Ideality in axiomatic design and beyond

AD helps to conceive controllable and manageable designs, beyond fulfilling initially posed requirements. According to authors' experience and understanding, this eases the evolution of designs towards their future versions. Thus, ideal solutions according to Suh's theory are characterized by a considerable capability of evolving and accelerating technological progress. Conversely, such an aspect is seldom considered in the most diffused definitions of ideality, although it can be easily regarded as a fundamental feature of good designs. In this context, the paper reviews the definitions of ideality dispersed in the literature. A particular attention is dedicated to TRIZ, since ideality represents a pillar of the former USSR-originating theory and many attempts have been performed to combine it with AD. The paper explores the compatibility of the surveyed definitions with AD objectives, revealing theoretical pitfalls, but also pointing out opportunities for increasing ideality in the design practice.