Elaborating Useplan Based Technical Function Theory And Its Merits

Using function notation is very common in science and technology. The vast use of Function notation prompts philosophical analysis to investigate it and brings upon many theories that try to explain this concept. Most of these investigations consider Function notation usage in natural sciences, especially in biology, and they either neglect or disregard this concept in the Technological domain. The main consideration of this paper is Use-plan based function theory (or more commonly known as “ICE Theory”) which is built primarily for the Technical domain. In the beginning, the paper presents a short historical review of the development of function theories. Then, the usual problems of some of these theories in the technology realm are mentioned; and as a result, the motivations for developing a theory of function which is appropriate for the technology domain are described. Origin and foundation of The ICE theory is a theory about Using and Designing of technical artifacts, which is described briefly and suitable for needs of our argument in this article. The main method in this paper and for assessing function theories is, comparing these theories with the intuitions regarding artifacts in particular and technology in general. Then for evaluating function theories, four standards (or four intuitions) are introduced. Moreover, three general technical function theories are introduced. It is shown that each of these theories fails to meet at least one of these criteria. Finally, after presenting a formulation of the ICE theory, it is shown that this theory is consistent with the intuitions presented and has a comparative advantage over the other three theories.