NEWS
Taming the Machine – A step-by-step guide on how to use image generating AI tools
The time has finally come, and our AI overlords have arrived. Between creating wild new pieces of art, writing entire essays from simple prompts, or even beginning to generate their own code, generative AI’s have taken over the discussion of future technologies in recent times. For most, the AI takeover is viewed with either a futuristic wonder or a justified concern for what changes these technologies might bring to our very idea of work itself. There are few, however, who understand how to take the reins of these AI tools and make use of them to lighten their workload, create incredible works of imagination (both human and artificial), and so much more. To the uninitiated, here are some simple steps on how to get started with image generating AI tools:
- Firstly, you’ll want to figure out which image AI you’d like to use. There are paid options such as DALL-E 2 or Midjourney, which can be used for a time before paying for generation credits, or open-source programs such as Stable Diffusion, which requires a bit of set-up but are free to use. For the former options, joining the waitlists for access (DALL-E 2) (Midjourney) is the first step. If selected, you’ll gain access to the programs and a tutorial on how to operate them. For the latter, an easy-to-use Stable Diffusion interface is available online at the AUTOMATIC1111 github repository. The site contains information on how to install and get set-up.
- Once you’ve be selected for access or have installed the necessary programs, you’re ready to get started! All image AIs begin with a fundamental input: the prompt. Prompt engineering is a field unto itself, and there are many excellent guides available on the internet, but here are some easy pointers to get you started:
- Basic formatting: Terms in a prompt a divided by commas and can have different meanings if combined or separated.
- Ex.) ‘A cyberpunk portrait of a neon robot dog’ vs ‘A portrait of a dog, cyberpunk, neon color scheme’
- Base: Defining what medium your image will attempt to imitate.
- Ex.) ‘A Portrait of . . .’, ‘A 3D-rendering of . . .’
- Descriptors: A few guiding words that will guide the style of the piece.
- Ex.) ‘Cyberpunk’, ‘Brutalist’
- Things: The nouns, or main objects of focus
- Ex.) ‘A skyscraper’, ‘Two dogs’
- Environment: The physical surroundings or lighting conditions
- Ex.) ‘. . . in a vast open field’, ‘. . . at dusk’
- Influences: The name of a style or artist that the piece can imitate
- Ex.) ‘. . . by Rembrandt’, ‘. . . in the style of Picasso’
- Additional prompts: Some keywords can aide in improving the quality of generations, without describing the piece itself
- Ex.) ‘artstation’ draws on the vast library of artwork available on that platform to add coherency, ‘in focus’ or ‘centered’ can help draw the focus of the image to your subject, and ‘highly detailed’ will reduce blurry areas.
- Negative Prompts: Some programs such as Stable Diffusion allow for the input of negative prompts as well to help guide your generation, such as inputting ‘blurry’ to help increase the fidelity of the output, but this effect can also be achieved by using a negative sign in the positive prompt, such as ‘-blurry.’
- Emphasis: Keywords in the prompt can be emphasized to add more focus to them in the generation by use of () or :X to increase the emphasis or [] and :-X to reduce it
- Ex.) ‘A (cubist) portrait of a dog, detailed:2, blurry:-1, [cat]’
- Ex.) ‘A (cubist) portrait of a dog, detailed:2, blurry:-1, [cat]’
- Next, adjust the output resolution (if available) to your desired size. Some image AIs can stretch or duplicate the subject of your prompt if the image size is set to an extreme, so it’s a good idea to adjust your prompt if the resolution is extreme, such as including ‘a panorama of a mountain range’ for a very wide image instead of just ‘a picture of a mountain.’
- Decide on the number of images you want to generate at once. When starting a new project, it can be a good idea to set your batch number lower so that you can alter and play with your prompt and settings, before increasing it to get a range of good final images to choose from.
- Change the sampler / model. Some image AIs allow for the download of different models from sites such as AI which are trained and specialized to create different styles or subjects. The sampler on the other hand is the algorithm with which the image AI creates the output. Samplers can vary in levels of detail or prompt recognition, though the most advanced samplers are usually selected by default.
