I am assistant professor in the Design Conceptualization and Communication group, which focusses on researching and developing tools and techniques that support (interaction) designers in the conceptual phase of the design process. Currently my main interest is in interaction design education, with a special focus on tools and techniques for interaction design educators. Keywords: design methods and – techniques, interaction design, interactive prototyping, usability testing. My work has been published in international journals and conference proceedings, and presented at (inter)national conferences, workshops and guest lectures. In 2000 I was a Visiting Research Fellow for three months at the School of Art and Design, Tsukuba University, Japan.

Ph.D. Industrial Design (2003)

Faculty of Industrial Design Engineering, Delft University of Technology, Delft, The Netherlands.

Ph.D. thesis: Designing with precedents
What role do existing products play in the generation and development of new product forms? How can this role be influenced by means of new design techniques? And how can these techniques be supported by means of a design support tool? In this thesis these three questions are addressed using various methods and means, such as literature reviews, contextual interviews and experimental studies as well as user interface design and software prototyping.
More: Designing with precedents

M.Sc. Mechanical Engineering (1989)

Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Twente University of Technology, Enschede, The Netherlands.

Master’s thesis: Implementing creative techniques in a mechanical engineering process
Several techniques for creative thinking were classified and linked to different phases in the mechanical engineering process. To support one of these techniques a software prototype was developed in Apple HyperCard ©.