Open Research Online The Open University’s repository of research publications and other research outputs Consumer product invention: some developmental, economic & consumer aspects Thesis How to cite: Barclay, George (1988). Consumer product invention: some developmental, economic & consumer aspects. PhD thesis The Open University. For guidance on citations see FAQs. c 1985 The Author https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ Version: Version of Record Link(s) to article on publisher’s website: http://dx.doi.org/doi:10.21954/ou.ro.0000f7dc Copyright and Moral Rights for the articles on this site are retained by the individual authors and/or other copyright owners. For more information on Open Research Online’s data policy on reuse of materials please consult the policies page. oro.open.ac.uk DX UdRESTRlCT&h Consumer Product Invention: Some Developmental, Economic & Consumer Aspects Submitted by: Ceorge Barclay H.N.C.+ (Mech. Eng.) Dundee Technical College 1959 B.A. (Psychology) University Of Strathclyde 1974 A thesis submitted in candidature of the degree of Doctor Of Philsophy of The Open University. Supervisor : Dr J.N.T. Martin Department Of Systems Faculty Of Technology The Open University Walton Hall Milton Keynes. ProQ uest Number: 27775936 All rights reserved INFORMATION TO ALL USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent on the quality of the copy submitted. in the unlikely event that the author did not send a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. uest ProQuest 27775936 Published by ProQuest LLC (2020). Copyright of the Dissertation is held by the Author. Ail Rights Reserved. This work is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code Microform Edition © ProQuest LLC. ProQuest LLC 789 East Eisenhower Parkway P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106 - 1346 Acknowledgement A large number of people, many of whom were not known by name, in various libraries and educational establishments have given considerable help in the course of this research. This assistance is gratefully acknowledged here. Mr S.N. Dennehey, of The Patent Office Classification Section (T3), London, is due particular thanks for his guidance on this complex aspect of invention, not least for curtailing some over-ambitious ideas. Table Of Contents Abstract 4 Chapter 1 Introduction page 5 Chapter 2 Literature Review page 24 Chapter 3 Method & Sources Of Data page 129 Chapter 4 The Bicycle page 145 Chapter 5 The Domestic Radio Receiver page 242 Chapter 6 The Model page 425 Chapter 7 Theoretical Implications Of Results page 448 Chapter 8 Statistical Appendix page 486 Chapter 9 Bibliography page 509 ABSTRACT This study of the British Bicycle and Domestic Radio Receiver industries produced a model of invention/product design having the following features: Invention depended mainly on the combined effect of three factors, each with changing significance over a three-stage life cycle. Technology Factor: Induced a cumulative sequence of inventions to improve product performance, of various origins (ideas, problems, techno-transfers or science). This factor most important in the first Incubation stage, of equal importance in second Early Growth stage and of incremental importance in final Mature stage. Economic Factor: Induced invention to suit market, mainly for cheaper, lower performance products but also for superlative models. This factor inoperative at Incubation stage, very important at Early Growth stage and important at Mature stage. Consumer Factor: Induced invention to make products more appealing to consumer; for simpler/automatic operation, greater reliability, accessories and new uses. This factor inoperative at Incubation stage, important at Early Growth stage and supremely important at Mature stage. Product life-cycle pattern a sequence of new models subsequently improved until an basic satisfactory design achieved,later incrementally improved. Empirical invention often systematic and as important as scientific invention; science often used to define design problem. Peak invention in Early Growth stage to explore all technical possibilities, design trade-offs and for market share. Invention and Demand: No direct and proportional relationship. Initial demand due to novelty appeal of function, subsequent rapid increased demand due to better technical product performance, lower product prices and increased income-related purchasing power. After market saturation demand declined despite better, sometimes radical, designs; as consumers sought other new products. 1. CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION 1.1 Introduction The analysis of invention (technological change) involves two quite separate topics; one is the economic aspect of invention, the other is the pattern of technological development itself. A satisfactory explanation of the role and contribution of invention to economic growth requires some combined theory of these two topics and in spite of considerable effort in the past no satisfactory theory has yet been given. In this introductory chapter an outline will be given of the range and scope of previous studies of invention and growth to guide the design of this research. 1.2 The Background It is sometimes said that successful research depends more upon the choice of problem and the approach adopted than upon originality and insight. This is particularly true in the case of invention and growth, for, as Lewis (1965, originally 1955) observed, much research on this topic had led to a multiplicity of diverse theories none being entirely satisfactory. Historians, economists and those concerned with technological development generally concede that economic growth critically depends upon invention and technological progress, yet no one has been able to give a satisfactory explanation of this. Rosenberg (1982), in his review of recent literature on technical progress, has summarised the main concepts used by economists, economic historians and sociologists who seek to explain the causes and effects of technical progress. Researchers on various features of technical progress such as its rate, direction, diffusion and economic aspects have found it necessary to abandon a narrow definition of technology and incorporate broader organisational or social aspects. Rosenberg considered that many of the present controversies on this topic were due to misconceptions on the part of researchers and Rosenberg believed that the fundamental feature of advanced industrial societies was that they were able to generate not just a single new invention but a multiplicity of inventions for equivalents or substitutes and that a fuller comprehension of this technical capacity lay in revealing its social determinants. Past theories can be broadly divided into four categories:- a) Social theories which emphasise the importance of general cultural forces; b) Socio­ economic theories which are concerned with more specific social forces and their interaction with proximate economic variables; c) Purely economic theories which have limited their interest to economic variables alone and d) Empirical micro-level innovation studies which generally concentrate on the historical patterns of development of new industries or new products. Early theories have been greatly influenced by two basic but opposing views; one, put forward by Weber (1968, originally 1922) was that the forms of social organisation primarily determined economic and technological development; the other, given by Marx (1977a, originally 1849; and 1977b, originally 1867, 1885, and 1895) considered that the social order was primarily determined by economic and technological forces. 1.2.1 Social Theories Social theories of development are of ancient lineage and attribute progress to the "spirit of the people". Perhaps the most famous example of this type of development was one suggested by Weber (1965, originally 1904) who believed that the social values associated with Protestantism had directly accelerated technological and economic development by inculcating "rational" action into every area of life so that objectives and developments were founded upon prior intellectual analyses. The results of this approach had been responsible for rapid change and the overthrow of many earlier customs and practices. Weber"s theory has been controversial; critics pointed out that many modern advanced societies have never experienced Protestantism yet had made rapid progress. Later proponents of the Weberian thesis have emphasised different motivational factors or modes of change - McClelland and Hagen have both created theories in which the train of causation is said to run from childhood assimilation of social values leading to an adult personality valuing achievement and desire for change and growth. Recent efforts to promote growth in under-developed countries have also led to a new appreciation of the importance of social forces in such change. The study of the development of technology and science has further underlined the importance of social and cultural factors in their development.^ Social theories of development have considerable support but encounter a major difficulty in attempts to define, identify, quantify and demonstrate the mechanism of their operation. Social forces act diffusely at general levels and it is difficult if not impossible to specify their influence upon growth and technology. Later economic determinists attribute economic and technological progress primarily to