- Adjust your sampling steps based on the desired level of detail. The higher the sampling steps, the more the image AI will go over the base noise that it starts with to add more detail to the image. A good standard range to work in is 20-50, though increasing this number will also increase the time to generate a result. Going too high or too lower will produce images that are overdetailed or underdetailed respectively.
- Finally, alter the CFG scale, if available. This is a measure of how closely the image AI will stick to your prompt. Reduce the number and you’ll get more creative (and potentially nonsensical) results. Increase it and you might get exactly what you asked for, but sometimes the result is a bit too literal. An average number of 7-8 should allow for a good blend of prompting and AI creativity.
- Hit generate and check out your result! Few attempts create the perfect image on the first or even tenth try, as a fair amount of effort is needed to refine your prompt, change the settings, and maybe touch up the final result in a drawing software. This process can often be enlightening however, as you discover new and interesting interpretations of what you set your prompt for, potentially creating something even beyond your imaginations.
- Basic formatting: Terms in a prompt a divided by commas and can have different meanings if combined or separated.
This is by no means all that image AIs can do, many have the ability to inpaint and outpaint, allowing the user to ‘expand’ an existing image to paint beyond its boundaries, or erase sections of an image and generate entirely new details, such as erasing an outfit and generating a new one. Another powerful function is img2img, which allows the use of an existing image as a base onto which to generate a new one. This function includes a ‘denoising strength’ slider, which affects how much the original image will be altered. For example, using a base image of a landscape and prompting ‘cartoon style’ can make the resulting image more or less comical depending on the denoising value, from completely identical to radically different. Finally, image upscalers can be used to increase the size of your outputs, especially useful as generation a high resolution image can take significant time and processing power. Upscalers use AI to ‘fill in’ an image as it gets larger so that no quality is lost, or pixels are stretched.
New AI tools are being developed at a rapid pace, and many of the tips in this post may soon become out-of-date. The world of AI is wonderful and rapidly evolving, but it can also be very fun, and allow works of creativity to be created by all. Give it a try and see what you can create!
Design Interface Inc. can show you what is possible. Our forward-thinking solutions for product design, package design, medical device design, graphic design and photography unlock the value of your ideas as we communicate your message and goals. See more here: https://designinterface.com/
The Impetus towards Today: How value systems drive innovation to specific ends
There is a tendency with the idea of history that, looking back, we assume things have occurred just as they were always going to. Academics talk about climbing technological ladders and the natural development of ideas and breakthroughs, one after the other. This concept pervades every area of our culture, from games featuring ‘technology trees’ to science-fiction forecasting the wild world of tomorrow as being largely like the world of today, just with a bit more spaceships and chrome. This concept, a sort of technological determinism is borne from a view of technological development as a thing wholly uninfluenced by trends, power, or designs, and serves as a confirmation bias of sorts for the world as it is. Not only does this idea impede our understanding of how technology has changed and continues to do so, but it also stymies innovation and concentrates the flow of progress towards ends that best suit those who hold power in our society.
What conclusions can be drawn from the fact that the focus of technological progress in the fields of telecommunications, data storage, and information transfer has leaped above and beyond that of many other fields? That the demand for economists and students of corporate law is unending, while other job categories stagnate or face poor working conditions and worse salaries? The answer is plain to see: if a significant portion of power and wealth are concentrated in the hands of the very few, then the forces of ‘the market’ and ‘technological incentives’ will work towards their specific ends. We may not have space travel, free health care, or universal housing, but we do have cellphones, Zoom calls, and bitcoin. The financialization of technology and design is nothing new, but the degree to which it has seized control over almost all factors of product is something unique to our current era. Risky venture capital schemes and faux-futurist projects can raise billions towards the development of financial software or app-based recreations of existing public services, while vital efforts towards improvements in renewable energies, education, quality-of-life, and more struggle to gain funding. This disparity is not because one effort is more meritorious than the other, but rather because endeavors that serve the ends of power tend to be more successful than ones that don’t. In this way, technology develops most easily along the paths of least resistance, avenues carved by the powerful on their rise to prominence.
The things a society creates reflects its nature. Be it art, design, technology, or otherwise, nothing comes into being devoid of context. A different society from our own would doubtlessly develop different technologies and enjoy different things. The clarity knowledge brings is the ability to recognize the forces at play that influence our lives and the objects and technologies with which we interact. By acknowledging things as a product of an artificial environment, one created by the powerful, we can demystify their origins, and seek to build a better world within the body of the old one.
