Category: Other

Exploring Orbis Analysis: A Systematic Approach to Product Development

I recently earned a certification in Orbis Analysis, a structured approach to product development designed by Malcolm Knapp. This system provides a way to take a product idea and systematically break it down into four key elements:

  1. Schematic – A detailed diagram illustrating the product’s structure and components.
  2. Behavior Flow Chart – A visual representation of how the product functions in different scenarios.
  3. System of Connections – A complementary diagram showing how various components interact in ways that the schematic alone cannot convey.
  4. Hierarchy List – A nested breakdown of the product, organizing its assemblies and subassemblies in a structured manner.

For my certification project, I applied Orbis Analysis to a real-world product: my open-back Shure SRH-1840 headphones. This exercise provided valuable insights into the intricacies of product design and demonstrated how this method can enhance the early stages of development.

Breaking Down the Shure SRH-1840 Headphones

Schematic: Visualizing the Product’s Structure

The first step was creating a schematic representation of the headphones. I was surprised by the complexity required to fully illustrate the design. The process involved encapsulating different assemblies and using breakout diagrams to show how components fit together. This detailed visualization proved invaluable in understanding the scope of the product and the relationships between various elements.

Behavior Flow Chart: Mapping Functional Interactions

Next, I developed a behavior flow chart, outlining how the headphones operate based on their user manual. This step initially felt uncertain, but referencing the manufacturer’s documentation provided clarity. This process reinforced the importance of defining a product’s expected behaviors before diving into detailed design work.

System of Connections: Understanding Component Interactions

The system of connections expanded on the schematic by illustrating relationships that a static diagram cannot fully capture. This was particularly useful in identifying dependencies and potential design constraints early in the process.

Hierarchy List: Organizing Components Logically

Finally, I created a hierarchical breakdown of the headphones. While this was a tedious step, it helped clarify the technical specifications of each component. This structured approach aids in selecting off-the-shelf components and designing custom elements where necessary. Additionally, it provides a solid foundation for the bill of materials (BOM) and understanding parent-child relationships in a product’s architecture.

Key Takeaways: Advantages and Limitations

The Orbis Analysis method offers significant benefits for product development, especially in the early stages:

  • Uncovering Roadblocks Early – By mapping out every component and interaction beforehand, potential design challenges become apparent before significant resources are invested.
  • Facilitating a High-Level Perspective – This approach allows teams to begin developing a product without needing immediate input from all technical disciplines.
  • Aiding BOM Creation – The hierarchy structure naturally leads into a well-organized bill of materials, streamlining procurement and manufacturing planning.

However, one limitation I found was that Orbis Analysis is platform-agnostic. While this flexibility can be useful, having a proprietary platform to structure the four pillars systematically could enhance usability and adoption.

Final Thoughts: Strengthening Product Development & Project Management Skills

As a project manager, I see immense value in Orbis Analysis for laying out a product vision before diving into the details. It helps bridge the gap between concept and execution, making it easier to align teams and resources effectively.

I hope this certification will further demonstrate my product development and project management capabilities. My goal remains to work in music technology, and this structured approach aligns well with the complexities of audio hardware design.

If you’re involved in product development or project management, I highly recommend exploring Orbis Analysis. It’s an excellent framework for ensuring a solid foundation before moving into detailed design and production.

WE ARE THE CONSCIOUSNESS OF THE PLANET

It’s easy to fall into the illusion of separateness, to believe that we are individuals distinct from the Earth we stand on. But this is a misunderstanding, a trick of the mind. Just as the cells in our bodies work in harmony to sustain us—each with its own function, from the heart pumping blood to the lungs drawing breath—so too does the Earth operate as a single, living entity. And we? We are its consciousness.

Alan Watts once said, “You are an aperture through which the universe is looking at and exploring itself.” The same can be said about our relationship with the Earth. The planet, through us, gains self-awareness. It grew us—not apart from itself, but as an extension of its own being, just as a tree grows branches or a river carves its path. Humanity is not separate from nature; we are nature reflecting upon itself.

This consciousness is not exclusive to humans. It is an aggregate of all life—animals, plants, fungi, even the microbial world—all part of a vast, interconnected intelligence. Carl Jung spoke of the collective unconscious, a shared psychic reservoir that all beings contribute to and draw from. The Earth, too, has its own collective awareness, formed by the thoughts, instincts, and emotions of everything that lives upon it. When a flock of birds moves as one, when trees communicate through mycelial network, when an ecosystem thrives in perfect balance, we see glimpses of this planetary intelligence at work.

If Earth is a conscious entity, then surely other planets must be as well. Some may have developed consciousness in ways we can’t yet imagine. What would the self-awareness of a gas giant look like? A planet covered in oceans? A world where life moves at a pace so slow or so fast that it defies our understanding of perception? If we are the Earth’s way of knowing itself, then other planets, too, must have their own ways of awakening.

Krishnamurti once said, “You are the world, and the world is you.” This is not metaphorical—it is a literal truth. We are the sensory organs, the dreaming mind, the reflective awareness of the planet itself. And as we awaken to this reality, we have the opportunity to live in harmony with the Earth, not as masters of it, but as conscious participants in its evolution.

