Trends of engineering systems evolution (TESE)

Trends of engineering systems evolution (TESE) are statistically proven or empirically derived directions of engineering system development that describe the natural transition of engineering systems from one state to another.

Overview

The identification and understanding of trends of engineering systems evolution (TESE) is arguably TRIZ’s most significant contribution to the science of innovation.

TESE was developed as a result of an in-depth analysis of the evolution of products and technologies across various industries.
The historical study – based on the analysis of thousands of patents – revealed that all products and technologies follow similar conceptual patterns. This means that the trends are statistically valid for all categories of engineering systems. They define the stages that nearly all products and technologies are likely to go through during their development. This does not mean that designing a product that deviates from the TESE assumptions is technically impossible, but rather that such a product is likely to fail sooner or later.

At the core of TESE lies the assumption that technologies evolve along their own trajectory. While this happens independently of human influence, knowledge of trends can be used to recognize the voice of the product. However, it is important to note that to be fully effective, TESE should be integrated with market needs – the voice of the customer.

TESE are deeply connected with many TRIZ tools, e.g.:

Innovative benchmarking includes the S-curve analysis.
Function analysis is based on the concept of value. During the analysis, we examine both the system’s function index and its costs. And it is the trend of increasing value that tells us that the system’s value must grow.
During the flow analysis, we identify flaw disadvantages. The trend of flow enhancement tells how to improve the flows.
Trimming is a tool used to implement the trend of increasing degree of trimming, which in turn suggests which components or units should be removed from the system first.
Feature transfer is essentially a tool for implementing the trend of transition to the supersystem. This trend gives us guidance on which components should be selected for hybridization.

Hierarchical structure of TESE

TESE are organized in a hierarchical structure that reflects the relationships between them. In this structure, a lower-level trend functions as a sub-trend (mechanism) of a higher-level trend. However, each trend also has its own internal mechanisms that drive system evolution. In other words, for a system to evolve according to a higher-level trend, both its internal mechanisms and the mechanisms of its sub-trends must be implemented. During the development, a system may skip certain stages. It may also occasionally regress to a stage that was skipped. However, the overall direction is always predetermined.

It is important to note that both TESE and their structure have evolved over decades, which is why different versions can be found in TRIZ literature. The officially approved definitions of the trends and their hierarchy, as recognized by MATRIZ, were developed by the St. Petersburg TRIZ Scientific School, which is considered the most pragmatic TRIZ school.

Trend of S-curve evolution: as an engineering system evolves, the evolution of each main parameter of value (MPV) describes an S-shaped curve in time.
Trend of increasing value: an engineering system evolves so that its value always increases.
Trend of transition to the supersystem: as an engineering system evolves, it is integrated with supersystem components.
Trend of increasing completeness of system components: as an engineering system evolves, it acquires the following typical functions: operating agent, transmission, energy source, and control system.
Trend of decreasing human involvement: as an engineering system evolves, the number of engineering system functions performed by humans decreases.
Trend of increasing degree of trimming: as an engineering system evolves, system elements (components or operations) are eliminated without impairing the functionality of the system, and possibly improving it.
Trend of flow enhancement: as an engineering system evolves, flow rates of substances, energy, or information increase, and/or the flows are better utilized.
Trend of increasing coordination: as an engineering system evolves, characteristics of the components of the engineering system become more coordinated with each other and with the supersystem.
Trend of uneven development of system components: as an engineering system evolves, development is concentrated on the operating agent first, and on the rest of the system later.
Trend of increasing controllability: as engineering systems evolve, they develop more ways in which they can be controlled.
Trend of increasing dynamization: as an engineering system evolves, it and its components become more “dynamic”.

Trends of engineering systems evolution (TESE)

Overview

Hierarchical structure of TESE

Articles