Q 264. What is the concept of Contradictions and Inventive Problem Solving in TRIZ? How can a contradiction be resolved without a compromise? Explain with examples from different domains.

 

 

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TRIZ  is  - theory of Inventive problem solving, postulated by a Soviet engineer Altshuller  in 1946.  After studying a large number of patents, Altshuller and his  colleagues postulated that the inventive principles were present in most of the successful cases. After analysis, they found that when we try to resolve one issue, another issue gets complicated. So an innovative solution is required to overcome  and minimize trade-off between contradictory elements.

e.g- We want to have  hot beverages like tea and coffee, but  at the same time we don’t want to burn our oral cavity.

- We want a laptop with powerful and fast processor, but at the same time, we don’t want it to be complicated to use or  to be  much costlier.

TRIZ makes use of 40  common principles that have been used in different patents and different areas to find a inventive solution to resolve our present problem. 4 basic principles are generally chosen to look at -supersystems, subsystems, separation of time and space to solve problems.

 

 So the primary findings of TRIZ include-The  has produced three primary findings:

-      Problems and solutions repeated across domains(Generalisation)

-      Technical evolution pattern repeated across industries.

-      Scientific facts developed across other domain, used to resolve present issue. 

 

There has been continuous research and development and invention of new systems with refinement of existing ones. TRIZ practitioners  continue to apply the existing and new refined findings to define and improve products, services, and systems

 

Example of TRIZ analysis:

TRIZ problem solving can be done by looking individually at each of  40 principles to select the suitable ones or manually taking the help of softwares.

Here is my example on Sigma Magic software:

Problem:- Low number of walk-in patients  at a diagnostic Centre, due to higher testing price.

Target: Increase in number of Walk in patients, with out any dilution of quality  of test reports.

Contradiction: Quality Constraints

After analyzing through software and choosing principle 26-Quantity of the substance(Improving feature)  and principle 27- reliability(Worsening feature)  and opting the business mode:

Following principles were selected for obtaining  solutions:

Principle18: Mechanical Vibration

Principle 3: Local Quality

Principle 28: Mechanics Substitution

Principle 40: Composite material

 

Ideas and ideal solutions were obtained based on the content  and recommendation of these principles. The screen shot is attached here.

 

 

 

 

 

Use of TRIZ across different domains, examples:

 

Samsung: : Samsung  has  been capitalizing on  TRIZ since long and  has been used  across company and  for various projects, patenting the most famous success story

Management Problems: for analyzing and solving various  simple to complex issues, such as additional revenue generation for various government run departments.

-Various consumer based industries, automobiles and aeuronotics companies- Rolls Royce, Ford, Boeing,  Johnson and Johnson, GE, LG, Motorola  and even NASA – using TRIZ technology for various problem solving in different projects.

- Healthcare industry- various principles are used  for refinement of patient  service- apart from improving  healthcare facilities,  other comprehensive services have also been included- like ATM, Cafeteria, use of radiology and laboratory  services inside the emergency units.

Principles commonly used are:

Principle 2- Taking out

Principle  13- The other way around

Principle 25- Self Service

Principle 35- Parameter Change

 

 

.

TRIZ is the theory of inventive problem solving approach.

contradictions are two types one is administrative and technical contradictions.

administrative contradictions means physical contradiction

technical contradiction has  if -then- but concept in a problem statement.

Example: if umbrella is small, then it is easy to carry but it does not protect rain.

Around we have 40 Triz principles and in which  covered all dynamics and category of materials and properties and environment etc.

Few Triz principles are here:

 1. Division

2. Take out

3. local quality

4. asymmetry

5. Merging

6.Universality

7. embeded structures

8. Anti weight

9. preliminary anti action

10. Equipotentiality

In Triz concept will  need to follow the sequence to create the solution.

 First we need to frame the practical problem then generate ideality then prepare contradictions then we need to search properties from engineering parameters then interlink with Triz principles then validate the ideas then build the solution.

The main challenges in TRIZ concept is generating the ideas and build solution for problems.

 

 

TRIZ is an efficient and proven innovation and problem solving methodology. In the year of 1940s it was invented and originally structured by a patent examiner for the Russian Navy, Genrich S. Altshuller developed the TRIZ which is an acronym for Teorya Resheniya Izobreatatelskikh Zadatch. The english translation of TRIZ is: “The Theory of Inventive Problem Solving”. Altshuller observed during reviewing thousands of patents that original inventions are very less and majority of the patents are breakthrough inventions.The most important result of the research was that the evolution of technological progress follows a number of expected samples. 

