Orimagi Robotics Starter Kit
Orimagi blends origami with robotics to spark creative learning.
Problem Space: Originally stemming from an MIT research project, the toys first released by Orimagi were too complex with a shorter play cycle.
I pivoted the product strategy to stand out more in the competitive toy market. My roles included: creative direction for the player experience, including industrial design, app design, and branding.
Impact
I joined Orimagi in 2017 and changed the company's approach from an advanced modeling set to an open-ended construction toy
I led concept exploration and market analysis to find areas of opportunity in the growing STEAM toy industry. The resulting papercraft robotics kits had several benefits:
A simplified starter kit made playing with robotics more accessible.
Making paper an integral part of the kit highlights the role of creative expression in STEM fields.
Lower price point was attractive to schools and camps who want to engage groups of students.
Design Principles
We partnered with local schools to test playability and usability. The insights gathered from prototype testing with students and interviews with teachers helped us to form our design principles.
Give the player agency with open-ended prompts
Players are more interested when their tasks are aligned with their interests. Giving kids a chance to make up their own games and customize their builds provided more delight and engagement.
Simplify to make play accessible
Turn the complex model into a thoughtful and creative tool. Then, make those simple building components flexible in arranging into self directed complexity. A kit includes all components and is compatible with everyday paper and tape.
Let digital and analog play inspire each other
As the system complexity grew, design and engineering collaborated on the app to organize features and lower the learning curve.
Simple Remote Control
Remote Control and Project Controls
Build intructions, play inspiration, sensor utilization, remote control