Generating Ideas and Concepts - Medical Device Design: Innovation from Concept to Market - page 111

6.4.6 Morphological Analysis
This in essence is an extension of discretizing but instead displays the specification in tabular
form (as illustrated in Table 6.3 ).

The left-hand column is taken from the specification and/or the discretizarion described
previously. The top row simply allows you to predetermine a maximum number of
permissible solutions. The subsequent spaces are to be completed, but in each box a potential
solution for that feature is inserted. In this way an NxN table is completed that hopefully
provides every solution to every problem. The completion of this table is best illustrated by
example. Using the blood sample analysis system described earlier we can build a picture
( Table 6.4 ).

The basis of morphological analysis is to look for paths: How do the individual solutions
“morph” into the bigger single solution? As we can see from Table 6.5 , depending on which
solution is picked for feature 1 a solution to feature 2 follows; it also enables us to see which
solutions are “more versatile.” An overall path, or a number of overall paths, should lead from
the top to the bottom. If a path is not possible, or is incomplete, then another solution needs
to be thought of and this can often provide focus. Note that this table also makes sure your
outputs are compared with inputs !

Table 6.3: Example Morphological Chart

Specification
feature

Solution 1 Solution 2 Solution 3 Solution N

…

… .
N

Table 6.4: Example Morphological Table for Blood Sample Analysis

Specification
feature

Solution 1 Solution 2 Solution 3 Solution 4 Solution N

1. Collect
sample

Syringe Pin prick Incision

2. Transport
sample

Sample bottle Absorbent sheet Slide On instrument

in 1

Direct to device
(3)

3. Analyze
sample

…

4. Dispose of
sample

…