The increasing complexity of modern technologies in products has led to the establishment of design as an academic discipline, and a rapid growth in the connections between science, engineering and design. As part of this development, the relation between design and research is dynamically changing toward a tighter coupling. University-based design courses are beginning to include scientific theory and research skills as part of their curricula, and designers are playing a part in research projects. In many places, the need to establish a PhD or other doctoral programme for designers has been discussed, with some hesitation, as the traditional backgrounds of designers and researchers has been quite different.