CAD Inspiration for Design Students on the Geometric Modification of Letters

Abstract

This study explores geometric modifications in letter design to encourage originality among elementary design students. It emphasizes viewing Computer-Aided Design (CAD) as a tool for boosting students' inspiration and familiarity with innovative letterforms. The study equips students with skills to create original designs and navigate copyright issues related to the use of typeface for their project. To achieve its objectives, the study targets: identifying challenges faced by design students, illustrating geometric modifications, developing procedures to encourage creativity, and evaluating the effectiveness of these procedures. An exploratory method is employed, involving focus groups with ten participants each, utilizing CAD for geometric modifications of existing and original design, and applying the semantic differential scale (SDS)/Likertscale to assess perceptions and efficacy of the suggested procedures. Both descriptive (mean, standard deviation, bar charts) and inferential statistics (chi-square, independent sample t-test, one-way ANOVA) are used in the analysis. The findings highlight gender issue, challenges related to inadequate access to technology and demonstrate CAD'S effectiveness in enhancing geometric modification processes. The study emphasizes the significance of understanding anatomy and design principles, particularly in original designs created from scratch, underscoring CAD's role in reinforcing these principles. The outcome shows that students can independently create display and decorative letters for various applications without relying entirely on already existing one for originality purpose. Suggested procedures, including drafting design briefs, seeking mentorship, and integrating CAD with manual techniques, are found to enhance creativity and originality. Thus, it is likely that the suggested procedure has significant effect on the student's creative letter design especially when the elementary design students are flexible and not when they are unyielding. The combination of CAD and manual techniques notably improves students' intuition and creativity in letter design, with the overall positive impact on their creative output.