Contradiction is a combination of statements, ideas, or features which are opposed to one another. The fundamental concept of TRIZ is to eliminate the contradictions which are the root cause of the problem.  There are three types of contradiction mentioned in TRIZ:

1. Administrative Contradiction: We have to recognize the need for a change but how the change will occur we don't know.

2. Technical Contradiction: We have to form two different types of contradiction parameters.

3. Physical Contradiction: We have to form two contradicting calls put on the same parameters and it is also known as conflict.

Altshuller arrived at 40 inventive principles to solve complex problems in TRIZ. As per the application of TRIZ, each invention till date can be traced back to the 40 principles, it may be one or more of these principles. To arrive at the right application of the 40 inventive principles, it is very important to draw up the right contradiction very specifically with regard to what should be improved and what should not get worse. 

The 40 inventive principles are given below:

1. Segmentation 2. Extraction 3. Local quality 4. Asymmetry 5. Merging 6. Universality 7. Nested doll 8. Counterweight 9. Preliminary counteraction 10. Preliminary Action 11. Cushion in advance 12. Equipotentiality

13. The other way round 14. Spheroidality 15. Dynamics 16. Partial or excessive actions 17. Transition into another dimension 18. Mechanical vibrations 19. Periodic Action 20. Continuity 21. Rushing through 22. Blessing in disguise 23. Feedback 24. Intermediary 25. Self-service 26. Copying 27. Cheap objects 28. Replace mechanical system 29. Pneumatics and hydraulics 30. Flexible shells 31. Porous materials 32. Colour changes 33. Homogeneity 34. Discarding and recovering 35. Parameter changes 36. Phase transitions 37. Thermal expansion 38. Strong oxidants 39. Inert atmosphere 40. Composite materials

The main concept of TRIZ recommends that the abstracted problems and their related solutions can be mapped irrespective of their subject matter. The method of TRIZ can be written in the following four steps:

Step 1: Find the specific problem in terms of Technical Contradiction

Step 2: Formulate the Problem

Step 3: State the Technical Conflict

Step 4: Find out Similar Solution

The TRIZ method revives innovation and with the help of 40 inventive principles, it could inspire product development. One of the vital steps of TRIZ is a brainstorming session in which people with SMEs are encouraged to give their ideas, so this method is also known as creativity and innovation.

 

TRIZ can be helpful in many industries some of these are mentioned below:

1. It can be useful at any industry or domain where systems tend to be more reliable throughout its life cycle by regular improvement.

2. It can be used to define problems in various industries.

3. It can identify the location of zones of conflict in many domains.

4. It can categorize technical evolution.

5. It can be used in different domains by giving specific solutions to new design and innovation.

 

 

Edited May 25, 20206 yr by Satyajit Das
spelling mistake

TRIZ (Theory of Inventive Problem Solving):

TRIZ is a problem-solving approach derived from the study of global invention patterns which was carried out by author Generic Altshuler in 1946. TRIZ is an acronym of ‘Teoriya Resheniya Izobretatelskikh Zadatch’ which is rendered as “Theory of Inventive Problem Solving” and often called as TIPS. TRIZ is a systematic approach for generating solutions in Problem solving even in finance, product, services, and manufacturing fields.

 

Altshuther screened over 200,000 patenst and observed that the most of the patents have very straight forward solution, only few had somewhat inventive solutions. Altshuter had extracted 40 inventive principles and those principles will serve as a hint to find the highly innovative solution to the business.

 

Concept of contradictions:

 

Problem lies in contradictions between two or more elements of interest. Increasing the quotient of desirable elements or reducing the quotient of Undesirable elements will lead to reduce the quotient of another one or more desirable elements or increase the quotient of undesirable elements. Sometimes we need the maximum and minimum quotient of the same element.

 

Some examples of contradictions:

 

Contradictions	More of Undesirable	Less of Desirable
More of Desirable	Increasing the strength of material , increases the weight	Increasing the capacity of the car, reduces mileage
Less of Undesirable	Reducing Variation in process, needs more effort and investment	Reducing the expense on material, leads to poor characteristics
More and less	Height of Rack in supermarket should be maximum to store more materials and also should be minimum for easy access of customers

 

While applying TRIZ to find inventive solution for the business problems, first and foremost things to do is to identify the contradicting statements as stated above. These are called as Technical contradictions.

