CrePS/USIT Documents:

A Collection of USIT Case Studies

USIT (Unified Structured Inventive Thinking):
A Concise Process of Creative Problem Solving in the 'Six-Box Scheme'

Editor: Toru Nakagawa (Osaka Gakuin University, Professor Emeritus), Jun. 20, 2015

Japanese edition (TN, May 23, 2015);
English edition (TN, Jun. 26, 2015)
Posted: Jun. 26, 2015

For going back to Japanese pages, press buttons.

Editor's Note (Toru Nakagawa, Jun. 20, 2015)

A number of case studies published so far in different places are collected here to form 'A Collection of USIT Case Studies'.  Individual case studies are described in full extent in a consistent format according to the USIT Manual , posted in a separate page. Through these case studies having their own different features, you can understand USIT as a consistent whole process having various aspects for application.

Please note that different kinds of creative problem solving methods can be understood in the new basic paradigm of the 'Six-Box Scheme' of CrePS/USIT.  Thus a number of case studies originally carried out with some other methods than USIT (e.g., TRIZ and others) are also described in the 'Six-Box Scheme' and are shown as 'USIT case studies'.  The source of the original work and the ways of solving in it are also cited in the present case studies.

In the description of individual case studies, some sub-steps which were skipped in the original references are inserted with newly described slides.  My intention is to demonstrate how to use the USIT process as fully as possible for all these different case studies for users to understand USIT better.  In the practical execution of USIT, it is rather important to use most effective sub-steps, by skipping some minor sub-steps just like in the original references, for the purpose of rapid and efficient problem solving required in the Real World projects.

The present page is an Index page of the case studies, showing the cases in a table.  Detailed description of each case study is shown individually in an HTML page, where four slides (3 introduction slides and 1 overview summary slide in the 'Six-Box Scheme') are shown with images and a PDF file of the whole set of slides is posted. 

At present 10 cases are documented in Japanese, while 5 of them are translated into English and posted here.  I am going to describe some more case studies both in Japanese and in English in near future. 

 


 A Collection of USIT Case Studies

USIT (Unified Structured Inventive Thinking):
A Concise Process of Creative Problem Solving in the 'Six-Box Scheme'

 

Table of USIT Case Studies described in the 'Six-Box Scheme'

No.
Theme

Features

 
Source Ref.
Case Study
(Japanese)
Case Study
(English)

1.

Sewing

How to fix a string shorter than the needle

Whole USIT Process is well illustrated for a familiar problem

Toru Nakagawa (Tsubasa Shimoda), InterLab (2006) (2006. 5. 9) Toru Nakagawa    (May 25, 2015)

Toru Nakagawa    (Jun. 26, 2015)

2.

Stapler

How to prevent a staple from being crashed

A familiar problem was solved by finding the real root cause and by using the SLP method

Toru Nakagawa (Kazuaki Kamiya) InterLab (2007)  (2007. 1. 7)

Toru Nakagawa    (May 25, 2015)

Toru Nakagawa    (Jun. 26, 2015)

3.

Toilet

Saving Water for a Toilet System

Example of catching big problem in daily life as physical contradiction, and solution

H.S. Lee, K.W. Lee, TRIZ Journal (2003); (Jap. translation: E. Fukuzawa, T. Nakagawa)  (2004. 1. 8)

Toru Nakagawa    (May 25, 2015)

Toru Nakagawa    (Jun. 26, 2015)

4.

Picture

Picture Hanging Kit Problem

A standard USIT Case Study on a familiar problem, easy to understand for everybody and yet deep in thoughts

Ed Sickafus, USIT Textbook (1997);(Jap. translation: T. Nakagawa) (2001. 3. 9)
Toru Nakagawa (2001)(2001. 8.23

Toru Nakagawa    (May 25, 2015)

Toru Nakagawa    (Jun. 26, 2015)

5.

Porous

Increase the Foam Ratio of Porous Polymer Sheet

A real problem in the field of chemical engineering is solved with the Particles Method

Toru Nakagawa (1999)(1999. 8.26

Toru Nakagawa    (May 25, 2015)

Toru Nakagawa    (Jun. 26, 2015)

6.

Bicycle

A Mom’s Bicycle for Safely Carrying Two Children

For a familiar problem, the standard USIT process is applied fully.  Functiona analysis contributed much in deriving a good conceptual solution.

Tetsuya Sudo, Hiroshi Sakata, Toru Nakagawa, et al.
(2009. 3.27), (2009. 1.29

   

7.

Auto-locking

How to Prevent Unauthorized Persons from Entering the Auto-locking Door of Apartment Building

For a familiar problem, Cause-effect analysis is actively used. Social, human, and technology-related problem is solved well.

Toru Nakagawa, Akira Fujita
(2007. 9.13), (2007. 9.13)

   

8.

LeaveThings

A System for Preventing from Our Leaving Things Behind

For a familiar but vague problem, analysis of time characteristics and scenario is used actively. A ubiquitous IT solution was imagined.

中川 徹 (2006) (2006. 2. 1), (2006. 6.19),    

9.

Cords

How to Prevent Cords and Cables from Getting Entangled

For a familiar, widely spread problem, known solutions are surveyed in the actual world and are organized systematically on the basis of system-hierarchy concepts

Toru Nakagawa, Tomoyuki Ito, et al. (2009.11.23) (2009. 11.23),    

10.

WritingTools

A Large Variety of Writing Instruments: Studying the Evolution of Technologies

A seminar class of sophomeres studied the evolution of technologies, a core concept of TRIZ, without using any TRIZ terms nor tools

Toru Nakagawa, Kurumi Nakatani   (2010.11.12)    
11
           
12
           
           
           

 


 

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Last updated on Jun. 26, 2015.     Access point:  Editor: nakagawa@ogu.ac.jp