From function to context to form: precedents and focus shifts in the form creation process

In design, the form creation process involves imagining, seeing and drawing. Translating the vague and imprecise initial ideas into sketches requires significant ability, and in this process, images of existing products (precedents) are a welcomed aid. Searching for them, however, is difficult, because it requires either exhaustive browsing or verbalization of the ideas to be able to use search engines.This paper presents an approach that uses images as query seeds instead of keywords called Query by Example (QBE). This approach is tested through an empirical study. It shows that the approach is a significant step into helping designers satisfy their visual information needs. It also shows that, as designers change their focus from function to context to form, their way of expressing their information needs changes. It concludes suggesting ways of improving both current systems and the QBE software tested.