 

Inventive principles:

 

Solutions are often straightforward by compromising one of the contradictions. But TRIZ provide us an ability to think to improve on both contradictions. By applying the inventive ideas, it has been proved that  Ideality i.e more of desirable and less of undesirable can be achieved at the same time. TRIZ principles are used in the many leading companies like Samsung, Xerox, IBM, LG, intel and so on.

 

Altshuter has developed a set of 40 inventive principles and later he also framed a matrix in which  he indicated 39 features ( which is also called as Engineering Parameters)in rows of desirable and columns of undesirable and the matrix is called as matrix of contradictions. Each cell points in the matrix points to the list of inventive principles which is more commonly used in order to resolve both contradictions and to achieve ideality.

 

Example:

 

For instance, now a days, all the Governments are facing challenge between economical crisis and pandemic risks due to the spread of COVID-19. If Lockdown is lifted, country will be in a good position to handle the economy, but will result in increasing the COVID-19 cases. They are looking for a solution to handle both and to strike a balance.

 

But in some fields or organization, they were able to overcome the spread and also helps in increasing the efficiency, cutting down some overheads such as travel allowance, Electricity bills, administration charges with the innovative ideas of working from Home, which was supported by lot of visual meeting medium, e-forms, e-signatures, remote access, Virtual machines etc. By which, the continuity of working for an organization or customer or on a project is carried out without the physical presence to generate  more revenue than before and at the same time reducing the risk of pandemic in their organization.

 

How I used TRIZ in my domain?

 

Background:

 

TRIZ has been used in the purchase of packaging machine which is one of its kind for our food product. I have morphed and simplified the terms for the better understanding and to maintain confidentiality.

 

We are into manufacturing of a food product which is available in different sizes (1x,2x,3x…..6x). Manufacturing of the products with varied size can be done by a single processing line  with the set up-time of 8 hours from one size to another and the packaging machine needs to be changed from smaller ( which can pack 1x, 2x and 3x) to bigger (4x, 5x and 6x) which is followed so far

 

As we are interested in buying a new packaging machine with more advanced features and accommodating HMI ,

A.   we need to buy two machines to cover all range of products, but it will increase the investment by double or

B.   we can buy universal machine which can pack all range of products, but the speed will get reduced for smaller products due to the design for maximum and investment also will be 1.7 times of budget of single machine or

C.   We can buy a standard machine which can pack the product sizes of 1x,2x and 3x. so we should drop plan of producing other bigger sizes.

 

Contradiction Statement:

To increase the packaging capability of wide range of products to meet demand of market with lesser set up time, we should increase our investment and/or reduce the packaging speed.

Desirable: Packaging capability, Packaging speed

Undesirable: Investment

 

Options	Packaging Capability	Investment	Packaging Speed
A	Wide (1x,2x,3x,4x,5x,6x)	High ( 2 times)	Standard
B	Wide (1x,2x,3x,4x,5x,6x)	Moderate (1.6 times)	Lesser than standard     (for 1x,2x and 3x)
C	Limited (1x,2x,3x)	Low (as per budget)	Standard (for 1x, 2x and 3x), Not feasible (4x,5x and 6x)

 

Ideality of Innovative idea,

Our interest is to pack wide range of products, with less investment and without compromising on speed.

 

 

Inventive principles applied:

Principle 1 : Segmentation. (Divide an object into independent parts)

Principle 16: If 100% of an object is hard to achieve by slightly less or slightly more, we can achieve it with same method which is considerably easier.

 

By combining above 2 principles, by dividing the standard machine with considerably spares for mechanical parts alone (which increases the cost by 3%), we will be able to cover a wide range from (1x to 5x), the solution was considered and accepted by machine maker  and order is placed for the same .  The machine going to be supplied is unique for the supplier and they have never adapted such flexibility before.

Benchmark Six Sigma Expert View by Venugopal R

Let’s begin with a brief introduction to the TRIZ methodology. TRIZ is a Russian acronym for “Theoria Resheneyva Isobretatelskehuh Zadatch” roughly translating as “Theory of Inventive Problem Solving”. TRIZ was invented by a Soviet science fiction author, Genrich Altshuller around 1946. According to Altshuller, for all problems in the world, we can relate to a previously found solution, if we are able to express the problem at a generic level. The generic solution can then be adapted specifically to our problem. In this context, the 3 principles of TRIZ are as follows:

 

Fundamental principles of TRIZ

Principle 1: All problems have solutions outside the technical domain of that problem. Mostly, similar problems in other fields have already been solved by someone else.

