Full-service product development consultancy Carbon has been awarded three IDEA awards by the Industrial Designers Society of America.
Awarded a Silver IDEA, "Impact: Efficiency for the Smart Grid" is a series of four concepts designed to encourage energy-efficient behavior in the home. The concepts include the Impact Clock, Impact Fridge, Impact Dishwasher, and Impact App. All were developed in collaboration with Artefact. The Impact concepts provide users just the information they need at the moment they need it in order to motivate them to make more energy-conscious choices. In this way, Impact provides a gentle nudge to help guide consumers onto a more energy-efficient path.
The DigiTrak F2 Drill-Head Locator, developed for Digital Control Incorporated (DCI), captured a Bronze IDEA. The DigiTrak F2 is a handheld device that allows utility workers to accurately monitor the position and progress of subterranean Horizontal Directional Drilling (HDD) equipment. The beauty of this "trenchless" process is that it enables the precise placement of underground utilities such as telecommunications, power, water, and gas with much less disruption to the natural environment than previous methods. The F2 design had to be rugged enough to stand-up to harsh, construction-site conditions, yet communicate the sophistication and precision of its sensitive, industry-leading technology. The F2's strong and clear design language and bold use of quality materials creates a product that can be recognized at a glance. Since its introduction, the F2 has enabled DCI to increase market share and sales have exceeded all forecasts. It has also reduced assembly time by 80% and has been 10 times more reliable in the field. Additionally, the DigiTrack F2 was one of only three products singled out for recognition with the NO-DIG Award 2009 presented by the International Society for Trenchless Technology.
Panasonic Avionics FlightPath (also known as neXperience), an in-flight entertainment design was also recognized with a Bronze IDEA award. The result of another collaboration with Artefact, FlightPath gives passengers a three-dimensional, touch-based software in-flight experience that allows them to "travel" between information destinations, such as points of interest passing below travelers in real time or the cities they will be leaving from and flying to throughout their trip. With FlightPath, travelers can plan activities around destinations or layovers, booking entertainment and services on the ground, even before arrival. They can also create entertainment activities to fit within their remaining flight time, including movies, multiplayer games or enjoy a real-time slideshow of photos and rich content points of interest passing below.
"The IDEA awards are known to be one of the most competitive and most highly-regarded awards programs in the industry," said Craig Chamberlain, President of Carbon Design Group. "It's great to see our team's hard work be recognized in this way."