Design Interface Inc. can show you what is possible. Our forward-thinking solutions for product design, package design, medical device design, graphic design and photography unlock the value of your ideas as we communicate your message and goals. See more here: https://designinterface.com/
Fantasy to Fact: How ideas in fiction have become designs in reality
Inspiration can come from anywhere, be it the wonder of nature, or from within the pages of a book. Throughout history, many a story of epic fantasy or remarkable science-fiction have given birth to fantastical new ideas of technologies and designs far beyond the reach of their day, only to be given life decades or centuries afterward. More than a few of the most revolutionary designs and inventions that shape the world today can trace their first steps from stories and tales, some drawing inspiration from fiction, while others are created in their spitting image. The why of this phenomenon is obvious; who wouldn’t want to live out their fantasies? The how, on the other hand, is much more complicated.
Even before the widespread adoption of the printing press and the spread of common literacy, stories and invention have been intertwined since antiquity. It was Prometheus who gave the gift of fire, and Spock who gave the gift of the cellphone. Some of the first major inventions of the modern age that can trace their works to the writings of the first famous authors are the submarine and the helicopter, both inspired by the works of Jules Verne; ‘Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea’ and ‘Clipper of the Clouds’, respectively. Verne, living to see his fantastical ideas made into reality is famously quoted as saying “Anything that one man can imagine, another man can make real.” This observation would prove prophetic over the course of the following century, with many notable inventions such as the Rocket, Atomic Power, the Cellphone, and many more leaping from the imaginations of futurists and into the everyday.
Of specific note is the previously alluded-to Star Trek, which has given rise to an impressive number of innovations that have found common use. Why one science-fiction show, or any other of the myriad muses of fiction have driven brilliant designers, engineers, and innovators to create the impossible becomes obvious once one considers the root of science-fiction and other stories of the plausibly fantastical. Written by authors whose imaginations are just barely limited by the technologies and ideas of their time, extrapolating what they know into the world-to-be, stories are a fantastic breeding ground for ideas and direction for future research. Naturally, as time moves on and technology progresses, the once-impossible suddenly becomes probable, and so stories of the future become self-fulfilling prophecies.
In all things, inspiration can drive us forwards. To the impossible dream. To the barely imaginable utopia. And then, in time, we arrive. Perhaps not exactly as imagined, or perhaps exactly because it was imagined.
Design Interface Inc. can show you what is possible. Our forward-thinking solutions for product design, package design, medical device design, graphic design and photography unlock the value of your ideas as we communicate your message and goals. See more here: https://designinterface.com/
The Paradox of ‘Human Error’ : How bad design can shift blame to the user
It’s an unfortunate fact that no matter how good design becomes, there will always be accidents. Be it a simple misunderstanding that is easily remedied, or a terrible industrial disaster with lasting consequences, the products, and systems we create are proven time and again to only be as good as those who create and use them. However, despite the diversity in scope and nature of errors, between 80% and 95% of all industrial accidents are blamed entirely on human error. For a designer, this seems at first glance to be excellent news. The products and systems we design are rarely at fault, and who really can be blamed if a user happens to fall asleep at the wheel or leave their stove running? Design can only do so much.
But is that true? Even a cursory consideration of the numbers seems a bit off. If the human error rate is so high, then perhaps the humans at error are not the users, but those who created the device or system in the first place. While electrical or mechanical errors necessitate fixes before a design can come to fruition, errors of operation or use are often not so immediately addressed. After all, the design works! Surely the user is simply failing to follow instructions correctly, or not paying proper attention to the design’s operation. And maybe some are. But when improper use becomes the leading cause of failure, one must ask why so many people are unable to fulfill a design’s promise.
Despite all the progress made in the design field over the past decades towards a more human-centered method of thinking and creating, there exists a large blind spot in the eyes of many designers: experiential design. While a product can be created that fulfills a task sufficiently, if that product exists in an otherwise boring environment and is supposed to be the sole focus of an operator for eight hours a day, five days a week, it becomes easy to see why the device may not be operated perfectly each time. Ergonomics and aesthetics may cater to the tactile experience of a design, but what is it that addresses the mental and emotional stresses of interacting with a device or system?
