Biomimicry: Design by Analogy to Biology

Resource Type
RTM Publication
Publish Date
11/02/2017
Author
Emily Barbara Kennedy
Topics
New Product Development, Trends
Associated Event
Publication

The best ideas are often borrowed. For example, the Dyson vacuum was inspired by cyclone separators used in sawmills to remove sawdust from air, the STRiDA folding bike repurposes the mechanics of the collapsible Maclaren umbrella stroller, and a guitar pickup winder took inspiration from the Dazey Stripper, an electric fruit and vegetable peeler with a rotating spindle. The practice of borrowing ideas from other domains to solve technical challenges is called design by analogy.