The influence of documenting assumed values of product properties on the number of iterations in the design process - first observations

Iterations are an integral part of the product design process and can become necessary when there are inconsistencies between the requirements and the solution at hand. However, not all iterations are beneficial - some are unnecessary, for example, those arising from inappropriate return points. The identification of potentially wrong assumptions about product properties can indicate promising iteration return points. This paper presents the results of survey of product development engineers about iterations and assumed values of properties in their work. Additionally, we conducted a design experiment to further analyse the influence of documenting assumed values of properties on the number of iterations, the ratio of unnecessary to useful iterations and task success. Based on the results, we recommend a network-based documentation of assumptions with meta-information about confidence in the assumptions to aid identification and prioritisation of potential iteration return points.