Integrating Function- and Affordance-Based Design Representations

Abstract

In this paper, we explore the possibility of reconciling and integrating practical affordance- and function-based design representations. We present a classic function-based design method and representation and argue for the benefits of augmenting it with affordance-based approaches. Building on existing function concept ontologies, we present an integrated approach to developing early-stage design representations. This approach combines the use of affordance and function representations to capture user needs across a device's life cycle. We demonstrate how affordances add rigor and expressiveness to the early stages of traditional design processes, and how traditional function-based tools provide affordance-based design (ABD) with structured methods for concept generation. The integrated approach is illustrated with an example, in which a use case is explicitly decomposed to demonstrate the structure of relationships between users, goals, actions, artifacts, functions, and affordances.