DESIGN NAME: PIXIO
PRIMARY FUNCTION: Magnetic Construction Set
INSPIRATION: With many construction sets available, the creative minds needed one that looked perfect and offered maximum versatility. Without visible connecting elements, without complicated parts - it is just a perfect tool to express yourself. Inspired by pixels of the digital world, creators had chosen a cube as an ideal shape. It is the most fundamental form both mathematically and aesthetically. That is how came an idea to create own construction set. It is giving anyone the ability to create in pixel art style in real life.
UNIQUE PROPERTIES / PROJECT DESCRIPTION: PIXIO is a unique construction set in which pixio-blocks are flexibly assembled thanks to a well thought-out system of powerful magnets. It is the easiest construction set to use. Just take the pixio-block in your hand and place it where you want it to be — bang! — it is connected. Appealing to both kids and adults, PIXIO will be enjoyable by everyone who loves creativity, technology, design, and games.
OPERATION / FLOW / INTERACTION: All the details of PIXIO are the same shape, only the colors are different. This versatility allows to create almost any character or object at any scale. For this purpose, a range of sets from 50 to 1600 pixio-blocks and 16-color palette have been designed. Each PIXIO set will be supplied with an App guide that shows how easy it is to create actual construction set. PIXIO is suitable anywhere: at home, at school, in the office, or on a trip. The creative process brings user tactile pleasure and joy of being an inventor.
PROJECT DURATION AND LOCATION: The project started in Atlanta, GA and was funded on Kickstarter during spring 2017. In February 2018 PIXIO was exhibited in Toy Fair in Nuremberg Spielwarenmesse.
FITS BEST INTO CATEGORY: Toys, Games and Hobby Products Design
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PRODUCTION / REALIZATION TECHNOLOGY: One PIXIO is a plastic cube 8mm in size, consisting of two elements: plastic and 6 powerful magnets. For casting was used the highest quality and bright intense colors ABS plastic. For filling - neodymium magnets. They lose no more than 2% of their magnetic power in 50 years. The polarity of the magnets is arranged in such a way that the blocks can be easily connected to build any figure or object.
SPECIFICATIONS / TECHNICAL PROPERTIES: Blocks: 8 x 8 x 8 mm. Dimensions of a set depend on a quantity of pixio-blocks inside. The measures of the smallest package are 8 x 8 x 8 cm, the measures of the biggest package are 32 x 32 x 8 cm.
TAGS: Toy, Block, Magnet, Play, Creative, Pixel art, Construction, Building, STEM
RESEARCH ABSTRACT: Main objects were to create a safe and multipurpose constructor. A lot of tests and implementations were made to get the best connectivity and visual ideality. More than 30 different magnets and sizes were tested for better hookup of blocks. All the tests were passed in special testing labs. For a perfect visual performance were tested a lot of colorants and admixtures. And for Marketing research - special focus groups, pixel art artists, toy specialists, and graphic designers were helping to obtain more information and feedbacks. The biggest research was Kickstarter campaign. It gave strong positive feedback from backers all around the world. PIXIO is a perfect colorful solution for all-kind designers, retails, architects. It is a next-step in voxel art modeling and styling.
CHALLENGE: The first challenge was to create a fully new construction set. PIXIO is a unique product that has no connection elements. The biggest challenge was to fit the unique mechanics and apply the design concept given the 8 mm size. After multiple experiments with the mold and materials, pixio-team was finally able to bring pixel versatility into real life.
ADDED DATE: 2017-09-27 11:32:57
TEAM MEMBERS (2) : Ivan Khalus and Oleh Berezovskyi
IMAGE CREDITS: PIXIO, 2017
PATENTS/COPYRIGHTS: Patent pending.
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