In Figure 3, we illustrate the cyclic or iterative nature of engineering design by
arrows: the result of essentially any step might be a decision to revisit an earlier step (for
example, results of feasibility analysis might illustrate the necessity redefining the problem).
Although many of the published representations of the engineering design process exhibit
significant overlap, only a few studies have been published about how engineers engage in the
process of design and what conceptual bases they use in the design process, primarily by Atman
and co-workers.