A. Design Processes and Related Skills · Design Skills: From Idea to Tested Prototype

Technological Concepts in the Products and Services Around You

A1.1About 65 minutes

Learning goals

I can name and explain key technological concepts such as function, structure, material, ergonomics, aesthetics, safety, systems and sustainability.
I can tell the difference between a product and a service.
I can research how a technological concept matters for a real product or service in different technology areas.
I can use these concepts as questions to analyze any design.

Words to know

technology
Using knowledge, tools, materials and skills to solve problems and meet human needs and wants.

technological concept
A big idea that designers in every technology area think about, such as function, structure or safety.

product
A physical thing that is made, such as a chair, a phone case or a meal.

service
Work done to meet someone's need, such as repairing a car, cutting hair or caring for a patient.

function
What a product or service is supposed to do, and how well it does it.

ergonomics
Designing so a product fits the human body and is comfortable, safe and efficient to use.

aesthetics
How something looks, sounds, feels, smells or tastes; its appeal to the senses.

sustainability
Meeting needs today without harming the ability of people in the future to meet theirs; using fewer resources and creating less waste.

system
A set of parts that work together, with inputs, processes and outputs.

Welcome to Technology and the Skilled Trades

Look around the room you are sitting in. The chair, the light, the window, the device you are reading on, even the snack in the kitchen: someone designed and made every one of them. Someone also delivers services you use every day: the bus driver, the person who fixed your furnace, the hairstylist, the nurse at the clinic.

In this course you will learn to think and work like the people in technology and the skilled trades. This unit is about the skills they use: designing, planning, drawing, measuring, building, testing and improving. We start with the big ideas that every designer thinks about.

Remember from Grade 8

In Grade 8 Science and Technology you studied systems (inputs, processes, outputs), calculated mechanical advantage and efficiency, and used the engineering design process to build a lifting system. All of that is technology. In this course you will use those ideas in many more areas, from construction to hospitality.

Products and services

Technology creates two kinds of results:

A product is a thing you can hold or use: a birdhouse, a toque, a hockey stick, a printed poster, a plate of pasta.
A service is work done to meet someone's need: changing winter tires, giving a haircut, serving a banquet, taking a patient's blood pressure, fixing a laptop.

Many jobs combine both. A chef makes a product (the meal) and the restaurant delivers a service (welcoming, serving and looking after guests).

Technological concepts apply to products and to services. The same thinking (Does it work? Is it safe? Is it comfortable for the person?) is used in every technology area.

The big ideas: technological concepts

Designers use a set of technological concepts. Think of each one as a question you ask about a design:

Function: What must it do? Does it do it well?
Structure: How does it hold its shape and carry loads without breaking or tipping?
Material: What is it made of, and why?
Fabrication: How is it made: cut, joined, cooked, printed, sewn, coded?
Mechanism: Does it have moving parts that change motion or force (levers, gears, hinges)?
Power and energy: What energy makes it work (muscle, electricity, fuel, heat)?
Control: How is it started, stopped or adjusted (switch, thermostat, program)?
Systems: What parts work together? What are the inputs and outputs?
Ergonomics: Does it fit the human body and feel comfortable to use?
Aesthetics: Does it look, feel, sound or taste appealing?
Safety: Can anyone be hurt making it, using it or throwing it away?
Environmental sustainability: How much energy and material does it use? Can it be repaired, reused or recycled?
Innovation: What is new or better about it?

You will not need every concept for every design, but asking all the questions helps you notice problems early.

One simple product, seven technological concepts. Each box is a question a designer asks: what must it do, how does it fit the body, how does it stay up, what is it made of, how does it look, what happens to it later, and is it safe?

Why research the concepts?

The curriculum asks you to investigate and describe these concepts and explain why they matter for real products and services. Research means more than guessing. You can:

Look closely at a real object: take notes, measure it, sketch it.
Read manufacturer information, product reviews, safety labels or trade websites.
Ask someone who does the work: a parent who cooks, a neighbour who is an electrician, a hairstylist, a mechanic.

Then write a short explanation that connects the concept to the design: "The snow shovel's blade is made of plastic (material) because it is light and does not rust, but the edge has a metal strip (function and durability) because plastic wears down on concrete."

Worked example

Analyzing a winter boot with technological concepts

Use at least five technological concepts to explain the design of a typical Canadian winter boot.

Function: it must keep feet warm and dry in snow and slush, so it has a waterproof lower part and an insulated liner.
Material: the lower part is rubber (waterproof); the upper is often nylon or leather (flexible and lighter); the liner is felt or synthetic insulation (traps air).
Ergonomics: a padded collar and a shaped footbed make it comfortable for walking; wide openings or Velcro straps make it easier to put on with mitts.
Safety: a deep tread pattern gives grip on ice; reflective strips help drivers see you at night.
Sustainability: a removable liner can be dried and replaced, so the boot lasts longer instead of being thrown out.
Aesthetics: colours and styles are chosen so people want to wear them.

A winter boot shows function, material, ergonomics, safety, sustainability and aesthetics working together. Each design choice can be explained with a concept.

