Several years ago, car radios were manufactured in a way that allowed the entire radio to be removed from the car in order to prevent theft. The problem was that the radio was heavy, and difficult to fit into a briefcase or a handbag. Furthermore, thieves grew wise to the fact that people would often leave the radios underneath the seats or in the glove compartment. They started to break into cars just in case. 

A Parisian lady had the idea that it would be useful to remove just the front of the radio. Not only that, but she also took the time to patent the idea; and she took the concept to the manufacturers. The car radio engineers pointed out that the lady was not an electronics engineer, nor had she worked in the industry. However, beginning with some brave pioneers, the manufacturers eventually accepted the idea. 

Today we all buy car radios with a façade that can be removed and carried in a small bag, or even in our pockets. The car radio manufacturers have benefited enormously. Today a manufacturer can build only three of four platforms, for many dozens of car radios. They have the perfect architecture, with the generic components isolated in the platform, and the customized parts and circuits set apart in the façade. How else would you know which parts to customize and which to keep generic? The customized parts are the ones that the customer can see or use.