Application of TRIZ to Manufacturing Phase -- Case Study of Eliminating Defects in Printer Assembly Process (Yosuke Koga (PCC), 3rd Japan TRIZ Symposium, Aug. 2007)

TRIZ Paper:
Application of Contradiction Table to Computer Architecture －Sub-matrix and Invention Principles for Computer Problems －
Toru Shonai (Hitachi, Japan), Shun Kawabe (Meisei University, Japan), and Naoki Hamanaka (Hitachi, Japan)
Presented at The Third TRIZ Symposium in Japan, Held at TOSHIBA Kenshu Center, Yokohama, on Aug. 30 - Sept. 1, 2007
[Posted on Jan. 7, 2008] Under the permission by the Authors.

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Editor's Note (Toru Nakagawa, Jan. 6, 2008)

The paper posted here was originally presented last August at The Third TRIZ Symposium in Japan held at TOSHIBA Kenshu Center, Yokohama. The paper was presented in a poster session on the second day afternoon and attracted a lot of visitors. I have reviewed this presentation in my 'Personal Report of The Third TRIZ Symosium in Japan, 2007' ; at the end of the review I wrote:

*** The case study presented by the Authors is, as far as I know, the first report published in the world concerning to the application of TRIZ to a real problem in the IT field. It is remarkable that the Authors worked on TRIZ for IT so many years ago [around 1999-2000] and achieved new patented and implemented results [around 2002-2003]. For these few years, some of the TRIZ consultants in the world got involved in the problem solving in IT and found the ways of applying TRIZ to IT with some adjustment, or rephrasing in the present Authors' term. Such experiences and knowhows should be, and will be, published in near future.

The present work was achieved when the three coauthors were wroking for Hitachi at the Central Research Laboratory. We are grateful to the Authors and Hitachi Co., Ltd. for establishing this nice work and published it in the Symopium and in this Web site.

This page in English contains the followings:

[1] Abstract (by the Author)

[2] Nakagawa's introduction: Excerpt of my 'Personal Report of Japan TRIZ Symosium 2007'

[3] Presentation slides in PDF (16 slides, 2 slides/page, 114 KB) )

Whereas in the Japanese page , we have (1) Extended Abstract (by the Author), (2) Full paper, and (3) Presentation slides.

Top of this page

Abstract

Nakagawa's introduction

Slides in PDF (114 KB)

Japanese Full Paper PDF

Japanese Slides PDF

Japan TRIZ Symposium 2007 (Nakagawa Personal Rept.)

Japanese page

[1] Abstract

Application of Contradiction Table to Computer Architecture
－Sub-matrix and Invention Principles for Computer Problems －

Toru Shonai(Hitachi, Japan), Shun Kawabe (Meisei University, Japan),
Naoki Hamanaka (Hitachi, Japan)

Effectiveness, limitations and difficulties of TRIZ contradiction table are discussed especially in the application field of computer architecture. Since current TRIZ inventive principles mostly came from the fields related to mechanics, structures, and physics, it is rather difficult for these principles to stimulate patentable ideas in the field of computer. Thus we first tried to compile new keywords in the field of computer architecture which can associate TRIZ principles with computer problems. Second we found it appropriate to reduce the size of current 39x39 contradiction table into much smaller 14x14 sub-matrix suitable for computer architecture/logic. Actual example addressing the problems of internet data centers is also described.

[2] Introduction & Review of the Presentation (Toru Nakagawa (OGU), Nov. 14, 2007)

Excerpt from Nakagawa's 'Personal Report of Japan TRIZ Symposium 2007' (posted on Nov. 18, 2007).

Toru Shonai (Hitachi), Shun Kawabe (Meisei University), Naoki Hamanaka (Hitachi) [17] gave a poster presentation with the title of "Application of Contradiction Table to Computer Architecture – Sub-matrix and Invention Principles for Computer Problems –". This presentation seems to have the background of research since 1999 for trying to apply TRIZ to the field of IT, especially in the field of computer architecture. They have proceeded in the following four steps.

(1) First, they have analyzed known patents in the IT field in the eyes of TRIZ Contradiction Matrix. In the slides of the poster presentation they have shown four cases by example: Reduction of bank conflicts in multi-banked caches; Fast cache-access technique in a symmetric multi-processor system; Improving the cache hit ratio by finding out data with high locality; Reducing skew variation (due to the phase shift in signals) of signal interface circuits between LSIs. (You might feel these computer terms difficult to understand. But never mind, they are not important.) During these analyses, the Authors find it necessary to 'rephrase' various Matrix parameters and Inventive Principles so as to match in the IT field.

(2) As the results of these case studies, they have summarized as follows:

Their 14x14 Contradiction Submatrix for computer architecture field is consisted of the following parameters: Area of stationary object, Speed, Force, Shape, Durability of moving object, Durability of non-moving object, Loss of information, Waste of time, Amount of substance, Reliability, Harmful factors acting on object, Harmful side effect, Convenience of use, and Reparability. The submatrix is shown in one of their slides and in their paper.

(3) Then they applied their Submatrix to the problems in wider fields in IT, related to: Parallel computers, Storage systems (RAID, NAS), Database systems, IT system management, and Image/voice/text processing, etc. They added four parameters to their Submatrix, i.e. Manufacturability, complexity of device, complexity of control, and productivity.

(4) They also used the Submatrix in their real problems for generating new solutions. The Authors show a case of internet data centers (iDCs), in which they developed new ideas, obtained patents, and implemented their ideas in Hitachi's Service Platform Concept and Integrated Service Platform around 2001-2003. In the following I will show their four slides describing their real case in some detail:

Their conclusion slide is shown below:

*** The case study presented by the Authors is, as far as I know, the first report published in the world concerning to the application of TRIZ to a real problem in the IT field. It is remarkable that the Authors worked on TRIZ for IT so many years ago and achieved new patented and implemented results. For these few years, some of the TRIZ consultants in the world got involved in the problem solving in IT and found the ways of applying TRIZ to IT with some adjustment, or rephrasing in the present Authors' term. Such experiences and knowhows should be, and will be, published in near future.

[3] Presentation Slides

Presentation Slides (in English) (PDF, 114 KB, 16 slides, 2 slides/page) Click Here.

[4] Links to the Japanese Pages

Japanese page

Full Paper in Japanese (PDF, 283 KB, 6 pages)

Pesentation Slides in Japanese (PDF, 189 KB, 16 slides, 2 slides/page)