4 Asymmetry

Change the shape of an object from symmetrical to asymmetrical.
  • Asymmetrical mixing vessels or asymmetrical vanes in symmetrical vessels improve mixing (cement trucks, cake mixers, blenders).
  • Put a flat spot on a cylindrical shaft to attach a knob securely.

If an object is asymmetrical, increase its degree of asymmetry.
  • Change from circular O-rings to oval cross-section to specialized shapes to improve sealing.
  • Use astigmatic optics to merge colors.
TRIZ principe 4


Is this principle frequently used?

This principle is rarely used with 75 instances in the matrix.

This principle is proposed to solve the following contradictions:

Click on a contradiction to explore it

1/17 3/5 3/7 3/9 3/10 3/23 3/28 3/33 3/39 5/1 5/3 5/7 5/9 5/12 5/25 6/25 6/26 6/27 6/33 7/3 7/5 7/9 7/12 7/15 7/37 8/17 8/31 9/36 11/12 11/25 12/3 12/5 12/7 12/13 12/21 13/12 13/20 15/18 15/32 15/36 17/8 17/34 20/13 20/32 21/26 25/5 25/6 25/11 25/12 25/27 25/32 25/33 26/6 27/3 27/6 27/25 29/31 30/3 31/8 31/29 32/15 32/20 32/25 33/8 33/24 33/25 34/12 34/17 34/35 35/34 36/15 37/7 37/9 38/35 39/3


The colour indicates the ranking of the proposed principle to solve the contradiction: 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th.
This ranking reflects the frequency of occurrence of the principle in the analysed patents for this type of contradiction.
When a principle appears in first position, it means that it is statistically the most used in the patents studied for this type of problem.