40 inventive principles / #26

#26 Copying

What it says

• Use a simple, cheap copy instead of an object that is unavailable, fragile or costly.
• Replace an object with an optical copy or image, possibly scaled.
• Move from visible copies to infrared or ultraviolet ones.

Examples

Software

Test against a staging copy or a mock instead of production.

Business

A pilot in one city before a national launch.

Engineering

Wind-tunnel tests on a scale model.

Everyday life

Try furniture in your room with an AR app.

Where the matrix suggests it

The classic contradiction matrix suggests Copying in 140 of its 1,248 filled cells. Most often for these conflicts:

• Improving Weight of moving object worsens Device complexity
• Improving Weight of moving object worsens Extent of automation
• Improving Weight of stationary object worsens Stability of the object's composition
• Improving Length of stationary object worsens Difficulty of detecting and measuring
• Improving Area of moving object worsens Loss of time
• Improving Area of moving object worsens Measurement accuracy
• Improving Area of stationary object worsens Length of stationary object
• Improving Area of stationary object worsens Measurement accuracy