Principle 2: An invention happens only when a contradiction is resolved. When we want to improve something, something else is likely to get adversely affected. The invention has to be done without such a deterioration.

Principle 3: There are only 39 general issues faced by Inventors. When one of these has to be improved, one or more of the remaining issues could get adversely impacted.

 

Thus, the challenge is to resolve a problem with an inventive solution without causing any adverse impact. Fortunately, TRIZ has also provided guidelines to address the contradictions as well. Broadly, TRIZ recommends applying the principle of separation for avoiding or reducing the effect due to contradictions.

 

Types of Separations

1.     Separation in space

2.     Separation in time

3.     Separation between parts and whole

4.     Separation upon condition

 

I am providing some simple examples below, to help understand these types of separations in practical application.

 

1. A common example of separation in space is how crossroads are managed. We have a contradiction that we want vehicles in both directions to pass quickly without collisions. By building an overpass, we achieve this by a separation in space.
2. Consider the requirement for a quick braking of an automobile. The contradiction here is that the vehicle should not skid on a wet road, while braking. The invention of Anti Skid Braking System (ABS) ensures that the braking force is separated in time based on the extent of friction between the tires and the road.
3. We would like to perform multiple tasks on our computers, but the contradicting parameter is that we would like to keep the power / battery consumption the minimum. By inventing the sleep mode, we separate the parts and the whole system – the system slips to power saving mode when not used for a certain period of time, however, the individual components of our work are maintained, so that we could resume from where we left it any time.
4. Consider an automated data capture and processing method using optical character recognition. The contradiction in this case is that while we increase the speed of capture, we should not allow errors to pass through. Here, built-in validation rules automatically separate the suspected errors, applying separation upon condition for being specially attended.

 

Contradiction Matrix

A contradiction matrix is provided for each of the 39 parameters. Using this matrix, the contradicting parameter(s) for each parameter can be seen. The matrix also provides certain reference numbers for each contradicting combination of parameters. These numbers are part of another table that contains 40 suggested ‘Inventive Principles’, which give high level suggested ideas for solutions.

 

For example, if we need to reduce the weight of a motorcycle, we can refer to the parameter no.1 in the table, which is ‘weight of a non-moving object’. One of the possible contradicting factors would be ‘Strength’, which is parameter no. 14 on the horizontal row. An extract of the table is shown below:

 

Inventive Principles (Table of 40 ideas)

The cell where the row and column of the contradicting parameters intersect, contains four numbers. If you refer these numbers on the table of Inventive Principles (not included in this article), which contains 40 principles, you can see the ideas listed for each of those numbers. These ideas have to be taken as a clue to find the solutions. In this example, it is quite likely that usage of composite materials (No.40) could help in reducing weight of the vehicle without compromising strength.

 

Let’s also examine few other examples in the same context of contradiction, to see the applicability of the other ideas.

 

1. Imagine if we have to reduce the weight of a piston moving within a cylinder, without compromising the strength aspect. Taking cue from the point no. 27, “Inexpensive, short-lived object for expensive durable one”, we may use a ring around the piston that can be replaced upon wear, but at the same time, protects the piston.
2. Another example would be that of a cam and gear-controlled mechanism traditionally used for intermittent reversal of a washing machine agitator. By applying point no. 28, “Replacement of mechanical system”, the weight of several moving parts could be avoided by providing a microcomputer-controlled reversibility to the motor using an electronic control board.
3. Take an example of a cutting tool that uses heavy moving tool and holding equipment and we are interested in reducing the weight of the equipment. By using point no. 18, “Mechanical vibration”, the cutting process and equipment could be invented by using vibrating tool to produce the same result without compromising strength

 

The examples that we saw above are inventions that already exist, but we related them to one or more of the 40 inventive principles based on the contradiction matrix. We do not know whether the TRIZ matix had been used for the above inventions. Evidently, had they used it, they would have implemented the solutions faster. For new problems, if the TRIZ principles and matrices are referred, it could save time and effort to avoid ‘re-inventing the wheel’ for an already known solution, at the generic level.

