Morphological Analysis

Origin. Fritz Zwicky (1940s).

Mechanism. Constructs a full Cartesian product of parameter values, then prunes by pairwise consistency. The combinatorial space is generated mechanically, so the search is exhaustive within the chosen parameterization and the only creative act is the parameterization itself.

Procedure. Identify orthogonal parameters. Enumerate the values of each. The configuration space is their product. Build a cross-consistency matrix and eliminate pairwise-incompatible combinations. Inspect the survivors.

Applies to. Design spaces with 4–7 discrete parameters. Above that, the matrix is unbuildable by hand.

Limitations. Parameter choice is the whole method and receives none of its rigor. Non-orthogonal parameters make the pruning unsound.