A Traceable Framework for Product Visual Identity in Automotive Design: Integration of DFSS, TRIZ and Shape Grammar

This study proposes a traceable conceptual framework for analysing and synthesising automotive product visual identity. It integrates Design for Six Sigma (DFSS) through the DMADV cycle (Define, Measure, Analyse, Design, Validate), TRIZ, and a parameterised Shape Grammar. The BMW 3 Series was selected because its seven generations provide a long, visually continuous lineage within the premium D-segment. This study converts secondary consumer evidence and author-generated decision matrices into design requirements, maps technical contradictions to three morphological domains (volume, surfaces, and distinctive elements), and expresses the styling process as an ordered set of geometric construction rules. The framework was applied to the hypothetical BMW H10 concept through sketching, 2D CAD, and 3D surface modelling. The principal result is a documented chain from requirements and constraints to formal decisions, together with an internal rule-compliance check of the resulting concept. The H10 retained the selected proportional construction targets and recurring BMW cues while accommodating proposed sensor-integration and packaging responses. No independent expert or user-perception study, physical prototype, CFD/FEM analysis, or vehicle-performance test was conducted. Accordingly, the results demonstrate design-process traceability and internal geometric verification, not engineering or perceptual validation. Transferability is presently limited to automotive exterior concept design and requires testing on further vehicle families.