 

Applicability – beyond Manufacturing

If you go through the table of 39 contradictions and the table of 40 inventive principles, it may be observed that the basis for evolving TRIZ methodology has predominantly focused on Engineering and Manufacturing. However, the concept of TRIZ, i.e. Contradictions and Separations are applicable to non-manufacturing situations as well by suitably modifying the tables for contradictions and inventive principles.

 

It has to be borne in mind that these methods would not provide an ready made solution for your problem, but a thorough understanding of these methods and ability to relate your problem to the generic contradictions and inventive principles is essential for successful application of the technique.

TRIZ - short form for Theory of the Resolution of Invention- related tasks, was developed by Soviet inventors, by analyzing patterns in invention using global patent literature.

 

The primary insights were

1. There were repetition of problems and solutions across industries and sciences.
2. There were evolution of patterns across industries and sciences
3. And there was cross pollination of innovations from outside the field in which they were developed.

 

What this led to is a suite of methodologies, tool sets , models etc for problem solving.

 

TRIZ was evolved by mapping contradictions that were resolved by the invention and the way it was achieved. It was observed that in most cases improvement of one dimension leads to deterioration in another.

 

Some examples include

• In India government looked at ramping up testing without huge costs due to imported swabs- by repurposing cotton bud capacity for polyester swabs. Reliance provided raw material from its petrochemical expertise and J&J provided scientific expertise from Personal Hygiene. An imported swab costs Rs 20-30 while local was around Rs1-2
• Retailers are looking at allowing more shoppers in store but have to ensure social distancing norms - increasing usage of store videos to create analytics that help stores to know the number of shoppers, any congestions
• Similarly Manufacturing has used Optical images to significantly improve testing while reducing cost
• We have seen significant cross polination of "uberification" type of invention across industries - Uber for available cars from rentals, Airbnb on available homes for rentals, OYO on hotels etc- all scaling up without asset additions
• Intel has looked at constantly improving the speed of the chips while shrinking the size

 

The patterns of cost vs speed, accuracy vs speed etc repeat across industries. Technology has played a major role in many of those situations.

 

Several leading companies GE use this technique. TRIZ reduces the problem to a general one that has been faced before, provides alternatives that can be used . Usual steps involve

Defining the contradiction -> Defining the dimension / metric for improvement & metric for potential deterioration -> Map to TRIZ matrix -> Evaluate proposed principles -> Filter those that are relevant -> Convert the best principle to specific solution

 

References

https://www.managementstudyguide.com/triz-matrix.htm

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TRIZ

Q 264. What is the concept of Contradictions and Inventive Problem Solving in TRIZ? How can a contradiction be resolved without a compromise? Explain with examples from different domains.

 

TRIZ:

TRIZ is a Problem-solving science and Russian acronym for the “Theory of Inventive Problem Solving,” an international system of creativity developed by Soviet Scientist Genrich Altshuller and his colleagues between 1946 and 1985.

 

TRIZ includes universal principles, a practical methodology and tool sets, an innovation Knowledge and model-based technology for generating innovative solutions for Problem Solving.

 

TRIZ Principles are mostly used in Product Development, Design Engineering and Process Management:

i)                  Problem formulation

ii)                 System analysis

iii)                Failure analysis

iv)                Patterns of system evaluation

 

TRIZ research has produced three primary findings:

1.    The Incidents/Issues/Problems and solutions are repeated across industries and sciences

2.    The patterns of technical evolution are also repeated across industries and sciences

3.    Scientific effects outside of the field.

TRIZ practitioners apply all these findings in order to improve Products in Product Development Life Cycle, Services in Service Design and Service Delivery Life Cycle, and Systems in System development Life Cycle.

 

Contradictions:

Cutting-edge traditional reason, a contradiction consists of a mismatch between two or more propositions. Contradiction usually happens when the proposals or suggestions, taken together, yield two conclusions which form the rational, usually conflicting each other.

 

TRIZ recognizes two categories of Contradictions:

1)     Technical Contradictions: These are classical engineering “Trade-offs”, where we could not reach desired state because something new preventing from system. In other words, when something gets better, something get automatically gets worse.

For Example: Service is customized to each customer (Good), But the Service delivery system gets more complicated.

 

2)      Physical or Inherent Contradictions: The situation in which an object or system suffers contradictory, opposite requirements.

