2021 Faculty Courses School of Environment and Society Undergraduate major in Transdisciplinary Science and Engineering
System Design Project
- Academic unit or major
- Undergraduate major in Transdisciplinary Science and Engineering
- Instructor(s)
- Shigeki Saito / Kazuaki Inaba / Takumi Ohashi / Yuki Taoka
- Class Format
- Experiment
- Media-enhanced courses
- -
- Day of week/Period
(Classrooms) - 5-8 Thu (石川台5号館デザイン工房)
- Class
- -
- Course Code
- TSE.C202
- Number of credits
- 001
- Course offered
- 2021
- Offered quarter
- 1Q
- Syllabus updated
- Jul 10, 2025
- Language
- English
Syllabus
Course overview and goals
System design is to design a mechanism for solving problems through mediated tools. The function of a tool in problem-solving is dependent on the user's situation- no matter how creative and highly functional as viewed from the creator, it is useless unless it helps the user. In the classroom, to design the “useful tool,” we will learn what user empathy is, how to define the problem, how to create a prototype of tools (machines) based on the problem definition, and how to conduct user testing through practicing the process of "design thinking." Also, this class aims to grasp the concept of user-centered design as a theoretical background to design thinking.
Course description and aims
This class aims to acquire the concept of “user-centered design” through a practicing workshop based on a fundamental process of problem-solving with design thinking, "sympathy," "problem definition," "creation," "prototype" and "user-test."
Keywords
design thinking, user-centered design, prototype, user-test
Competencies
- Specialist skills
- Intercultural skills
- Communication skills
- Critical thinking skills
- Practical and/or problem-solving skills
Class flow
At Design Factory in Ishikawadai 5th bldg. 3rd floor, students work in a team throughout this course and design a mechanism for solving problems that are mediated by tools. Guest speakers are invited as necessary.
Course schedule/Objectives
| Course schedule | Objectives | |
|---|---|---|
| Class 1 | Guidance What is an “inconvenience”? What is System Design? | Each instructor specifies the tasks during class. |
| Class 2 | Interview methodology and practice | |
| Class 3 | Figure out the images | |
| Class 4 | Design user experiences and prototyping | |
| Class 5 | Prototype and picture-story show | |
| Class 6 | Picture story show, feedback and re-prototype | |
| Class 7 | Final presentation and report |
Study advice (preparation and review)
To enhance effective learning, students are encouraged to spend approximately 100 minutes preparing for class and another 100 minutes reviewing class content afterwards (including assignments) for each class.
They should do so by referring to textbooks and other course material.
Textbook(s)
Non required.
Reference books, course materials, etc.
Saito, Sakamoto, Takeda, Kado, Ouchi, "Introduction to Design Thinking for Engineers," Shoeisha Co. Ltd., (2017).
Other materials are provided during class.
Evaluation methods and criteria
Exercises in class: 30%, Final group presentation: 30%, Report: 40%
Related courses
- TSE.C201 ： Introduction to Transdisciplinary Science and Engineering
- TSE.C203 ： Social Design Project
- TSE.A318 ： Introduction to Design Engineering
Prerequisites
None.