To recognize our role as the Earth’s awareness is to dissolve the illusion of separation. It is to see that we are not in nature—we are nature. And just as a healthy mind nurtures its body, a conscious humanity must nurture its planet.

A beautiful reflection of this idea can be found in Nature, a song by East Forest & Ram Dass. In the track, Ram Dass’ words serve as a gentle but profound truth that humans must dissolve the barriers between ourselves and the planet in order to fully prosper as a species. Check it out.

Audio System Design & Consultation

I’d like to share something I’m very proud of learning; but first some context.

I often like to trust the universe in directing me to the next thing, and this time it delivered. I was laid off (non-performance based) from my tech job of almost a decade. Since then I have done some soul searching and this had lead me to some interesting places: learning sound design for video games using Wwise, learning how to create sound journeys using Ableton live to loop and develop ideas using audio and MIDI, and most recently learning how to design audio systems for music venues and production sets.

Back in December I was approached by Jackpocket to help them with their weekly live lottery broadcast that they film at their headquarters in Santa Barbara. They wanted ideas on how they could create a better experience for their viewers from an audio perspective. They sent me an example video (under NDA) that I could review for ideas.

I sent them a few ideas:
1. Since this is a lottery drawing, no gambling is complete without loud, highly compressed sound FX. I suggested they revisit their sound design content and maybe hire me to develop out the sound design to create more of the gambling experience people are used to when they go to a casino.
2. Remote capability would be huge for any audio engineer to be able to control their system from anywhere in the world during their live streams. This is valuable because their set was small and so the fewer bodies that needed to be present, the better.
3. The audio was not clean and clear. I surmised they were not using a good microphone, pre-amp, or acoustic treatments. I suggested I audit their current setup and provide a consulting rate to provide them with an audit, suggestions, and presentation.

They accepted 2 and 3. This kind of work immediately felt second nature. I suppose it makes sense since I had spent the last 18 years as an audio engineer, building my own production studio, and have a degree in audio design from Berklee. I took measurements of the space, took stock of their current inventory, and got to work on a suggestions document and presentation. I even reviewed their current OBS system and found that the way they had integrated their audio system was not optimal.

After I suggested different acoustic treatments to use that provided dampening or dispersion, provided options for pre-amps and microphones, changing their audio system to make it remote, and gave them a presentation on how audio works and the reasoning behind my suggestions; they were absolutely floored. They said “You knocked it out of the park” and were so thrilled to be educated on sound, and now have tangible aspects to their production that they could upgrade and how to do it.

Well, the next month when I moved to Newport RI, I needed to find some more freelance work and I felt like I had a knack for this type of work. I visited all the venues downtown and one of them took big interest, One Pelham East. They not only wanted me to totally revamp their downstairs sound system, but they had also purchased some QSC line array boxes for their 3rd floor venue as directed by one of their musicians that plays there regularly.

I got to work, first attacking the downstairs. I took the exact model I used for Jackpocket, and applied it here. Their current system was a column array system that looks like it was installed completely wrong. If you walked in any direction from the center of the floor, you got comb filtering and dead spots every 3 feet, it was Bad. This time I gave them 5 levels of different budgets they could spend to replace their system; the most expensive being a complete L-acoustics overhaul (my buddy is a rep for them), and the least replacing it with some low budget QSCs. They elected to take the 2nd highest level and install some EAW AC6s, which are active column arrays with DSP technology to throw and disperse the audio in any direction you’d like.

While this was happening, I decided to help with the upstairs. Problem is, designing an audio system for recording is different from a system for live music. They have some similarities, like acoustic treatments, but the hardware has the opposite function, in stead of recording, it’s playing it back.

Through talking with EAW, they suggested learning EASE Focus, which allows you to take the specs of any pro-audio speaker and put it into a CAD like program to create a predictive model of the room. It also allows you to balance and optimize the location, rotation, splay, and tilt in 3D space. First I took some measurements of the space and used their existing blueprint.

I am the rare kind of person who likes to learn from manuals. So I read the entire EASE Focus 6 manual and created a digital representation of all the listening areas in the space. Since the venue owners had already purchased the speakers they wanted to use (it wouldn’t have been my first choice), I just grabbed the specs from that manufacturer and imported it into the software. I was able to play around with all the different parameters to give a pretty decent coverage of the entire space from a SPL perspective (loudness).

The other thing the program allows you to do is take measurement of the frequency response in any spot in the venue. What I immediately noticed is that these 8″ line array boxes wouldn’t provide enough of the low end necessary to get a sonically balanced mix. And so I went to the manufacturer and tried out some different subs in this same program.

This worked out great because the sub I chose was 2x 12″s and the response graph showed a drastic improvement. The owners were happy so I worked with their installer and got these line arrays flown.

Meanwhile, the downstairs was coming along. The predictive models had come back from EAW. The adaptive nature of the EAW AC6s was of huge value to the owners because their bartenders were constantly having issue with the noise volume when taking customer orders, and with this, we could effectively cover the oddly shaped room’s dance floor and pull the coverage back around the bar area so the bartenders could spare their ears.


Stay tuned for the end of this saga!