Engineering of Creativity: Introduction to TRIZ Methodology of Inventive Problem Solving

by Semyon D. Savransky

Invention and innovation lie at the heart of problem solving in virtually every discipline, but they are not easy to come by. Divine inspiration aside, historically we have depended primarily on observation, brainstorming, and trial-and-error methods to develop the innovations that provide solutions. But these methods are neither efficient nor dependable enough for the high-quality, high-tech engineering solutions we need today.

TRIZ is a unique and powerful, algorithmic approach to problem solving that demonstrated remarkable effectiveness in its native Russia, and whose popularity has now spread to organizations such as Ford, NASA, Motorola, Unisys, and Rockwell International. Until now, however, no comprehensive, comprehensible treatment, suitable for self-study or as a textbook, has been available in English.

Engineering of Creativity provides a valuable opportunity to learn and apply the concepts and techniques of TRIZ to complex engineering problems. The author-a world-renowned TRIZ expert-covers every aspect of TRIZ, from the basic concepts to the latest research and developments. He provides step-by-step guidelines, case studies from a variety of engineering disciplines, and first-hand experience in using the methodology.

Application of TRIZ can bring high-quality-even breakthrough-conceptual solutions and help remove technical obstacles. Mastering the contents of Engineering of Creativity will bring your career and your company a remarkable the ability to formulate the best possible solutions for technical systems problems and predict future developments.

Genres: Design

410 pages, Hardcover

First published August 29, 2000

Reviews

[LS · Rating 5 out of 5]

_The Engineering Of Creativity_ picks up where Polya's _How to Solve It_ leaves off. Triz is comprised of methods and methodologies for solving engineering problems. I must warn readers that I found the book excruciatingly boring. The only thing that tided me through were the ah-ha moments when I was presented with a way of thinking or approaching a situation which I had never encountered before.

In my opinion a scientific background is necessary to receive the full benefits of the book. The majority of Savransky's presentation of Triz involves using the interactions from chemistry, physics, fields, substances, and engineering like checkers pieces, so if you do not have a deep knowledge of these subjects, the authors explanations might be lost on you.

If you do have an understanding of these topics and actively seek inventive solutions and interdisciplinary connections, then this book is full of tables and charts that summarize all of the major interactions between different forms of energy, fields, and substances according to what outcome one wants to produce. It is such a rich repository of organized information for problem solving that I think it would make an excellent book to keep on the shelf for reference. Mainly because the variety of methods and ideas are too numerous to keep in one's head.

Although it was arduous reading, now that I understand what Triz is, what it can do, and its value, I am on the lookout for a used copy to add to my bookshelf to refer to when I am stuck on a particular problem or searching for alternatives. It is a great work!

[Sérgio Renato · Rating 4 out of 5]

You really should know a lot about Natural Sciences and Technological Process to understand some of the examples, but as stated in the Book, TRIZ is an evolving Methodology in almost early stages. I really got a bit disappointed not finding better schemes, overall it helps you how to address a problem and how to think of it, it is almost like an unpolished formula on how to solve technical problems and create answers to problems. A person has to read more about TRIZ, would be nice to find a case study where the methodologies and algorithms are all sketched, and then create a really organized concept of it, it lacks much math on the approaches of thinking, but science and math are implied on the techniques and ideas developed by applying TRIZ.