Research on the combination of sustainability and ergonomics in product design

This paper aimed to give suggestions for the product design industry on making products more sustainable and ergonomic in terms of material selection and product development. In the context, Evaluation principles for sustainable design such as the ‘Sustainable Product and Service Development’ pyramid, the ‘Bournemouth Evaluation Model’ and the ‘Life Cycle Assessment’ is analyzed separately. Discussions are made on principles of ‘Ergonomics’ and their applications. Suggestions are given on how to combine the sustainability evaluation models with ergonomic theories to make products more ecological friendly and provide users with physical convenience. Kansei engineering and the ‘Kansei Engineering System’(KES), are clearly examined. Discussion are conducted on the feasibility of combining sustainability evaluation models with ‘Kansei Engineering’. By imitating the KES, a proposal of a new system is introduced by the author, which links Kansei Engineering theories with material selection. In the end, by combining sustainable evaluation models and ergonomic principles, suggestions are given for companies on material selection, product designing and product processing. By integrating sustainable evaluation models and the ‘Kansei Engineering System’, selected materials will not only be sustainable, but also be more affective, categorized and specified.