No design can be perfect, but every design can become better by troubleshooting, iteration, and considering every aspect of its lifecycle, from the raw materials used in its creation, to its manufacture, and through its use. Error, human and otherwise occur when a design does not consider each step along its journey, and it is the role of the designer to thoroughly research each step of this process, and strive to fix errors not only technical, but of a more human nature as well.
Design Interface Inc. can show you what is possible. Our forward-thinking solutions for product design, package design, medical device design, graphic design and photography unlock the value of your ideas as we communicate your message and goals. See more here: https://designinterface.com/
Design Mortality
Nothing lasts forever, and design is no different. Tastes change, styles evolve, and what was once the pinnacle of design brilliance can tomorrow become out of date, retro, or antique. There is much to be said about creating ‘timeless’ designs that can remain in good taste throughout the ages, but despite many attempts, few designs manage to reach this fabled immortality. What is it that makes a design last? How have some styles of architecture, graphics, forms, and all else withstood the tests of time?
Lasting designs are those that do more than embody the design trends of the day but instead combine a unique aesthetic or form with evergreen design sensibilities that have driven good design since time immemorial. The first such bedrock is above all, simplicity. Good design is memorable, repeatable, and adaptable to many situations. From a simple beginning can spawn endless variations, allowing a solid design foundation to adjust in subtle ways to changing tastes. Making further use of color, geometric shapes, and creative typography to give a feeling to a design is what can allow consumers to form attachments to the marks and forms of a product, beyond its utility.
These principles are embodied in many older designs and brands that have remained relevant and modern, despite the antiquity of their marks and product’s origins. Avoiding the label of ‘retro’ or ‘old-fashioned’ is a difficult thing for any design that seeks to survive through the ages. This problem is often most apparent in architectural design, which by its nature is made to last. Once a neighborhood or building becomes out of fashion, housing prices can decrease and the place itself becomes undesirable. Other buildings however, become antique or classical with age, and their value can increase. While the age of these buildings can be the same, one matures, while the other degrades. For the architect, the use of evergreen design may determine whether the property they are designing can retain its merit in the long-term.
The world is an ever-changing place, with new designs and trends appearing all the time. It is the task of the good designer to not only keep abreast of these developments, but also to incorporate them into an ever-growing repository of evergreen design principles that can make a good product great, and a momentary style into one that can become immortal.
Design Interface Inc. can show you what is possible. Our forward-thinking solutions for product design, package design, medical device design, graphic design and photography unlock the value of your ideas as we communicate your message and goals. See more here: https://designinterface.com/
Cleveland Institute of Art Faculty Show 2022
We are honored to be invited into the Cleveland Institute of Art Faculty Exhibition again for 2022. The mbrio branding and packaging (pregancy earbuds) is on display designed by the creative team at DI. It’s also an honor to be sharing a case with Dan Cuffaro (nCamp knife) and Kathy Buszkiewicz (ring made from U.S. currency). This vibrant artistic community’s show is in the Reinberger Galleries at CIA until December 22. ~ Carla Blackman and Adrian Slattery
Gallery photos by Jacob Koestler
The prevalence of sustainability in design thinking has been one of the largest shifts and greatest triumphs of the green design movement over the past years and has led to a renaissance in the development of products and systems design with both the earth and humans in mind. However, even as advancements are made in reducing waste and improving efficiency, we must ask the question: are we truly doing Good, or simply a bit less Bad?
To make products that are truly beneficial to the earth system we must give back more than we have taken away. This means making products not to be XX% less polluting than last year’s model, but to question every stage of the process upon which those products are made. Are the raw materials for the product collected in a way that harms their surroundings? Are the factories in which products are produced putting out more pollutants than they take in? What of the logistical network that ferries the product around the world? And what happens after the product is used up?
If the answers to these questions are in any way negative, if the effort of making the products we design is a net loss for the earth system, then are we truly being sustainable? Breaking free from the polluting and dangerous systems of manufacturing and extraction that power the world is no easy task, but until we improve these processes, no amount of smart design and green thinking will turn a product into one that has a net positive effect on the world.
