Bouncing ball blender in international design finalsBouncing ball blender in international design finals

A bouncy ball blender for making smoothies, designed by a Massey University student, is one of eight finalists selected from over 1300 entries globally in the 2011 Electrolux Design Lab competition.

Roseanne de Bruin’s quirky Smoobo combines the fun of a bouncing ball with an environmentally friendly way of making a smoothie. The ball contains a plastic casing, which is filled with selected ingredients such as fruit, yoghurt and juice. The user bounces it to activate kinetic energy batteries that in turn make rotor blades inside the ball spin to blend the smoothie ingredients.

The Electrolux Design Lab, in its ninth year, challenges undergraduate and graduate industrial design students to “present innovative ideas for household appliances of the future.” The theme for 2011 was ‘Intelligent Mobility’, with the brief requiring designers to create home appliances reflecting the theme and which can be used away from or in the home.

Ms de Bruin learned last weekend she is a finalist, after she and two fellow third year industrial design students from the School of Design in Albany were among 25 semi-finalists. “I can’t believe it – it’s incredible news,” says Ms de Bruin, who will fly to London for judging in September.

The idea for Smoobo came to the former Rangitoto College pupil when she was sitting on a park bench watching a child bouncing a basketball.

“I was on my break at work, sitting in the park drinking a thick shake I just bought from the local dairy. A kid, around seven years old, runs into the playground, basketball in hand. He was so happy. His eyes lit up as he bounced the ball to his father,” she recalls. “I thought ‘wouldn’t it be cool if there was a way to get children to be more enthusiastic about healthy eating, and even better if this idea also encouraged the kids to help their parents with preparing food.’ That’s when it hit me. A blender in a bouncy ball!”

Ms de Bruin used a three-dimensional modelling software programme to test the feasibility of the concept, and says Smoobo could be made from recycled plastic for the inside case and polybutadiene rubber for the exterior.

Promoting a healthy lifestyle and environmental awareness while preparing food in a fun way are the key features of its appeal, she says. “Smoobo’s surface is covered by rubber knobs that make the bounce even more fun as you never know what direction it will go,” she says.

A portable eco-dishwasher and a compact fold-up cooker dreamed up by Massey University students were also among the 25 semi-finalists – the only other entries from New Zealand to get to this stage of the competition this year.

Ms de Bruin and the seven other finalists from Australia, Finland, United States, Canada, Slovakia, Hungary and South Korea will present their concepts to a jury of expert designers in London on September 7. The jury will consider intuitive design, innovation and consumer insight when awarding prizes. First prize is a 5,000 Euros (about NZ$8,700) and a six-month internship at an Electrolux global design centre, second prize is 3,000 Euros (about NZ$5,220) and third prize is 2,000 Euros (about NZ$3480).

Massey industrial design senior lecturer Azhar Mohamed says the students’ achievements showcased the world-class design education provided by the New Zealand education system.