Product Design for Mass-Individualization

This paper suggests that Mass-Individualization, which is based on a consumer product that consists of an open hardware platform and multiple modules that are interfaced with the platform, will constitute the next paradigm in product design. Customers will be able to adapt the open platform to their needs by integrating modules of their choice into the platform, thereby constructing individual products that fit their exact needs. Large manufacturers will produce the platforms, and small companies will invent and produce modules that could be interfaced with the open-platform products. Smartphones is an example of an open-platform product, and the Apps that are designed to run on smartphones are examples for modules. Each customer downloads certain Apps that fit his/her needs, thereby creating an individual smartphone. The Apps, however, are software modules. The modules that are considered in this paper are hardware modules. Open-platform products will create a new paradigm in product design and utilization that we call the Mass-Individualization paradigm. The Mass-Individualization paradigm will boost the economy by (1) creating many new jobs in module production companies and (2) increasing the level of sales of consumer products.