Ambient Devices — Industrial Designer Joongoo Lee

The Cirrus

Desktop Weather Forecaster

2009 for Ambient Devices, Inc.

Ambient Devices, Inc. develops various real-time information displays, such as those for weather, traffic, sports scores, and stock quotes, based on its proprietary Ambient Information Network System.

However, its existing products did not communicate a cohesive brand or product identity, as they were designed and developed by different design agencies.

The company wanted to develop a new product line that would establish a unified brand and product identity while also showcasing its modern and sleek technology through the design itself.

Exploring form factors and material finishes that can easily reveal its modern and sleek technology.

You can check weather, traffic, sports score and stock quotes as real time from Ambient device without searching them with computer or TV. This was new and sleek technology at early 2009.

Team was challenged to how visually communicate this new and sleek technology with consumer effectively. To achieve this challenge, team setted up overall design goal as trendy, fancy and sleek to communicate it’s modern and sleek technology through product aesthetic itself. This aesthetic approach will have benefit that stimulate consumer’s curiosity and catch their eyes to introduce it’s new and sleek technology.

Design development was proceeded based on how to visualize trendy, fancy and sleek through product itself.

Naturally Merging into the User’s Everyday Life, Like a Calm and Windless Cirrus

Cirrus is designed with a simple and clean rectangular form to place maximum emphasis on the screen, the core element of the device. Subtle three-dimensional curves and a high-gloss surface finish create a modern and sleek character, even within its predictable form.

A softly glowing blue status indicator intuitively shows the location of the screen-scrolling dial while also inviting the user with an emotional lighting detail. This unique and expressive design element helps establish a cohesive brand and product identity, as it is consistently applied across the entire product line.

Overall, the simple yet sleek and emotionally resonant design strikes a balance between technology and aesthetics, naturally blending into the user’s everyday life just like a calm, windless cirrus cloud.