Gold Award for Doosan Concept-X excavator
Future-oriented unmanned construction machine design wins top accolade at iF Design Awards 2021
DOOSAN Infracore have won a Gold Award at the International Forum Design (iF Design) Awards 2021 in Germany for their Concept-X excavator design. One of only 75 entries to win a Gold Award from a total of 10,000 put forward from 52 countries, the Concept-X excavator design was chosen by a 98-member jury, made up of independent experts from all over the world.
Concept-X is the world’s first unmanned automated and integrated control solution for construction, quarrying and mining sites. Introduced by Doosan Infracore in 2019, it can perform work unattended by having drones to measure the workplace, automatically analyze the data, establish the work plan and transfer the data to machinery such as excavators and wheel loaders.
In their statement accompanying the Gold Award announcement, the organizers, iF International Forum Design GmbH, the world’s oldest independent design organization, said: ‘This concept raises the bar and pushes the bounds of technology with an ambitious vision for the future of construction equipment.
‘Unmanned trucks and excavators supervised by drones introduce sci-fi systems and automotive styling to a conventional sector. The possibilities are endless: improved safety, productivity, precision and quality.’
As a future-oriented unmanned construction machine, Doosan Infracore’s Concept-X excavator design is characterized by no cab for the operator and the four separated continuous tracks which constitute the lower part of the machine – advantageous for maintaining a stable position on uneven ground.
The design also proposes that all components except the excavator boom are to be motorized, with the circular indicator mounted on the joint areas providing easy recognition of the load.
The iF Design Awards, organized by Hannover-based iF International Forum Design since 1953, are considered to be one of the world’s three leading design awards contests, together with IDEA in the US and the Red Dot Design Awards, also in Germany.
