Abstract

When inventing a situation that does not still exist, an engineer design new technical objects, fostering his capacities of observation, analysis and creativity. How develop those capacities in technical higher education by using knowledge and tools of design sciences? Design sciences mainly pay attention on the object to design, the process and reject the designer as a subject of his activity. We mobilize analysis of activity and human sciences for taking into account the designer as a full person with his identity, his singularity and being author of his activity. We offer to analyse the epistemological gap between design and human sciences by reflecting an experience of learning inventive design in a French engineering school. We finally show that appear a paradox linked to design sciences. Before being inventive, design sciences are reproductive. Inventive design is outside design sciences, mainly in human interactions.