<h2>Learning</h2>
The project began with immersive research and interviews at a range of workplace environments. Spanning multiple countries, trade shows and different industry sectors the team sought valuable insights into how design could make Rainbow Robotics’ cobots more accessible to people and improve workflow efficiencies for a wider range of users and industries.

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RR_02

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RR_03

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RR_04v2

<h2>Leaping</h2>
We observed that robotics engineers have traditionally focused on developing the emerging technology rather than thinking about the aesthetics, ease-of-use and user interface of the machine. A key finding highlighted that cobots are often too complex in use and require an engineer to set-up and operate them. A significant failing, given their success is predicated on their ability to work alongside people collaboratively in a variety of industrial settings. What was missing was a ‘human touch’!

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RR_06_sm

<h2>Landing</h2>
Taking inspiration from the word ‘rainbow’ the Prism DNA was born. The triangular body makes it easier to install in a diverse range of environments due to its compact design. The prism-shaped arms make the Co-bot easier to grip by hand and move during the manual operating process (teaching mode). Compared to traditional Co-bots, the RB Series naturally follows a straight line making it intuitive for the operator to recognise which direction the arm will travel in during operation, aiding close collaborative working.
Key features such as LED indicators on every joint give real-time feedback to enhance programming accuracy. A one-touch button on the teaching pendant ensures an error-free experience when marking the path for the RB Co-bot to follow.
To ensure the design and brand were aligned. A vibrant colour for the Co-bot was chosen strategically to enhance the visibility of the Co-bot in environments. The more visible a moving machine, the safer the work environment.
tangerine and the Rainbow robotics’ software and programming team members collaborated to create the completely new image-based GUI. The new all-in-one platform personalises the graphic interface by adapting the Co-bot’s function depending on the different type of users operating the system.
We also designed Rainbow Robotics’ new brand identity, including a wordmark, brand guidelines book, and marketing collateral. Helping to announce the company to its customers as a design-led organisation offering high-quality, intuitive, and innovative products.

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Rainbow-Robotics-Render-06

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Rainbow-Robotics-GUI-03

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Rainbow-Robotics-GUI-02

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Rainbow-Robotics-Render-01

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Rainbow-Robotics-Design-Process-01

Easily navigable solution to modernising current worldwide workshop capabilities. Space efficient design. Nice UX accompaniment and as a whole looks easy to use. Great approach to future needs for robotics.

It was a true meeting of scientific minds and design thinking that helped give form and function to a product that significantly enhances the user experience. This is what will drive the success of this new Co-bot within the workplace.

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Rainbow-Robotics-Render-02

Pioneering South Korean robotics company Rainbow Robotics, a new venture born out of KAIST University and led by the scientists who developed the bi-pedal robot HUBO, wanted to develop their first fully designed commercial collaborative robot and build a brand identity to support it. The partnership spanned three years, involving a close collaboration between scientists, engineers, and designers based out of our Seoul studio.

Rainbow Robotics

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sky-2nd Generation

<h2>Learning</h2>
Success would be defined by making the whole experience easy to fathom and operate, so we looked for ways to humanise the machine.
The new digital set-top box was fundamentally different from familiar video cassette recorders. Instead of a rewinding a tape there was a silent hard drive, so it wouldn’t be obvious to users when the box was recording, spooling or playing. We discovered through user research that we needed to find ways to make using the machine completely intuitive.

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Sky-TVbox-Tangerine-Hero-Square

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Sky-TVbox-Tangerine-Remote

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Sky-TVbox-Minibox-01

<h2>Leaping</h2>
The solution came in the form of a ring of spinning LED lights.  It was beautifully simple and inexpensive, becoming iconic and synonymous with the SKY+ brand.
It was developed as a way of showing to the user of the product what the system was doing when they were using it and watching TV. If they recorded their favourite show, or paused live TV, they would see the wheels spinning to mimic what was happening. It was about confirming in someone’s mind that the right thing was on-going at the right time.
The Sky+ set-top box and UI system our design team created was truly revolutionary.

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Sky+ App Today

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Sky-rendering-03

sky-rendering-03

<h2>Landing</h2>
The Sky+ set-top box was a huge success, with unheard of customer satisfaction levels. Just a handful of units were returned within the first few months, much lower than the usual levels of churn for a subscription service, and the customer had to pay to own the box. The stylish and user-friendly product became a standard bearer for the burgeoning digital television industry. The ring of LEDs itself was destined to be far more than a source of visual confirmation for a consumer. Sky + made the shape a central and now iconic feature of their brand.

