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Accessibility statement
Innovations emerge from complex, dynamic, iterative processes. But how do designers, engineers, entrepreneurs, managers and users create opportunities and generate ideas for innovation? How are ideas developed into successful products, services and systems? This module uses contemporary case studies to explore such questions. It goes beyond innovation for commercial advantage – considering how innovation can contribute to developing a more sustainable future through responsible design. The module includes a design and innovation project where you’ll identify and research a problem and develop a solution.
Central to the module is a project that will allow you to apply some of the concepts and methods you will learn.
The module is structured into two parts, each consisting of three blocks that explore different aspects of innovation.
In Part 1, you’ll focus on how opportunities and ideas for innovation are created.
Next, in Part 2, you’ll consider how ideas for innovation are implemented and may result in widespread adoption. In this second part of the module, you’ll begin working on your project.
The study material, delivered online, extensively uses a range of media and resources to support your learning.
Part 1 – Creating ideas and opportunities for innovation
Block 1: Exploring innovation sets the scene for the whole module. This block presents a number of case studies, including mobile phones and racing bikes, that introduce you to the design and innovation process, its outputs as product, service, or system innovations, and its impacts. At the end of this block, a model, which is used throughout the module to enable you to understand the design and innovation process, is presented.
Block 2: Sustainable innovation focuses on how design and innovation can address significant challenges such as waste and climate change, and how the relationships between products, people and context offer opportunities to design things differently. This block will help you critically evaluate design and innovation practices and to integrate social, technical and environmental knowledge in design thinking.
Block 3: Visions for change considers the role of visions of change in creating and promoting opportunities and ideas for design and innovation. It introduces approaches and tools for developing visions of change and ends with a discussion of the responsibilities and ethics of design and innovation.
Part 2 – Implementing ideas for widespread adoption
Block 4: Innovation projects: working for change focuses on designing product, system, and service innovations. You will learn how to undertake a design and innovation project and develop a design brief from your ideas. This block will help you select, use and evaluate various tools and methods to help with your design and innovation project.
Block 5: Creating concepts: places for people explores the processes and outcomes that contribute to making sustainable homes and built environments, to show how design specifications and concepts are developed as part of the innovation process. It will equip you with the design thinking skills and tools to help you further develop your project.
Block 6: Implementing innovation: transport futures draws on case studies of projects in the area of transport and mobility to show how the details of an innovative product, service, or system are developed. This block considers how the case for implementing these innovations is made and presents tools to assist in this process and help you plan how your project might be advanced beyond the module.
This module builds on study skills and subject knowledge acquired from previous studies at OU levels 1 and 2.
It's an interdisciplinary module, suitable for students with a wide range of interests – arts, design, engineering, environment or business – whether you have a technical background or not.
You’ll get help and support from an assigned tutor throughout your module.
They’ll help by:
Online tutorials run throughout the module. While they’re not compulsory, we strongly encourage you to participate. Where possible, we’ll make recordings available.
Course work includes:
You’ll have access to a module website, which includes:
Additionally, the website includes:
The OU strives to make all aspects of study accessible to everyone, and this Accessibility Statement outlines what studying T317 involves. You should use this information to inform your study preparations and any discussions with us about how we can meet your needs.
To find out more about what kind of support and adjustments might be available, contact us or visit our Disability support website.
Innovation: designing for change (T317) starts once a year – in October.
It will next start in October 2026.
We expect it to start for the last time in October 2027.
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