Though the inception of a new technology seems random, its evolution over time once it comes into existence exhibits a reasonably stable pattern which can best be described in terms of performance characteristic.

The performance characteristic refers to an element of interest to a designer of a product or a user of a specific technology.  For example, fiber optics against the cables in traditional telephone systems provides a better voice clarity. The speed of a computer is another example of performance characteristic that is resulted in new technology. Technological performance can be expressed in terms of any attribute, such as density in the electronics industry (number of transistor per chip) or aircraft speed in miles per hour. The performance of a technology has a recognized pattern over time that, if properly understood, can be of great use in strategic planning. Technology innovation refers to the changes in performance characteristics of a specific technology over time.

The life cycle of innovations can therefore be described using the s-curve which maps again in a different way, ie, growth of revenue or productivity against time. In the early stage of a particular innovation, growth is relatively slow as the new product establishes itself. At some point customers begin to demand and the product growth increases more rapidly. New incremental innovations or changes to the product allow growth to continue. Towards the end of its life cycle, growth slows and may even begin to decline. In the later stages, no amount of new investment in that product will yield a normal rate of return.

The s-curve is derived from half of a normal distribution curve. There is an assumption that new products are likely to have “product life”. i.e. a start-up phase, a rapid increase in revenue and eventual decline. In fact the great majority of innovations never gets off the bottom of the curve, and never produces normal returns.

What is important is that each technology has a number of performance characteristics of a specific technology over time. As mentioned earlier, once a new technology comes into existence, the performance characteristics of interest show very little improvement in the early stages of the technology.

This initial stage is followed by a second phase of very rapid improvement in the performance characteristic. During the third stage, the performance characteristic continues to improve, but the rate of improvement begins to decline. In the final stage, very little improvement is visible and the graph that charts the progress in the performance characteristic of a technology over time takes an S-shape.

The s-curve of technological innovation summarizes four major stages in the evolution of a performance characteristic.

1. Emergence – (also known as embryonic stage) shows little improvement in key performance characteristic. Technology operates far below its potential. Neither the characteristics of technology nor its applicability to market needs may be well understood. A long gestation period exists before attempts are made to produce a technology. This new invention period is characterized by a period of slow initial growth. This is the time when experimentation and initial bugs are worked out of the system.

1. Rapid improvement – improves at an accelerating phase. The technology improvement period is characterized by rapid and sustained growth. As organizations engage in production, experience accumulates over time accelerating the improvement in performance characteristic. The technology becomes vulnerable to substitution or obsolescence when a new or better-performing technology emerges.

1. Declining improvement – it declines improvement.

1. Maturity – further improvement becomes very difficult to achieve. The mature technology period starts when the upper limit of the technology is approached and progress in performance slows down. This is when the technology reaches its natural limits as dictated by factors such as physical limits.

During the early phase, a new technology is introduced into the market place but its adoption is limited to a small group of early adopters and small niche markets. As the product gains ascendancy, new capabilities are introduced and refined with the goal of meeting the needs of the broadest possible segment of mainstream users. During this middle phase a dominant design begins to emerge, winning the allegiance of the market place and also effecting standardization of everything from design to manufacturing. The dominant design in turn allows heightened competition as new entrants realize opportunities for further innovation based on cost, scale and product performance.

This is the period of rapid and greatest growth as a technology matures and reaches the mainstream.  During the final phase the product reaches market saturation.

Some examples of technologies that have followed this path can be stated as follows.

The vacuum tube technology was limited by the tube’s size and the power consumption of the heated filament. Both of these factors were natural barriers to electron conduction in a vacuum tube. Electronic engineers could not overcome these limitations. The arrival of the solid-state technology, or transistor, which permitted electron conduction in solid material, changed the physical barriers of size and power. The transistor technology started a new technology life cycle and rendered the vacuum-tube technology obsolete.

Another example is ceramics, which have higher operating temperatures and substitute for metals used in internal combustion engines; the newer technology permits better performance of the engines. The performance of the engines can continue to improve as a result of a sequence of newer technologies, each with a higher limit of the performance parameter of interest.

Reference

Narayanan, V. K (2001) Managing technology and innovation for Competitive Advantage, Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall.

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Members of the Transition’s TIGR team explain how technology can bring reform and transparency to the Obama Administration. change.gov

Help answer the question about technology innovation

1. what was this technology, innovation, or efficiency and how did it change the industry or product?

2. who became structurally unemployed and why?

3. was this shift good or bad for our economy and why? who were the winners and who were the losers?

4. what can be done to reduce the structural unemployment in your example?

5. how would the "temporary earnings replacement account" (TERA) be used to assist the structurally unemployed in your example?
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Article Source: ArticlesBase.com – Understanding the S curve of technology innovation

Hearing aids started out as an amplification device that was analog-based and very simple. There were different models for different levels of hearing loss, but they were all bulky and visually unappealing to many.

Hearing aid technology has created many new innovations, making hearing aids more effective, more aesthetically appealing, and giving those with hearing loss more options than ever before. What started as a simple device now offers more than 1,000 different options to choose from for devices.

The first thing you need to consider, regardless of hearing aid technology, is getting the right hearing aids based on your test results and exam. If you’re looking for an affordable hearing aid, the most technologically advanced models obviously won’t be important to you. 

However, if you simply want the best chance at hearing the world like you should, you need to consider all the different advantages of newer models and digital hearing aids, because they can make all the difference in the world when it comes to the quality of sound.

Digital hearing aids are smaller and still offer better operation than the older analog models. However, they can prove to be expensive. Hearing aid technology isn’t cheap. You’re basically paying for a small computer chip that will go into your ear, which is part of the reason that hearing aids are so expensive.

Another downfall is that insurance companies don’t generally cover these devices, which can make it hard for many people to afford the devices that they need.

The great thing about hearing aid technology is that there are new models of hearing aids that are nearly invisible. The social stigma and self-esteem issues of previous generations are no longer an issue, because technology has improved things so drastically. There are many different places that you can buy hearing aids, as well, which can help to alleviate the expense of investing in them.

For example, if you’re looking for more affordable options, consider shopping online, where you will find better prices and more options for all of your hearing aid needs. Hearing aid technology is improving daily, and all because of the people that need it. Take advantage of this, and improve your quality of life by getting a great pair of hearing aids.

Watch the video related to technology innovation

www.ted.com Inventor, entrepreneur and visionary Ray Kurzweil explains in abundant, grounded detail why, by the 2020s, we will have reverse-engineered the human brain and nanobots will be operating your consciousness.TEDTalks is a daily video podcast of the best talks and performances from the TED Conference, where the world’s leading thinkers and doers are invited to give the talk of their lives in 18 minutes — including speakers such as Jill Bolte Taylor, Sir Ken Robinson, Hans Rosling …

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Do you want to learn more about how hearing aids work? Be sure to visit the authors website to get more information about hearing aid technology.