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Sky-TVbox-Tangerine-AD

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Sky-Tangerine-AD-hero-Square

What tangerine had helped achieve was a low-cost product packed with extraordinary technology that looked stylish and was intuitive to use - it was magic for Pace. Pace became the biggest player in Europe and eventually biggest in the world.

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Sky-TVbox-Tangerine-Hero-Landscape

At the turn of the 21st century, we were working with TV set-top box manufacturer Pace Micro Technology when satellite broadcaster BskyB revealed that they were looking to develop a new product and service that would revolutionise the way people watch television. New, cutting-edge digital technology would allow viewers to record, pause, rewind and replay live television for the very first time.
While Pace’s engineers would concentrate on getting the digital system right, our job was to design a device that consumers could understand – quite a challenge for a new totally new product concept in an electronics sector with a reputation for baffling complexity.

Popular Nordic airline, Finnair, approached us with a view to completely revamping their ground-to-air customer experience. A large part of this project involved turning their Non-Schengen customer lounge into a contemporary experience that made travelling just as enjoyable as the destination.

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Huawei-consulting-Product-Vision-72dpi

<h2>Learning</h2>
In the days before smart phones the market was saturated with competing handsets.  For us, it was clear that the design process at Huawei needed an urgent overhaul. Designers were being given only a few weeks to design a cell-phone, sometimes without even time to think and sketch. We worked with Huawei’s executives to define a structured and strategic approach to design that respected the philosophy of the company and that could work in both east and west.

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Test

<h2>Leaping</h2>
We initiated a quiet revolution within the design team, helping them to understand how their products should look and feel. The Chinese desire for elaborate technology was balanced with the European demand for simple aesthetic design. The result was a distinctive design language that at the time became central to Huawei’s international strategy.

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<h2>Launching</h2>
One tangible product of this new design thinking was the development of the C7100 mobile phone. Aimed at the Chinese market, more than a third of a million were sold in the three months after its launch in 2008. At the time the company went on to develop one of the largest in-house design teams in the world with design centers in the UK, Japan and the United States.
Other projects included looking at the future of the growing mobile tablet market, finding new formats and user experience concepts for how consumers might like to use Huawei devices.
Huawei remains one of the world’s leading telecommunications manufacturers today.

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Huawei C7100_main

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Huawei Pollox Tablets_2

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Huawei cs1

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huawei_1_11HU_13_HERO

We learned so much from tangerine. From the first project, they were quite smart. They built a design language, and it was a balanced not an extreme solution.

2008's best selling mid-tier handset in China

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Huawei-Tablet-1-Green

At the start of the 2000s, Huawei, the largest telecommunications equipment maker in the world, invited us to help them improve their market penetration in Europe. They wanted us to understand their company, their products and what made them special so that we could help them develop products with the right design language and user experience for European consumers.
The challenge was to design successful products for Western tastes that were true to the principles and values of the giant Chinese business. It would be a two-way process: just as we needed to understand the culture of Huawei, so Huawei needed to understand the ways of the Western consumer.

Huawei

di-research

DI-research

<h2>Learning</h2>
<p data-ccp-props="{&quot;335551550&quot;:1,&quot;335551620&quot;:1,&quot;335559683&quot;:0,&quot;335559685&quot;:0,&quot;335559731&quot;:0,&quot;335559737&quot;:0,&quot;335562764&quot;:2,&quot;335562765&quot;:1,&quot;335562766&quot;:4,&quot;335562767&quot;:0,&quot;335562768&quot;:4,&quot;335562769&quot;:0}">A first step in our programme of design immersion, is to settle the designers into quality accommodation and life in London, allowing them to soak-up the diversity and vitality of the city. “London, with all its different nationalities, is a power source of creativity,” they have told us.​
<p data-ccp-props="{&quot;335551550&quot;:1,&quot;335551620&quot;:1,&quot;335559683&quot;:0,&quot;335559685&quot;:0,&quot;335559731&quot;:0,&quot;335559737&quot;:0,&quot;335562764&quot;:2,&quot;335562765&quot;:1,&quot;335562766&quot;:4,&quot;335562767&quot;:0,&quot;335562768&quot;:4,&quot;335562769&quot;:0}">Each participant is looking to view the world outside of the lens of their day-to-day work and expand their knowledge. From insight research in London to guided Cultural Safari visits across Europe, we are helping them to experience new things and see differently.​
<p data-ccp-props="{&quot;335551550&quot;:1,&quot;335551620&quot;:1,&quot;335559683&quot;:0,&quot;335559685&quot;:0,&quot;335559731&quot;:0,&quot;335559737&quot;:0,&quot;335562764&quot;:2,&quot;335562765&quot;:1,&quot;335562766&quot;:4,&quot;335562767&quot;:0,&quot;335562768&quot;:4,&quot;335562769&quot;:0}">Together we find new opportunities for Nikon’s future products and services while we develop the skills of their next generation leaders.

