Role of sketching in conceptual design of car styling

This paper aims at studying the role of sketching in car styling. Prior studies have shown that sketches play a major role in the early phases of design. A definition of the intermediate representations and mental representations will enable a better understanding of how sketches are produced. Two distinct experiments are proposed: a series of interviews of 40 professional car designers and a protocol study with six junior car designers. A comparative study demonstrated that two main phases appear in the specific car design process, including 'routine' and 'non routine' activities linked with external inspiration sources.