Robotic lawn mower Miimo that customers can grow attached to and accept as a member of the family ｜Interview｜Honda Design

Presence as a Member of the Family Felt Since the First-Generation Model

What are your honest thoughts about winning an award at the Red Dot Design Award?

Okubo
As a result of being blessed with great members in development who can give shape to products, we were able to receive awards at the Red Dot Design Award for five consecutive years as Honda. This is a great honor.

Besides its ease of use, the judges also recognized its consideration of ergonomics. Miimo is not just a machine. We designed it with the image of a partner who lives together with the customer. I am very happy that this point was highly rated.

This is the second-generation Miimo. When thinking about the design concept, how did you go about analyzing factors such as the market and needs?

Okubo
A long period of time has passed since the launch of the first-generation model. Therefore, the development this time also needed to evolve the design according to the times. Still, there are many staunch Miimo fans. It is also necessary to cherish the feedback of such loyal users.

Our core market is Europe. In Europe, robotic lawn mowers are widely used as there are many families with large gardens which need to be regularly mowed. Against this backdrop, we undertook development while taking into consideration European customers’ lifestyles and ease of use.

We came up with the concept of “a garden work partner that customers grow attached to,” and the part “grow attached to” started with this second-generation model. When we checked the monitoring data of the first-generation model, there was purchaser feedback that children doodled faces on the lawn mower’s body. This made me imagine a scene where humans and machines are partners, interacting as members of a family. Overseas distributors also sold small sheds for storing Miimo. Made from wood, these sheds emanate a taste of warmth, and when I saw the data and such sheds, I felt the love that customers have for Miimo. I reflected in the concept my desire for customers to grow even more attached to this product than the first-generation model.

Ensuring Safety While Sporting a Warm Design

How did you incorporate this concept into the product?

Okubo
First, we formed a mental image about the kind of European family that would use this product. We heard that, in a generic family, grass grows in a large garden where people often spend their time, playing with children or reading books. For example, on days off, the parents could be barbequing in the garden while children play with their dog at one side. To blend a robotic lawn mower into this scenery, we felt it would be good to have a design that feels warm.

To express this warmth, we chose a warm white for the lawn mower’s body. This is a new color made for Miimo, and the white color looks just nice when placed on a lawn. We also wanted to make dirt and rain stains less noticeable. While we call it a partner, it is still a work machine, and we designed it such that stains would not be noticeable even if it is not washed so that it can be used for long periods of time.

Before reaching this design, what kind of ideas surfaced within the development team?

Okubo
This time, we focused on the process of studying the concept more than we usually do during development. Imagining the lifestyles of customers and the usage scenarios, we took time to polish the concept and then the design.

We also considered various requests from sales staff and distributors. We even had times when the sales staff hoped the product would not be too cute, but the designers in the team proposed the exact opposite, suggesting a direction for design that looks like a pet for a greater sense of attachment. One of the difficulties in this development was discerning the right styling from these differences.

In the aspect of design, what were the things inherited from the first-generation Miimo?

Okubo
We wanted to keep the familiarity and warmth that the first-generation Miimo had. It had the reliability of a work machine yet suppressed its coldness as a machine. Our desire was for the second-generation Miimo to inherit these attributes but still look different at a glance. We revised the design many times to strike a balance.

Comparing the two models, the size and shape did not change significantly between the first and second generations. However, it was very different in terms of color, including the allocation of colors. In the first-generation model, white and black were distinctively separated, with a design that, when viewed from above, had a white body at the center on which laid a large black triangle. The second-generation model, in contrast, only has a white body that comes with lines. Boldly changing the color balance, we pursued a color allocation that better blends in with the atmosphere of a garden compared to the first-generation model.

There are also safety elements inherited from the first-generation model. For example, the rear wheels are often exposed in competitors’ products, but Miimo covers them completely. Although there are disadvantages in terms of design, this was the result of prioritizing safety. In the design of Miimo, safety is also the most important aspect.

In terms of functionality, one change is the easy-to-understand placement of the red “STOP” button. The stop button was placed in the center of the first-generation model’s body, but for the second-generation model, we placed it in the rear. This button is used when you want to stop the turning of the blades and wheels, and changing its location makes it easier to access the operation panel.

p We also changed the material of the front parts from plastic to rubber. This makes it more difficult to damage anything that the lawn mower bumps into, and also mitigates damage to the lawn mower itself, making it easier to keep it clean.

The Origin Is a Honda Design That Tells a Story

What are the areas that give a sense of Honda’s design identity?

Okubo
I think Honda’s identity lies in human-centric design. Making the garden gorgeous and enriching the lives of family members and friends—the second-generation Miimo was developed based on such an image. To avoid disrupting people’s lives, we kept in mind to achieve a design that does not have an overly assertive presence when placed on the lawn, a design that stays close to people’s lives and blends in even though it has high performance. We can say this is Honda’s uniqueness.

As a Honda designer, what product do you want to create in the future?

Okubo
I hope to create products and designs that make customers think, “This was created after a lot of thinking” when they use them. I always think about making things that bring joy when used or have mechanisms that make people laugh.

I feel that, “If it is not enjoyable for the creator, the user will not enjoy it too,” and I hope to put this into practice.

Profiles

Kiyoharu Okubo

Motorcycle and Power Products
Products Designer

HONDA The Power of Dreams