Kansei engineering or how to link affectivity and design

The integration of subjective user characteristics (such as emotions or affectivity) has become a major international issue in the development of new product design techniques. The main Japanese response is Kansei engineering. Born of active collaboration between industry and academia, this method aims to provide designers with objective solutions. Its aim is to correlate user impressions (emotions, feelings, affectivity, etc.), known as "kansei", with the physical characteristics of the product. To achieve this, it uses several tools (mathematical and technological) that enable it to reach its objective through a series of successive steps.

The method is defined not by its tools, but by its stages; the tools can evolve or even change as the method is optimized. The method is therefore designed to be practical, scalable and applicable to a wide range of industrial projects.

Today, Kansei engineering is one of the most widely used and recognized methods in the world, both industrially and academically. What's more, it continues to grow, both academically (as evidenced by the increasing number of publications and the appearance of international conferences dedicated specifically to the subject) and industrially, notably through the integration of integrated departments into major companies and the creation of service companies. This method is therefore internationally recognized as one of the most effective and accomplished for linking user impressions and numerous design features, and still offers many opportunities for development.

In addition, the development and variety of topics covered by Kansei Engineering research has initiated a broader reflection on the Kansei, creating not only a new field of transdisciplinary research united in "Kansei studies", but also a new industrial development master plan recently established by Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) to improve the lives of the Japanese population and reinvigorate the economy.

Kansei engineering has thus given rise to two strong academic and industrial projects, in which it is fully reintegrated to once again find new impetus and new objectives for the future.

The purpose of this dossier is to provide the basics of Kansei engineering and to present the academic origins of the Kansei research field. It is therefore intended as an introduction to the study of Kansei engineering, and to Kansei more generally.

To this end, he first presents a global description of Kansei engineering, and then extends his remarks to the broader field of Kansei research. Both aspects are important to grasp the current state of Kansei-related design techniques, to assess its industrial and commercial successes,...