The Cyclical Design Process in the 4.0 Era: Design Across Digitalization and Virtualization

Industry 4.0 comprises a number of technological transformations in the pre and post manufacturing phases. Enabling technologies such as Cobots, IoT, Big Data, Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality play a major part in the fourth industrial revolution and the reshaping of the design process. These changes elevate the role of the industrial designers while allowing them to work transversely within the design process. The aim is to encourage the use of virtual and digital tools, useful for data-driven design, as well as for technological innovation in the process of pre and post manufacturing phases. This study aims to investigate the development of the design process, in the Industry 4.0 context. It is supported by the results obtained from the analysis of four companies in the Veneto Region and illustrates how it is possible to represent the design process through a cyclic framework. In conclusion, a critical review of this research will show the potential limitations and developments of this cyclic model.