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DI-process

<h2>Leaping</h2>
<p data-ccp-props="{&quot;335551550&quot;:1,&quot;335551620&quot;:1,&quot;335559683&quot;:0,&quot;335559685&quot;:0,&quot;335559731&quot;:0,&quot;335559737&quot;:0,&quot;335562764&quot;:2,&quot;335562765&quot;:1,&quot;335562766&quot;:4,&quot;335562767&quot;:0,&quot;335562768&quot;:4,&quot;335562769&quot;:0}">We work side by side with Nikon to explore how best to respond to newly identified opportunities.​ ​
<p data-ccp-props="{&quot;335551550&quot;:1,&quot;335551620&quot;:1,&quot;335559683&quot;:0,&quot;335559685&quot;:0,&quot;335559731&quot;:0,&quot;335559737&quot;:0,&quot;335562764&quot;:2,&quot;335562765&quot;:1,&quot;335562766&quot;:4,&quot;335562767&quot;:0,&quot;335562768&quot;:4,&quot;335562769&quot;:0}">Through further research, workshops with subject experts, consumers and design students from top UK creative universities, idea development and prototyping, we highlight the opportunities best suited to achieving Nikon’s goals. ​​
<p data-ccp-props="{&quot;335551550&quot;:1,&quot;335551620&quot;:1,&quot;335559683&quot;:0,&quot;335559685&quot;:0,&quot;335559731&quot;:0,&quot;335559737&quot;:0,&quot;335562764&quot;:2,&quot;335562765&quot;:1,&quot;335562766&quot;:4,&quot;335562767&quot;:0,&quot;335562768&quot;:4,&quot;335562769&quot;:0}">Throughout this process participants are mentored to grow their confidence, improve communication and learn new approaches.

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Design Immersion genZ workshop DELETE MARINA ON END

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Insight-research-Nikon-research-ideas-72dpi

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Nikon workshop

<h2>Landing</h2>
<p data-ccp-props="{&quot;335551550&quot;:1,&quot;335551620&quot;:1,&quot;335559683&quot;:0,&quot;335559685&quot;:0,&quot;335559731&quot;:0,&quot;335559737&quot;:0,&quot;335562764&quot;:2,&quot;335562765&quot;:1,&quot;335562766&quot;:4,&quot;335562767&quot;:0,&quot;335562768&quot;:4,&quot;335562769&quot;:0}">At the end of the programme, we jointly present findings to the executives at Nikon’s headquarters in Tokyo. Outlining the strategic focus and a range of opportunities and innovative responses that have the potential to unlock new products and services for Nikon’s future. ​
<p data-ccp-props="{&quot;335551550&quot;:1,&quot;335551620&quot;:1,&quot;335559683&quot;:0,&quot;335559685&quot;:0,&quot;335559731&quot;:0,&quot;335559737&quot;:0,&quot;335562764&quot;:2,&quot;335562765&quot;:1,&quot;335562766&quot;:4,&quot;335562767&quot;:0,&quot;335562768&quot;:4,&quot;335562769&quot;:0}"> ​Beyond each programme, attendees return to their organisations equipped to spread new insight across their businesses and multiply the impact of their new knowledge.​
<p data-ccp-props="{&quot;335551550&quot;:1,&quot;335551620&quot;:1,&quot;335559683&quot;:0,&quot;335559685&quot;:0,&quot;335559731&quot;:0,&quot;335559737&quot;:0,&quot;335562764&quot;:2,&quot;335562765&quot;:1,&quot;335562766&quot;:4,&quot;335562767&quot;:0,&quot;335562768&quot;:4,&quot;335562769&quot;:0}"> ​Such has been the success of Design Immersion, we have continued to work with Nikon and many other global brands in this way for over 10 years.

