5. CONCEPT EVALUATION AND PRODUCT ARCHITECTURE

Task 1: Assign Weights to Objectives

Objectives	Weights
Safety	9
Ease of Use	7
Portability	5
Use of Standard Parts	6
Cost	6

Task 2: Pugh Chart for Four Alternative Designs

Design Objectives	Weights	Design 1	Design 2	Design 3	Design 4
Safety	9	0	1	0	1
Ease of Use	7	0	1	1	1
Portability	5	0	-1	1	0
Use of Standard Parts	6	0	1	0	1
Cost	6	0	-1	1	0
Score (+)		0	22	18	22
Score (-)		0	11	0	0
Total Score		0	11	18	22

Task 3: Concept Evaluation

The Pugh chart is used to compare four alternative designs based on five objectives: safety, ease of use, portability, use of standard parts, and cost.

The objectives are assigned weights according to their importance. Each design is evaluated using the following ratings:

• +1: Better than the reference design
• 0: Equal to the reference design
• -1: Worse than the reference design

The positive score is calculated by adding the weights of objectives rated +1. The negative score is calculated by adding the weights of objectives rated -1. The total score is obtained by subtracting the negative score from the positive score.

Task 4: Result and Conclusion

Design 1 obtains a total score of 0, Design 2 obtains 11, Design 3 obtains 18, and Design 4 obtains 22.

Therefore, Design 4 is selected as the preferred alternative because it achieves the highest total score of 22 among the four designs.