Originated by Genrich Altshuller (Algorithm of Invention, 1969).
A list of forty recurring solution patterns, such as segmentation, asymmetry, and prior action, drawn from patents and used as prompts to resolve a design contradiction.
When to reach for it
Improving one property of a product, process, or service makes another worse, and the usual tradeoffs have run out.
How it runs
- State the contradiction: what improves and what worsens.
- Look up the suggested principles or scan the full list.
- Apply each candidate principle to the specific case.
- Sketch a concrete solution for each.
- Compare the sketches and pick the most promising.
Where it sits in SOLVE eX
Go to the source
- Algorithm of Invention, 1969