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Nikon cube

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crystal cube-2a

Thanks to the design leadership programme at tangerine, I began to look at things and think about ideas in a completely different way. I got an incredibly positive response from our Chief Executive. He said it was absolutely fascinating, and I am sure my experiences with tangerine in London will have an enormous impact and inspiration on the future products and success of the Nikon Corporation.

testimonial-nikon

Testimonial-Nikon

<p data-ccp-props="{&quot;335551550&quot;:1,&quot;335551620&quot;:1,&quot;335559683&quot;:0,&quot;335559685&quot;:0,&quot;335559731&quot;:0,&quot;335559737&quot;:0,&quot;335562764&quot;:2,&quot;335562765&quot;:1,&quot;335562766&quot;:4,&quot;335562767&quot;:0,&quot;335562768&quot;:4,&quot;335562769&quot;:0}">What started as a project without a brief has gone on to become a partnership that has spanned two decades. The first time tangerine and Nikon worked together, the arrangement was simply to help one of Nikon’s rising stars to take a broader view of the future of photography.​
<p data-ccp-props="{&quot;335551550&quot;:1,&quot;335551620&quot;:1,&quot;335559683&quot;:0,&quot;335559685&quot;:0,&quot;335559731&quot;:0,&quot;335559737&quot;:0,&quot;335562764&quot;:2,&quot;335562765&quot;:1,&quot;335562766&quot;:4,&quot;335562767&quot;:0,&quot;335562768&quot;:4,&quot;335562769&quot;:0}">​Today it has grown into a design leadership training programme, with Nikon’s next generation design leaders being based in our office for six to twelve months each year. Together we are identifying the changes that are transforming their global market and creating strategies and concepts to take advantage of these shifts.

Nikon

<h2>Learning</h2>
Customer research revealed the importance of the giant-screen TV for millions of young aspirational Chinese. Discussions centered around how BOE could best take advantage of the changing role of television in the home, what was meant by a ‘premium’ product and what additional value the company might offer its consumers.
We needed to develop the DNA of BOE – to incorporate the essence of the company into their products and make them distinctive in a crowded market. One key insight was that, while consumers demanded huge screens, image and sound quality were equally important aspects of the viewing experience.

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BOE-direction

<h2>Leaping</h2>
Our design team introduced BOE to a three-step approach: understanding the consumer market; devising a concept reflecting consumer trends; manufacturing the product to the highest standards.
The products that emerged from this process not only offered brilliant picture quality but also enhanced the sound with an additional speaker unit integrated into a simple and elegant design.

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BOE-process

<h2>Landing</h2>
We helped BOE to design a premium TV that shaped the brand identity for the company as a whole. Demonstrating that we can create a proposition that differs from those typically on offer and add value.  We looked to create something distinctive for BOE, who is aggressively trying to grow its brand, and succeeded in this ambition.

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BOE_TV

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BOE-remote

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平面

The product was refreshing. We are hopeful that it will establish BOE as a high-end producer in the Chinese market and that we can establish a long and co-operative relationship with tangerine.

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BOE is one of the world’s biggest manufacturers of LCD video panels supplying Samsung and a multitude of other global brands.  They asked us to help them shape their own range and begin to grow a reputation for their own brand in China. The process would begin with the design of top-of-the-range 55” HD televisions for the burgeoning home market, products that would also announce BOE as a premium and distinctive name. It was a project set within a very tight timescale – just 15 months to get from first meeting to first sales.

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Your product can elevate your brand to bold new heights. Work with us to design something that looks amazing and works flawlessly.

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Design Engineering

Insight Research

Trend Forecasting & Vision Setting

UX & UI Design

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Design & Brand Strategy

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Every product needs to provide an incredible user experience whilst also adding value to your business. That’s why we take bold creative leaps from today’s context to tomorrow’s possibilities. Always expanding horizons through research that explores trends, emerging technologies, and changes in consumer behaviour. All whilst grounding our thinking around new opportunities, market fit, and pricing.

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Product-design-1990-Brian-Drumm-flatliner-comb-72dpi

Whether your product is physical or digital, mass market or bespoke, our job is to design your product so that it looks beautiful and works like a charm. Aesthetics and function combining to add joy to people's lives and commercial value to your business.

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