A method for eliminating technological roadblocks related to the development and use of products and processes. Applicable to all engineering disciplines, IPS can be used to solve problems related to design, research and development, manufacturing, safety, reliability, and quality assurance. In addition, IPS is customized to solve high-degree of complex non-technical problems within the areas of business management, logistics, and so many others.

Ideation has developed a 5-step process to help individuals solve inventive problems in a systematic way using the Innovation WorkBench® software:

1. Use the Innovation Situation Questionnaire® (ISQ) to

• Document the problem situation (including: structure and functioning of the system, system environment; mechanism of the problem; problem history).
•  Apply the system approach to examine multiple approaches for attacking the problem.
•  Formulate an ideal vision of the solution.
• Identify contradictions associated with the problem situation.
• Identify the inventive resources associated with the system.
• Define the constraints and limitations to system change.
• Define the success criteria.

2. Formulate Directions for Innovation

•  Use the Problem Formulator® to create cause-effect models of the problem situation.
•  Generate a near-exhaustive set of opportunities for system change.
  
•  Screen and select appropriate directions.

3. Generate ideas

• For each selected direction, proceed through a guided, knowledge-based brainstorming
  process using the I-TRIZ System of Operators.

4. Develop concepts

•  Combine ideas into concepts.
•  Apply I-TRIZ Lines of Evolution to improve the concepts.

5. Evaluate results

•  Evaluate the concepts against the success criteria.
•  Identify and address subsequent tasks (secondary problems).
•  Reveal and prevent potential failures that might arise during implementation.