Which term refers to principles and standards applied during the design process to meet customer expectations?

The term that best refers to principles and standards applied during the design process to meet customer expectations is criteria. Criteria are specific guidelines or benchmarks that define what success looks like for a project. They are established based on customer needs, preferences, and expectations, providing a framework for evaluating whether a design meets those requirements.

Using criteria allows designers and engineers to ensure that the development process aligns with what the end-users would find satisfactory, enabling a focus on delivering a product that fulfills its intended purpose effectively. This is essential in product design, as meeting customer expectations is crucial for user satisfaction and product success in the market.

While specifications detail the exact requirements and features that a product must have, and constraints limit design possibilities (like cost or materials), criteria specifically guide the design process by setting the standards that must be achieved to satisfy customer demands. Metrics, on the other hand, can be used to measure the performance of the design against these criteria but do not themselves define the principles and standards.