Operating System for Robots

KUKA is a leading German manufacturer of industrial robots and automation solutions. Their systems are highly regarded for automating complex tasks. However, especially for beginners, the systems are very complicated to setup and not easy to use. KUKA wanted to make automation easier for everyone.

I supported a multidisciplinary team of designers in crafting the user experience of iiQKA. Our main work was to discuss requirements with product management and turn the complex technical behavior into an intuitive user interface. My tasks included developing UX concepts, designing UIs, crafting the information architecture, and ensuring the quality of the implementation. I also helped create a Figma component library, which became the foundation for the KUKA Design System.

A particular challenge for me was understanding both the technology and the user requirements to support the existing team in the best possible way. Thanks to helpful colleagues and a nag for technology, I was able to achieve this in a very short time. Another challenge was to design a UI for a touch device with additional hardware controls, which had not yet been fully defined. We dealt with this by setting up our Figma files to adapt them quickly and generally embracing the inavoidable changes.

iiQKA was released in 2021 and consists of an intuitive operating system as well as a digital ecosystem. The software runs on the custom-made “Smartpad” as well as off-the-shelf tablets. It makes the use of robots faster, more accessible, and easy to use for all of KUKA’s clients. iiQKA was awarded the German Innovation Award 2022 and the accompanying design system was nominated for the UX Design Award 2023.