What role do models play in the design process?

Models play a crucial role in the design process as they serve to visualize ideas and assess their viability. By creating models, engineers and designers can take abstract concepts and render them into more tangible forms, which can then be analyzed and evaluated. This visualization aids in understanding how different components of a design will work together, how they will function in real-world application, and whether the design meets the required specifications and user needs.

Through modeling, potential issues can be identified early in the design stage, enabling modifications and improvements before moving to prototype and production stages. This iterative process is essential in engineering disciplines, where a clear visualization can mean the difference between a successful design and one that fails to meet its objectives.

In contrast, the other options focus on aspects that, while related to the design process, do not capture the primary purpose of models in this context. Calculation of costs, data collection during experiments, and representation of written reports are important activities in engineering, but they do not fundamentally address the role of models in visualizing designs and determining their feasibility.