For Example: Software should be complex (to have integrated features), but simple (to be easy to learn more quickly)

 

TRIZ Problem Solving Method:

TRIZ is a powerful methodology for creative problem solving based on logic, data and research rather than institution.

 

 

 

TRIZ Key Points:

TRIZ is a system of creative problem solving, commonly used in engineering design, product development and process management.

 

TRIZ follows four basic steps:

1.     Define your specific Incident/Issue/Problem.

2.     Find the TRIZ generalized problem that matches it.

3.     Find the generalized solution that solves the generalized problem.

4.     Adapt the generalized solution to solve your specific problem.

Most problems stem from technical and physical contradictions. At least one TRIZ principle can be applied to specific problem and laws to eliminate these contradictions, and you can solve the problem very easily.

 

TRIZ Concepts and Techniques:

TRIZ comes with a range of ideas and techniques beyond the basic principles outlined above. Some are conceptual and analytical, such as:

i)                   Continuous Improvement of System tends to become more reliable and stronger.

ii)                 Functional Modeling, Analysis and Trimming. TRIZ uses these above methods to define problems.

iii)               Locating the Zones of Conflict or Root Cause Analysis.

iv)               Prescriptive: The Laws of Technical Evaluation and Technology Forecasting.

 

Summary of TRIZ Principles:

The following 40 Principles described in table to allow the development of many solution concepts for every technical problem without introducing a compromise. Implementing a selected concept still remains the work of responsible/accountable person (RACI Matrix). TRIZ identifies these principles, and uses them to make creative process in General and Construction Industry (More Predictable).

 

Summary of 40 Principles
1	Segmentation	21	Rushing Through
2	Extraction	22	Convert Harm into Benefit
3	Local Quality	23	Feedback
4	Asymmetry	24	Mediator
5	Consolidation	25	Self Service
6	Universality	26	Copying
7	Nesting	27	Dispose
8	Counterweight	28	Replacement of Mechanical System
9	Prior Counteraction	29	Pneumatic or Hydraulic Constructions
10	Prior Action	30	Flexible Membranes or Thin Films
11	Cushion in Advance	31	Porous Material
12	Equipotentiality	32	Changing the Color
13	Do it in Reverse	33	Homogeneity
14	Spheroidality	34	Rejecting and Regenerating parts
15	Dynamicity	35	Transformation of Properties
16	Partial or Excessive Action	36	Phase Transition
17	Transition into New Dimension	37	Thermal Expansion
18	Mechanical Vibration	38	Accelerated Oxidation
19	Periodic Action	39	Inert Environment
20	Continuity of Usual Action	40	Composite Materials

 

TRIZ Principles and its examples with Different Domains: Eliminate Contradictions

Scenario 1:  Segmentation

a. Divide an object into independent parts.

b. Brand an object sectional for easy assembly or disassembly.

c. Increase the degree of an object’s segmentation.

The following flow chart describes the TRIZ principle for Segmentation. For example, HSE and Security could be divided into independent parts for any organization. We could implement PDCA (Plan-Do-Check-Act) cycle to increase the degree of an object’s segmentation. Apply this TRIZ principles on regular basis and eliminate particular contradiction without compromise.

 

 

Scenario 2: Extraction (Extracting, Retrieving, Removing)

a. Extract the improvement or disturbing part from an object or data source.

b. Extract only the necessary part or property from an object or data source.

The following process flow chart describes extraction process (ETL Process: E-Extract, T- Transformation, L-Loading Process) from various data sources and those improvement part (data’s) moved to data warehouse for further analytical purpose.  Business intelligence reporting systems get benefited almost all the industries/domains.

 

Historical data are very helpful to predict the future, apply this TRIZ principles (Extraction) on regular basis and eliminate particular contradiction without compromise.

 

 

 

TRIZ approach brings repeatability, predictability and reliability to the problem-solving process and delivers a set of innovative Products, Services and Systems.  The most of the problem stem coming from Technical and Physical contradictions, apply TRIZ principle and laws without contradict to other principle and eliminate contradictions without compromise.

 

 References:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TRIZ

https://www.triz.org/triz/principles

https://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newCT_92.htm

https://www.oshaeducationcenter.com/oeca/member-login/

https://www.isaca.org/membership/membership-benefits

 

 

Thanks and Regards,

Senthilkumar Ganesan,

Email: [email protected]

Mobile: +91-7598124052

 

 

A contradiction is when you have conflicts in what you want: either you want opposites of the same thing, or as you improve something, something else gets worse. Contradictions exist everywhere: they’ve always been around and human beings, being natural problem solvers, have found clever ways to resolve them.