Worked example

Analyzing a service: a winter tire change

Explain how technological concepts apply to the service of changing a car's tires before winter.

Function: the service must leave the car with tires that grip in snow and ice, mounted correctly and at the right air pressure.
Safety: the technician lifts the car with a hoist or jack on the correct lift points, and tightens the wheel nuts to the torque in the manufacturer's manual. Loose nuts could let a wheel come off.
Systems: the tire is part of the car's wheel, brake and steering systems; the technician checks brakes while the wheel is off.
Ergonomics: shops use impact wrenches and tire carts so workers do not strain their backs lifting heavy wheels all day.
Sustainability: worn tires are collected for recycling rather than dumped.

Even a service that produces no new object is designed: the steps, tools and checks are planned using technological concepts.

Technology area	Example	Concept that matters most	Why
Construction	A wooden deck	Structure	It must carry people, snow and furniture without sagging.
Hospitality and tourism	A restaurant kitchen	Safety	Hot surfaces, knives and food-borne illness are serious risks.
Communications	A school website	Aesthetics and function	It must look clear and help visitors find information fast.
Transportation	A bicycle	Mechanism	Gears and chain change the rider's force and speed.
Health care	A hospital bed	Ergonomics	Patients and staff must be able to adjust it without injury.
Green industries	A vegetable garden	Sustainability	Soil, water and compost must be managed so the garden keeps producing.

Every area uses every concept, but some concepts stand out for certain areas.

Hands-on activity

Concept hunt at home

You need: a notebook, a pencil, and three objects from home (for example a kitchen utensil, a backpack, a lamp). Ask an adult before using anything electrical, and unplug lamps before you handle them.

For each object, sketch it quickly (one minute each).
Label at least four technological concepts on each sketch with arrows, for example "handle is rubber: ergonomics, grip when wet".
Choose one service you or your family used this month (a haircut, a car repair, a take-out meal, a medical appointment). List three concepts that apply to it.
Pick the object whose design you think is weakest. Which concept was not thought through? Write one sentence suggesting an improvement.

What to look for: labels that explain why (not just "plastic" but "plastic, because it is light and cheap to mould"), at least one service analyzed, and an improvement that clearly connects to a concept.

Just for fun

Why did the designer refuse to make a chocolate teapot?

It failed the function test, and also the material test, and the safety test... but it really aced aesthetics.

Your turn

Is each one a product or a service? (a) a pair of skates (b) sharpening skates (c) a wedding cake (d) catering a wedding.

Which technological concept is mainly about how a design fits the human body?

A bridge over a creek must carry a snowplow. Which concept is the most important to check?

Name two concepts that apply to a smartphone charger and explain each in one sentence.

Why might a hairstylist care about ergonomics?

Give one way to research how a technological concept matters for a product, other than guessing.

A reusable water bottle and a single-use plastic bottle do the same job. Which concept best explains why many people choose the reusable one?

More practice: warm-up

What does "function" mean?

What concept is about appearance and appeal to the senses?

Name the concept: a thermostat turns the furnace on and off.

Give an example of a service in the health care area.

What is fabrication?

More practice: on your own

A toddler's cup has two handles and a weighted bottom. Name two concepts and explain.

Explain why a snow shovel might have a bent (curved) handle.

A restaurant switches from plastic straws to paper ones. Which two concepts are in tension?

Pick a bicycle. Name its main mechanism and its energy source.

Explain how a website is a system.

Challenge

A company makes a cheap phone case that cracks after a month. Explain how three technological concepts could be used to redesign it.

Two concepts often compete. Describe a real design where aesthetics and function compete, and how a designer might balance them.

Choose any technology area (construction, transportation, hospitality, communications, health care, manufacturing, hairstyling and aesthetics, green industries or computer technology). Name one product and one service in that area and explain which concept matters most for each.

Check your understanding

Quiz

Which of these is a service?

Which technological concept is about how well a design fits the human body?

A tower that can hold a heavy load without collapsing shows good...

Which question is about environmental sustainability?

A thermostat that turns a furnace on and off is an example of which concept?

Which is the best way to research how a technological concept matters for a product?

For parents and teachers

Big idea: This first lesson introduces the vocabulary of technological concepts that the rest of the course uses (Ontario Technology and the Skilled Trades, Grade 9, TAS1O, expectation A1.1: investigate and describe fundamental technological concepts, and explain their relevance to products and services).

How to help at home:

Pick any object at dinner (a fork, a cereal box, a winter coat) and ask "Which concept matters most for this, and why?"
Talk about the services your family uses and the people who do them. If you or a relative works in a trade, health care, hospitality or another technology area, a short conversation about your work is excellent research for your teen.

Common difficulties:

Naming a concept without explaining it ("material: plastic"). Push for the reason: "Why plastic?"
Thinking services are not technology. Remind them that a haircut or a tire change involves tools, procedures, safety and design thinking.
Mixing up aesthetics and ergonomics. Aesthetics is appeal to the senses; ergonomics is fit to the body.

Safety: If your teen examines appliances or lamps during the activity, make sure they are unplugged and cool.