Substance-Field Analysis (TRIZ)

Overview

The **Substance-Field analysis** (Russian: вепольный анализ — Vepol analysis, English: Su-Field) is TRIZ's most formal tool. It reduces every technical interaction to a **triangle of three minimal elements**:

S1 — Tool: The substance that does the work (drill, blade, beam, hand).

S2 — Object / article: The substance the work is done on (workpiece, material, information).

F — Field: The medium of interaction. Six canonical types (MATCEM): **M**echanical, **A**coustic, **T**hermal, **C**hemical, **E**lectric, **M**agnetic.

Each edge of the triangle carries a **quality**: useful, insufficient, excessive, harmful — or missing. From that configuration Altshuller's **76 standard solutions** prescribe what to do. They are organised in five classes:

• **Class 1** — synthesis / destruction of Su-Field models (for incomplete or harmful models).
• **Class 2** — developing existing models (for insufficient or excessive actions).
• **Class 3** — transition to supersystem / microlevel (when the system reaches its limits).
• **Class 4** — detection and measurement (for measurement / control problems).
• **Class 5** — helper standards (simplification, ideality).

The module automates the step from model to applicable standard: it **diagnoses the situation** from the inputs and first shows the matching classes. Switching to "show all" exposes the full catalogue at any time.

Approach

• Name S1 (tool) and S2 (object) clearly — both must be concrete substances, not functions or processes.
• Pick the field type (MATCEM). If no field is present yet (nothing acts), leave it empty — the module diagnoses "incomplete" and proposes class 1.
• Pick the link quality: useful (works fine), insufficient (too weak), excessive (too strong), harmful (side effect), missing (should exist but doesn't).
• Read the diagnosis: which standard classes match the situation? Those classes are open by default.
• Walk through the standards of each open class. Each has a trigger ("when to apply") and an example. Capture notes per standard and tick "considered" for the ones that fit.
• Turn selected standards into concrete solution sketches — gladly combined with other TRIZ tools (IFR, resources, contradiction matrix).

When the situation is not unique (e.g. the action is useful in one mode and harmful in another), build several Su-Field models — either for the different operating modes or as a variant with swapped roles.

Diagnosis logic

From S1, S2, field and link type the module derives a situation and recommends matching standard classes:

• **Incomplete model** (S1 or S2 missing, or no field) → class 1.1 (synthesis).
• **Complete & useful** → class 2 (development) and class 3 (next-generation jump).
• **Complete & insufficient** → class 2 (strengthen / dynamise the field).
• **Complete & excessive** → class 2 + class 5 (helper standards, often phase change / self-controlled transitions).
• **Complete & harmful** → class 1.2 (destruction of the harmful Su-Field) + class 5 (helper standards).

The suggestion is just a pre-filter — the full catalogue is always reachable via "show all".

Relation to other TRIZ tools

• **Contradiction matrix** — when the matrix recommends several principles, the Su-Field model often clarifies which principle is implementable; each principle resolves into a specific class of standards.
• **Resources Checklist** — many class-1 standards require a new substance or field; the resources checklist enumerates candidates systematically.
• **Ideal Final Result (IFR)** — once a standard is chosen, the IFR can be re-stated more concretely (the standard says *how*, the IFR says *that*).
• **Physical contradiction** — class-5 helper standards often pair with separation principles to realise spatial / temporal resolution.

References & further reading

• G. S. Altshuller: "Creativity as an Exact Science" (1984) — original source of the standards catalogue.
• D. Mann: "Hands-On Systematic Innovation" — modern consolidated list of the 76 standards.
• V. Souchkov: "TRIZ Body of Knowledge" — definition of Substance-Field analysis + 76 standards.
• oxfordcreativity.co.uk — open examples for each standard.

Examples

This module ships with the following example datasets — load any of them in the app with a single click.

Available in the following cycles

• No fixed phase in cycle DMAIC (lives in the "More" tile).
• No fixed phase in cycle DMADV (lives in the "More" tile).
• 8D: D5 — Corrective Actions