 

Some everyday examples of contradictions include:

 

·       I want a cup that keeps my coffee hot but doesn’t burn my hand.

·       I want a more powerful engine for my car, but I don’t want it to get

·       heavier.

·       I want to cover a large surface area quickly when I’m painting but I don’t want to make a mess.

 

Two types of contradiction exist – technical and physical:

 

·       A Technical Contradiction

 is when, as you improve something, something else gets impacted. You start with a solution but when you put it into practice, you find a downside. For example, you make a car safer by using lots more material, but it reduces the mileage due to heaviness

 

·       A Physical Contradiction is when you want opposites of the same thing, like an umbrella needing to be both big and small.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Examples - Example "Ice for a Drink"

 

 

 

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       

Standard Contradiction

 

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       

01  Change in the aggregate state - Segmentation

05. Separation

18 Mediator

21 Transform damage into use

 

 

 

 

 

Radical contradiction:

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            INVENTING

 

Key model: 18 Mediator – a) Use another object to transfer or transmit an action.

Key idea: encapsulate the ice – the drink becomes cooler, and no water gets into the drink.

Additional solution option based on the Radical Contradiction – on the (material) segmentation navigator and specialized navigator 38 Homogeneity: interacting objects should be made from the same materials – ice figurines should be made from the same drink (which is possible not for all drinks).

 

ZOOMING

 

Have the contradictions been removed? – Yes. – No.

Super-effects:

it becomes possible to decorate the drink with nicely shaped figurine

 

Use hermetically encapsulated ice to cool drinks according to navigator 18 Mediator. Ice figurines can be made from the same drink in line with model 38 Homogeneity.

 

 

Q 264. What is the concept of Contradictions and Inventive Problem Solving in TRIZ? How can a contradiction be resolved without a compromise? Explain with examples from different domains.

Contradictions and Inventive Problem Solving in TRIZ:

 

Genrich S Altshuller who served in soviet navy as a patent expert invented the TRIZ algorithm. The acronym, translated into English literally means “Theory of inventive Problem Solving (TIPS). It identifies the root problems we are facing in industries which have already been solved approximately 90% in most industries. TRIZ is a problem solving method based on logic and data not by intuition.

 

Its important recognition is that technical system can contribute towards increasing the ideality by overcoming contradictions. This problem solving approach is not just limited to the manufacturing problems. Rather it can be applied to common problems in the service sector as well.

 

                    Ideality = ΣUseful effects / ΣHarmful effects

 

 If the system has only positive effects and there is no negatives then the ideality will be 100% and to achieve at most ideality system tends to increase its useful effects.

 Altshuller extracted 40 inventive principles, which help us to find the highly inventive solutions to the problems. To help which principles has to be applied he invented the table of contradictions.

Below 7 steps ease the use of contradiction matrix while problem solving:

1.     Determine the parameters which improves the system by the elimination of undesired effect.

2. Define a known method for improvement of this parameter.
3. By the application of known method find the parameter that’s gets worse as a result
4. Plot the table of contradictions by matching each of the 2 parameters to the appropriate 39 parameters. Here row represents parameter to be improved and column represents parameter that worsen the performance
5. Derive the number of recommended principles in the cell at the intersection points of the selected row and column
6. Find the recommended principles’ descriptions.
7. Convert the general solution recommended by the specific principle into a concrete solution for the problem.

From the contradiction matrix table with 39 parameters the below one is the sample recommended inventive principles obtained from the intersection points.

  

Contradiction Number	Improving feature	Worsening feature	Inventive principle identified using the TRIZ matrix
1	16	34	1
2	24	16	10
3	30	34	35, 10, 2
4	24	30	22, 10, 1
5	27	39	1, 35, 29, 38
6	24	27	10, 28, 23

 

 

Examples:

R&D, Quality , Value Engineering, Business, Marketing, and Innovation are common fields where the TRIZ concept is applied

 

1. Electronics Industry

In the panel manufacturing industry, SAMSUNG introduced new technology that changed the note, monitor, TV, and mobile markets in the TFT-LCD industry. To achieve a faster response time, the size of the object becomes considerable high.

