RB Series Collaborative Robot | 2019-2020

Designers: Tangerine - Seoul Studio, Tangerine Limited, Seoul, Jung-gu, South Korea
Manufacturer: Rainbow Robotics Inc., Daejeon, Yuseong-gu, South Korea

The RB Collaborative robot is Rainbow Robotics’ first designed product with a fresh brand and enhanced user-performance, in collaboration with global design consultancy tangerine.
Rainbow Robotics, founded at the KAIST Humanoid Robot Research Centre, are a technological mechatronics company who manufacture all their parts in-house.
The collaborative process between world-renown scientists and international designers started with an in- depth immersion into a range of environments, including food and beverage, retail, medical and manufacturing facilities in London (UK) and Seoul (South Korea).

The aim was to research environments where Co-Bots had the potential to bring value and efficiency too.

Observations included interviews with workers and analyzing workflows to identify user pain-points and opportunities for the next generation of Co-bots.

The team also visited top manufacturing and robotic Expos in Japan and Germany to gain a deeper understanding of the automation industry.

Key findings identified that although Co-Bots are designed to work alongside people, they were too complex to use and required an engineer’s expertise and training to operate.
A significant failing for target markets, who demanded simplicity, performance, portable size, desirable aesthetics, and easy repair for long-term investment.
To be identifiable and taking inspiration from the word ‘Rainbow’ the Prism design DNA was formed. The prism form replaces traditional arm shapes to make it easy for people to recognize the direction of movement.

The harmonic drive was re-engineered for compactness making the form itself fit within a minimal footprint. RB was designed so anyone can use it.
Key features such as LED indications on every joint for real time feedback and one-touch button for path marking ensures an error-free operation.
Color was important to the development, to ensure the design and brand was aligned. A vibrant color was strategically chosen, not only to stand out in the market and to enrich a service space but to enhance the visibility of the Co-bot when working close to people to enhance safety.

The completely new image-based GUI and all-in-one Make and Play platform delivers personalized access and functionality for operators and programmers to ensure utmost security in the workplace.
The RB Co-Bot has been lab-approved for its vast improvement in its user experience. Its intuitive design, advanced technological performance, convenient compactness, error-free interaction, and simple GUI ensures it can bring efficiency and value to a diverse range of environments.