Design Interface Inc. can show you what is possible. Our forward-thinking solutions for product design, package design, medical device design, graphic design and photography unlock the value of your ideas as we communicate your message and goals. See more here: https://designinterface.com/
Artificial Intelligence in Design
There is no technology that is more rapidly advancing and evolving that that of artificial intelligences (AI) in the world today. These new smart machines have numerous exciting applications in every aspect of our world, none more so than the field of design.
Already, the most advanced AIs can create incredibly detailed and imaginative product concepts at hundreds of times the speed of a human designer. Though they may still lack on occasion an eye for what is possible, algorithms such as DALL-E 2, StableDiffusion, and Midjourney, among others, represent a new frontier in the field of ideation and concept generation. Beyond the drawing board, AIs have seen widespread application in the manufacturing sector, where increasing smart machines unlock faster and more complex methods to create objects that would have been impossible even just a few years before.
Though some may express concern about the possibility of robots taking over the field, if not the world beyond it, such fears are largely unfounded. Like computer-aided design (CAD) and many other disruptive technologies before it, AI-aided design represents the next step in the evolution of the design world, and one which can open the doors to innovative products and imaginative forms that are truly beyond what we can imagine.
For any designers or hobbyists looking to learn more about AI design tools and how to get started on the path to mastering these tools, there are plenty of free resources on Youtube and other media platforms, about how to take the first steps. For those looking to jump right in, several options are available: For generating product concepts, sign up for the DALL-E 2 waitlist. For writing needs, check out NovelAI. For those with a bit of programming knowledge, StableDiffusion is a highly flexible program that can get the job done. This is by no means an exhaustive list, and new AIs are developed all the time.
Design Interface Inc. can show you what is possible. Our forward-thinking solutions for product design, package design, medical device design, graphic design and photography unlock the value of your ideas as we communicate your message and goals. See more here: https://designinterface.com/
Additive vs. Subtractive Manufacturing and its Implications for Design Thinking
Before any great product idea can be launched, an important question must be asked: how can this product be made? Designing in such a way that your product can be cheaply and efficiently produced by well-established methods is a sure way to improve a product’s chance of success in the marketplace, and with incredible innovations in additive manufacturing, exotic materials, and more, the realm of what’s possible continues to expand.
To fully embrace the possibilities of additive manufacturing in addition to the traditional methods of subtractive manufacturing, new ways of thinking are needed at every step of the design process. The fundamental difference between these two processes is that additive manufacturing creates products through the addition of base materials layer by layer, whereas subtractive manufacturing creates products by removing parts of a material, generating waste material in the process. Due to the nature of both methods, the mediums that a designer can use, as well as the speed and efficiency of product are vastly different between the two processes.
The legacy of subtractive design is evident in the fundamental tools of design, most notably in the computer-aided design (CAD) programs we use to give products their shape and form. The language of these programs are spoken in terms of cuts and extrudes, revolutions and sweeps; terms that align with subtractive manufacturing techniques. With the incredible ability of additive manufacturing to capture complexity and smooth forms, the field of product design has begun to adopt the terminology traditionally used by modeling programs, the language of meshes, sculpting, and supports.
Not only do new methods of manufacture change the ways we can make and improve existing products, but they also change the very ideas we have about what products can be, and open doors to product designs that not too long ago would remain trapped in the realm of the impossible.
Design Interface Inc. can show you what is possible. Our forward-thinking solutions for product design, package design, medical device design, graphic design and photography unlock the value of your ideas as we communicate your message and goals. See more here: https://designinterface.com/
New Coworker Jake
Hello, my name is Jacob, and I’m all about product design. Everyday I strive to put my skills to use in creating sustainable products that help make the world a better place. It’s my pleasure to work with the professionals at Design Interface Inc. as an Industrial Designer, and to continue their legacy of product design excellence.
I specialize in mechanical and biomimetic products, drawing from my background in both design and engineering. (Visit https://jsv-design.com/ for a look at some of my work) I’ve worked for some time as a Freelance Industrial Designer, and have joined Design Interface to take my work to the next level, and to learn invaluable lessons as part of a consulting design studio.
Design Interface Inc. can show you what is possible. Our forward-thinking solutions for product design, package design, medical device design, graphic design and photography unlock the value of your ideas as we communicate your message and goals. See more here: https://designinterface.com/
