For two decades, STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) has been the mantra of the US educational system. For years, educators have been looking for an effective tool to engage students in the science and engineering arenas in Middle and High School. When asking the question to administrators, "How are you planning to improve the problem solving skills of students engaging in STEM curriculum?" They roll their eyes and offer the excuse that we have not figured that point out yet.

 

The answer is TRIZ. Most education administrators have never heard of TRIZ and would not know how to implement a TRIZ curriculum. Basic TRIZ knowledge provides the content for students to become more innovative and creative. They will have the tools

• to make the world around them make sense
• to identify problems and
  
• to generate solution concepts

Help us to overcome educational barriers that prevent TRIZ from reaching our next generation of inventors and engineers.

 

Jack Hipple

Innovation-TRIZ

TRIZ instructors are often hindered by the inability to use examples from client project work, as in most cases, work is covered by confidentiality agreements.  Simplifying and “sanitizing” these case studies often results in loss of their richness and training value. In addition, these sophisticated projects are often a level above introductory training needs.  There are several classical examples used by TRIZ instructors that many trainees have seen before.

The Skymall™ catalog, seen in the back seat holder of any airplane being flown today, contains many product examples that illustrate virtually all of the basic TRIZ principles. Though it is unlikely that many of the products in this catalog were invented or developed with TRIZ, it provides numerous examples that can be used in many different ways during a training session.  The use of actual product examples that students can readily relate to is a real advantage in explaining the basic TRIZ principles.This presentation will review many of these examples and show how they can be used to add real world examples of TRIZ concepts. A few of these examples include the Space Bag™, extended extension cords, and video pens.

The Relationship of TRIZ Principles to Deformity Correction in Surgery

Robert Joseph, DPM, PhD

 

Charcot neuroarthropathy is a devastating and crippling condition that results in foot and ankle deformities which cause wounds.  At one time, amputation was the primary treatment of severe Charcot deformities however advances in surgical instrumentation and surgeon technique now enable reconstruction of deformities that previously required amputation.  The pathway of innovation in Charcot surgery is consistent with applications of TRIZ principles however formal adoption of systematic processes of innovation in surgery is uncommon.

Several challenges exist to surgeon adoption of systematic methods of innovation and include 1) difficulty applying engineering based systems to clinically relevant physiology   2)   contextual differences between systematic processes of innovation and impromptu innovation that most commonly occurs in surgery when complications arise.  This presentation will include a surgical case series demonstrating how select TRIZ principles apply to advancements in Charcot surgery. Recommendations will be made on how TRIZ concepts can be contextually framed to facilitate physician oriented problem solving in a patient care environment.  Conceptual relationships between several TRIZ principles and clinical physiology will be highlighted through case studies.