 

 

TRIZ method enhanced the response time (speed) by reducing objects volume and other harmful effects. The contradiction in parameters and the potential solutions were found by applying TRIZ method.

 

 

Useful function	Harmful function	Recommended inventive principles
9:Speed	7:Volume of moving object	7.Russian dolls - Possibility of integrating different components one over another  34.Discarding and recovering   - Retire obsolete parts and substitute with ones during use
	31:Object generated	2. Taking out  35.Parameter changes 21.Skipping

 

2. Food delivery

A local pizza shop promises the customer that the pizzas will be delivered at customer’s door steps in hot condition. The shop advertised that customers who are delivered cold pizzas will get a 100% refund.

 

Now the contradiction lies in maintain the promise to the customer with respect to the quality. In order to be maintained hot, pizza must be enclosed with air-tight packing. But the tight packing of hot food increases oxidation and water vapor makes the pizza wet and reduces the appearance and quality. Hence the ideal case is the pizza that is served hot with zero moisture and water vapor

 

Useful function	Harmful function	Recommended inventive principles
17:Temperature	30:Harmful factors acting on object	2. Design the packaging box that allows for sufficient air circulation within   22. Convert the harm into benefit – Use the water vapor to keep the temperature hot   35.Make parameter changes Change in temperature Change in packaging dimensions

 

Altshuller defined the concept of contradictions and inventive problem solving.TRIZ (Theory of Inventive Problem Solving ) is basically a problem solving tool that uses contradictions which is primarily the root cause and Inventive problems (are basically the new problems that creep up when a solution is implemented )as the concepts to solve for any issues.

 

The problems that we often see are mostly repetitive in nature and we can show represent a problem as a contradiction and we can accordingly create solutions to that problem, most of the solutions can be derived from the existing knowledge and any of the problems can fit into one of the 39 standard engineering parameters and derive solution from 40 inventive principles

Contradictions are of 2 types

 

1.Physical contradiction  - situations when we desire to see different properties of a same parameter

2.Technical contradiction – This should be in the form of if-then-but statements basically “if we do something then there is something good but there is also a bad consequence”.

 

Contradiction can be resolved by clearly defining the

1.Problem Statement

2.Define the ideality statement

3.Define the contradictions (Physical and Technical)

4.Evaluate the contradictions in the 39 standard Engineering parameters

5.Based on the combinations of the scores from standard principles evaluate the solution based on 40 inventive principles

 

Example : Accuracy in processing transactions with available time

 

Ideality Statement :  Maximum productivity with zero defects in processing – one of the key issues in service industry

 

Contradiction :  If we increase the number of transactions per associate , then the productivity / throughput will go up, but the chances of error will also increase

  

 High productivity - More chances of Defect

Low productivity - Less chances of defect 

 

   

 

When we try to identify the parameters the below can be arrived based on TRIZ parameters

For increase in productivity

9 . Speed  39.Productivity 

 

Less chances of defects can be as per TRIZ parameters below

22.Waste of Energy and 25.Waste of time

 

When we try to combine all of the above principles we can use the inventive principles

 

Which in this case is “All “ so we can leverage any of the 40 inventive principles

 

Some of the key solutions that we can look at to improve productivity and reduce errors is

 

1.Segmentation (1) - Divide activities into Simple vs complex and accordingly arrive at a plan for standardization and automation

2.Preliminary action(10)  – Look at the activity calendar end to end and see if some of the activities or preparations can be done ahead of time

3.Universality (6) – Standard tools, repository of improvements to leverage as best practice in improving the process

4.Dynamics (15) – Look at redesign of process through automation opportunities or better ways of working

5. Parameter change ((35) – Right skillset based on complexity of job and replace individual based on skillset

6.Feedback(23) – continuous feedback mechanism from associates and stakeholders on the new process

7.Local Quality (3) – QC mechanism in place to ensure individual and collective process are maintaining right standards

 

 

We can use this is both manufacturing (improving machine speed, efficiency,reduce break down etc) and service industries (transaction processing, banking services)

 

 

 

 

Interesting examples of usage of TRIZ provided by everyone.

 

Best answer provided by Pradeepan Sekar for giving the most holistic answer - highlighting the constraints, how they could be resolved and by providing some real time usage of TRIZ.

 

Also review the answer provided by Mr Venugopal R, Benchmark Six Sigma's in-house expert.