## 2 The Identification of Opportunities for Innovative Design Based on Requirement Conflict
### The Identification Process of Opportunities for Innovative Design
#### 2.2.2 The Analysis and Expansion of the Semantic Feature Texts of Requirement Conflict  
Requirement conflicts often contain a significant amount of redundant and irrelevant information due to the vagueness of user demands. To facilitate the extension of requirement conflicts to other domains, it is essential to standardize the texts representing these conflicts. In this research, the product function is articulated in a \"verb-noun\" form [33], where the function's characteristics are primarily conveyed through the verb. The level of function realization is further described by the quality of product performance. The adverb, a modifier of the verb, can be extracted to represent the quality of product performance. Moreover, the noun typically denotes the object of operation for the function, with the attribute characteristics of this object often forming the primary components of performance constraints. Identifying the performance constraints involves clarifying the attribute characteristics and the degree of their parameter sizes. Therefore, extracting the noun that signifies the attribute characteristic along with its modifying adjective helps articulate the product's performance constraints. Similarly, product performance parameters can also be expressed through a \"noun + adjective\" structure. Finally, standardizing the contradictory relationship within requirement conflicts is essential, leading to a clearer representation, as described below:  
\[CR=\left\{v+n+adv,adj+n_{c},n_{p}+adj_{e}\right\} \tag{2}\]  
where \(v+n\) represents product function, \(adv\) is the adverb of the degree of function realization, \(adj\) is an adjective that describes the existing performance constraint parameter of the product, \(n_{c}\) is the parameter name of product performance constraint, \(n_{p}\) is the parameter name of product performance, \(adj_{e}\) is an adjective describing the feature of performance parameter.  
For example, the requirement is \"The filter plate filters impurities efficiently through a small filter hole diameter and requires no reduction in fluid pressure.\" The normalization  
Figure 3: The determination process of requirement conflict.  
process is carried out, where \(v\) is \"filter\", \(n\) is \"impurities\", \(adv\) is \"efficiently\", \(adj\) is \"small\", \(n_{c}\) is \"filter hole diameter\", \(n_{p}\) is \"fluid pressure\", \(adj\) is \"low\". So the result of normalization is: \(CR=\{filter+impurities+efficiently,small+filter\ hole\ diameter,fluid\ pressure+low\}\).  
Formula (2) utilizes the co-reference index-based knowledge retrieval method [33] to enrich the semantic feature texts. By expanding the \"adv\" and \"v\", various approaches for realizing idealized outcomes and meeting product function requirements can be derived. This expansion facilitates a more comprehensive understanding and analysis of product performance constraints by exploring related semantic feature words. The noun in the representation of product functions is not considered for expansion because it serves as the extracted term for the objective entity's name, lacking extensive logical reasoning and being less influenced by the designer's constraints. Similarly, the description words (\(n_{p}+adj_{c}\)) of performance parameters are excluded since these parameters and their characteristics, serving as linking factors between conflicting entities, evolve with shifting user demands. The correlation between the expanded semantic feature words and the original ones is denoted by \(I\), where words with a high correlation offer greater guidance in product innovation design. Finally, multiple sets of expanded requirement conflicts are generated, as illustrated in Figure 4.