This document discusses implementing collaborative crowdsourcing for different design problems. It presents the LILIT crowdsourcing platform and case studies using the platform to solve three design problems of varying complexity. The case studies show that problems requiring diverse expertise across broad teams are best suited for crowdsourcing. However, crowdsourcing faces challenges in managing large design teams and tracking contributions. Future work aims to further test problem suitability and develop new tools to improve collaborative design through crowdsourcing.

1. 1
Implementing collaborative
crowdsourcing in different design
problems
Gabelloni D., Montelisciani G., Fantoni G.
Department of Civil and Industrial Engineering
University of Pisa (Italy)

2. 2
• Introduction: what is crowdsourcing?
• LILIT crowdsourcing platform
• Case studies
• Findings: which kind of problems can be solved
through crowdsourcing
• Conclusion and future works
Table of contents
International Conference on Engineering Design 2013

3. What is Crowdsourcing?
3
“Crowdsourcing is the act of a company or
institution taking a function once performed by
employees and outsourcing it to an undefined (and
generally large) network of people in the form of
an open call”.
(Howe 2006)
Examples of crowdsourcing intiatives for NPD: Innocentive,
Ninesigma, Atizo etc.
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4. 4
The main goal of this study is to
propose which kind of product
design problems can be solved
through crowdsourcing
Goal of the paper
International Conference on Engineering Design 2013
The other aim is to identify the main
characteristics of crowdsourcing sessions for NPD
and to show the effectiveness of crowdsourcing
for design problems

5. Crowdsourcing approach
BROADCASTING
OF THE
PROBLEM
SUBMISSION OF
THE IDEAS BY
THE CROWD
EVALUATION
AND
SELECTION OF
THE BEST IDEA
REWARDING
OF THE
WINNER
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6. A new collaborative
crowdsourcing platform
6
LILIT platform was designed with the aim of favoring
motivation and creative participation among users. The main
set of technologies and innovative tools developed to achieve
such purpose are:
• advanced web forum
• an IPR tracking tool to safeguard participants ideas
• a semi-automatic team builder that analyzes
problems content and selects best solvers from the
community
• A tool that provide a series of visual and ideal cues to
boost imagination and suggests new uncharted
horizons
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7. 7
Problem
Description
Guided
Team
Building
Team
Rewarding and
profiles
updating
Prizes and
Updated Profiles
Problem
Collaborative
Session
IPR
Tracking
Solution %
Contributions
A new collaborative
crowdsourcing platform
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8. Problem classes and problem solving
teams and methods
8
Fantoni et al. 2007
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9. Case studies
9
Problem Title 1. Gripper for deformable
thin objects handling
2. Can we look into products'
life?
3. F.A.C.E. (Facial Automaton
for Conveying Emotions)
Class B. Incremental innovation on
an entire class of actual
products
C. New Architecture for the
next product generation
D. Next generation of needs
within a field
Purpose Delineate a new concept of
industrial gripper basing on
precise technical requirements.
Identify strategies to raise food-
companies transparency,
honesty, as well as customers
fidelization.
Discover new fields of
application of an human android
able to perform several different
facial expressions.
Tasks To define an on-demand
switchable adhesion
technology that can rapidly
pick up objects on one side,
transport these and fast release
them by reversing the
adhesion/gripping effect.
To define:
- Who is the target consumer;
- What kind of product is more
suitable with the
"investigation";
- How: specify means of
collection, elaboration and
communication to consumers.
To define the field of application
and to indicate for which
specific tasks the android could
be used.
International Conference on Engineering Design 2013

10. Case studies
10
Problem Title 1. Gripper for deformable
thin objects handling
2. Can we look into products'
life?
3. F.A.C.E. (Facial Automaton
for Conveying Emotions)
Purpose Delineate a new concept of
industrial gripper basing on
precise technical requirements.
Identify strategies to raise food-
companies transparency,
honesty, as well as customers
fidelization.
Discover new fields of
application of an human android
able to perform several different
facial expressions.
Selection of four ideas
related to medical,
entertainment,
marketing and
security application
for a research project
Design of a new
gripper based on
distributed micro
vacuum cups for the
participation to a
financed research call
Definition of a bid
concerning
Environmental impacts,
Supply chain
transparency, User
experience for a private
food company
International Conference on Engineering Design 2013

11. Case studies
11
Problem Title 1. Gripper for deformable
thin objects handling
2. Can we look into
products' life?
3. F.A.C.E. (Facial
Automaton for Conveying
Emotions)
Teams size 6 solvers 8 solvers 13 solvers
Solvers skills Mechanics; Materials
science; Robotics
Management; Mechanics;
Electronics; Logistics;
Marketing
Management; Mechanics;
Electronics; Logistics; Bio-
Engineering; Innovation;
Marketing; Comp. Science
Session duration 4 days 7 days 17 days
Solvers
contributions
19 30 52
Mean number of
contributions per
user
3 3,7 4
Moderator
interventions (%)
20 (51%) 7 (19%) 5 (9%)
IPR Tracking
results
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NPD through crowdsourcing Face-to-face design
PROS
• access to a wide community of
expertise that are not present within the
companies
• tracking of solvers ideas
• h24 accessible online service allowing
the asynchronous participation of
solvers
•Centrality of the intrinsic incentives
• difficulties in the management of a
very large design team
• Difficulties in tracking all the
participants contributions
• face to face meeting in a specific
moment
LIMITS
• NO graphic and CAD tools
• NO support of prototype
• NO chance of audio-visual interaction
• For brainstorming sessions high
number of ideas to manage
• IPR issues
• Usage of graphic tools
• Usage of proptotypes
• Possibilities of face-to-face interaction
Highlights
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13. Which kind of problems can be solved through
crowdsourcing
13
Concept
development
System-level
design
Detail
design
Testing and
refinement
EFFECTIVNESS OF
CROWDSOURCING
PROBLEM
CLASS
D C B A
Average # of
generated ideas
Monetary
reward size
effectiveness of
crowdsourcing
in different design
phases
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14. 14
• Problems concerning less technical issues and needing very
wide teams and heterogeneous expertise are the more suitable
for collaborative crowdsourcing design sessions.
• Criticalities related to crowdsourcing emerged and have been
studied.
Future work will be focused on:
• further tests with different problem classes to better
understand when crowdsourcing is effective.
• strategies and tools can be used to overcome the identified
criticalities
• the design of a new set of tools to improve the collaborative
design (e.g. a graphical virtual environment that enhances
the collaborative design experience)
Conclusion and future work
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15. 15
Implementing collaborative
crowdsourcing in different design
problems
Acknowledgements
The financial support of Regione Toscana Project LILIT: I Living Labs per
l’Industria Toscana (PAR FAS REGIONE TOSCANA Linea di Azione
1.1.a.3) is kindly acknowledged.
Contact
d.gabelloni@gmail.com
Website
http://lilit.itc.unipi.it/SitePages/Welcome.aspx
http://www.leaninglab.org/