Edexcel GCSE Design and Technology key terms

A device with blades that rotate when pushed by moving wind, water or steam.

Shaping timber as it rotates on a lathe, using a tool supported on a tool rest.

A weave with staggered interlacings that produce characteristic diagonal ribs.

The arrangement of lettering, including its style, size and spacing.

Stitching a facing or lining to the seam allowance close to an edge to help keep it inside the garment.

Being without a job while available for and seeking work.

An agreed standard used to express a measurement, such as the metre for length.

Expressing the same physical quantity in a different unit without changing its actual size.

The cost of manufacturing one product.

Turning an existing product or discarded material into a new product with greater usefulness or value.

A hard, rigid thermosetting polymer with good electrical and thermal insulating properties.

How easily a person can understand and operate a product.

A person who uses a product, whose needs, abilities and preferences should influence its design.

An approach that considers the intended users’ needs, preferences and capabilities throughout the design process.

Something a user requires to use a product successfully, such as readable information, accessible controls or an affordable price.

A coating that is hardened using ultraviolet light, applied across a whole surface or only to selected areas.

A process in which air is removed from beneath a heated thermoplastic sheet so that atmospheric pressure pushes it against a former.

A belief or priority that influences what a person considers acceptable or desirable, such as respect for religious beliefs or cultural traditions.

A point towards which a set of parallel edges appears to converge in a perspective drawing.

A quantity that can change and be measured, such as voltage or rotational speed.

A production cost that changes with the number of products made, such as the total cost of materials used.

A resistor whose resistance can be adjusted, allowing a circuit setting such as sensitivity to be changed.

Applying a clear liquid coating to paper or board to change its appearance and provide some surface protection.

A belt with a wedge-shaped cross-section that fits into V-shaped pulley grooves, improving grip and reducing slipping.

The ratio of input rotational speed to output rotational speed. For a belt drive without slipping, $\text{VR}=\frac{\text{driven pulley diameter}}{\text{driver pulley diameter}}$.

A thin sheet of real timber bonded to a supporting material to provide a decorative wood surface.

Bonding a thin layer of attractive timber onto a base material to improve its appearance.