature of their activities; bringing new products and services into the world of the user. Recently there is also raising interest in specifically addressing social issues by deliberate design...
The University of Twente has developed the DesignLab initiative to feed the " high tech, human touch " mission of the organisation. The combination of high tech and human touch was made one of the spearheads of the future, in order to bank on the universities unique position as a 'dual-core university' with both a strong science and engineering fac...
This paper describes two techniques aimed at design-driven product innovation. Both techniques focus on providing a different, initially disruptive, perspective form which to approach a design assignment. As a result, sticky meanings and conventions are shaken loose, opening up avenues for considering new meanings that set the stage for design-driv...
Shortened English Translation of PhD Thesis "Regels ter Ontregeling, lessen uit de geschiedenis van het tegendraads ontwerp" (Eggink, 2011).
There are different ways to tell stories with design. This paper shows possibilities of telling stories by envisioning the future. Overall, design has the very ability to envision, visualize and express things that do not exist yet. We introduce the Future Scenario Development Design methodology as a process for research through design. This method...
The Product Impact Tool is the application-oriented result of the research project Product Impact on User Behavior, aiming to investigate the impact of technology on users and to make the insights applicable in the design process (Dorrestijn 2012).
The impact of technology on users and society is an important topic in research on technology in refl...
Foreword
DESIGN EDUCATION &
HUMAN TECHNOLOGY RELATIONS
The 16th International Conference on Engineering and Design Education (E&PDE) was held at the University of Twente on the 4th and 5th September 2014.
The conference was hosted by the Faculty of Engineering Technology of the University of Twente in Enschede, the Netherlands, in close collaborati...
Creative Technology is a new bachelor programme at the University of Twente. Goal of Creative Technology is to design products and applications that improve the quality of daily life in its manifold aspects, building on Information and Communication Technology (ICT). The application domains range from recreation to work, from entertainment to learn...
Many scholars who study user-technology relations have shown from different perspectives that such relations are mutually constructive: users shape technology, and technology shapes users. This awareness raises questions about the part a designer plays in the workings of society. Are designers responsible for the social role of their products? Can...
In today's society, and in almost every forecast for the future, technology development plays a major role. From theories in Science & Technology Studies we learn that the development of new technology cannot be meaningful unless there are users that successfully adapt the products and services to their own lives. As a result, it is important that...
In this paper we try to disentangle the design of successful brand extensions and test this with two case studies. Earlier research revealed that typicality and novelty are related to the aesthetic preference of products. Despite the fact these two predictors are also each other’s suppressors, the equilibrium of both will determine aesthetically pr...
In this paper we raise the question: does our consumer behaviour make us happy? The infinite source of consumer desires seems to be the justification of an ever increasing amount of products that inundate our lives. Consumption itself is set free from any functional bond, bringing our current consumption levels to the point that it is ecologically...
In many industries technological innovation is the most important driver of competitive success. Within our master curriculum Industrial Design Engineering, we therefore implemented a course that is dedicated to the development of innovative technology. This course, called “Sources of Innovation”, provides insight in innovation processes regarding...
The development of a student’s skills during design education partly depends on the amount of selfconfidence.
Optimizing the speed and level of growth can be done by influencing factors related to self-confidence that students have to cope with throughout their studies. Six main factors can be distinguished and have been explored in order to discov...
In this paper we discuss the application of new opportunities and chances of digital learning in design education by means of the implementation of a digital sketching forum into a sketching course. The so called ‘blended learning’ method combines face to face education and a digital forum called SketchLab where students can watch instructional mov...
This paper addresses the design and styling of future products that are based on innovative technologies. So how should a future electric personal mobility device look like? Or how will an electric vehicle charging station look and work with integrated photovoltaic solar cells? In general we wonder how we can create such designs that people are wil...
The design of a product acts as a carrier of various symbolic meanings. These meanings are a result of experiencing all the specific design characteristics together in the complete product. The separate design characteristics will build up to a total image, which will evoke certain associations. Some of these associations are explicit, such as ‘the...
Product design can be a major component in the total marketing mix of brand communication. The translation of brand values into concrete brand communication is crucial for a company to build a corporate reputation and is necessary to develop a strong brand. Especially brand values such as sustainability are implicit values, and their intrinsic abst...
Design and styling of new products used to be easy. Modernism depicted that the new product should be designed to fit the utility function of the object efficiently, and that the shape should be geometric and clean. Postmodernism of the 1980s, however, re-introduced the idea of cultural reference and emotion in product design. From then on, product...
In this paper the application of the `rules of unruly design' are explored in demand driven design practice. The rules of unruly design are a set of design rules that were derived from design history to form an inspirational tool for the design and styling of meaningful objects in a postmodern context.
Traditionally, the design of the new, the stra...
Within the design course Methods of Form, situated in the first year of the Bachelor Industrial Design Engineering, we developed a design tool to help students to design more meaningful products. The core element of this tool is a set of translation levels, which helps designers with the translation of meaningful associations into design features....
The academic world is constantly under pressure to deliver maximum output for a minimum of (public) costs. For Design education this is important, because doing Design cannot be learned from a book. As teaching costs are mainly driven by the costs of supervisors, the amount of time invested in organizing a meaningful teaching experience determines...
In a contemporary design context it is important to be able to communicate design strategy at a high
abstraction level and at an early stage in the design process. At the same time, in our postmodern
consumer society that is largely dominated by media, it is important to be able to communicate ideas
visually. This paper describes an informal techni...