Manufacturers and designers from 54 countries entered more than 5,500 innovations in the Red Dot Award: Product Design 2017. 39 experts from all over the world assessed each individual object live and in situ. Only designs that won over the jury with their high design quality were awarded the sought-after Red Dot. The distinctive winners’ label will decorate the best products of the year with immediate effect. In the areas of bathrooms and personal care, consumer electronics, kitchen appliances and furniture, design as a distinctive feature is playing an ever-increasing role. Sustainability and new technologies are also major developments.
One of the main trends at present is a reflection on nature and sustainability. It was the sustainability aspect in particular that won over the Red Dot jury in the case of the “biobrush” toothbrush. The plastic and packaging is based on cellulose made from leftover wood from sustainable forestry. The toothbrush is virtually carbon neutral thanks to the optimised manufacturing process. The paints and the plastic are biodegradable, and the packaging can even be composted for your garden. As a result, the “biobrush” was awarded the Red Dot: Best of the Best.
Industrial robots are already well-established, and now they are taking over other product areas: In many households, tasks like mowing the lawn, cleaning the windows and hoovering are already performed by these intelligent helpers. PuduBOT, Red Dot: Best of the Best winner in 2017 in the category “Robot technology”, adopts a new approach. It was created to help waiters in restaurants. PuduBOT brings orders to the guest using high-precision laser radar technology and can interact with the guest using facial expressions and voice. In the future, robots will become more and more independent, according to design expert and Red Dot juror Nils Toft: “In a near future more and more products will be autonomous and with artificial intelligence. We will live side by side with them and they will be our colleagues. How we design them can make a big difference.”
All laureates will be officially announced during the award ceremony in Essen’s Aalto-Theater on Monday, 3 July 2017. The award-winning products will be on show in the huge exhibition “Design on Stage” at the Red Dot Design Museum Essen until 6 August.
Further information at www.red-dot.org/winners_product_design_2017.html
Photo: PuduBOT_Red_Dot_Best_of_the_Best_2017 (Source: Red Dot)
Caption: PuduBOT brings orders to the guest using high-precision laser radar technology and can interact with the guest using facial expressions and voice.
The Red Dot jury has made its decision: Out of 5,500 entries, these are the best products of the year.