Technology

Design Technology

Security Surveillance
Medical Vision
Design Technology

Design entails solving problems from the user’s perspective and shaping valuable experiences.
Good design, the fruit of accumulated experience, allows users to operate products without hesitation, rely on them long-term, and recognize their quality immediately.
It enhances customer value while fostering a company’s competitive edge.

i-PRO Design aims to “create a reassuring environment.”

We holistically refine functionality, sensibility, and brand identity through product and UI design, connectivity and communication
to shape experiences that foster expectation and reassurance.

We established three design principles to translate i-PRO’s technology and philosophy into tangible value for society:

“Resolve challenges”
“Appeal to the senses”
“Foresee the future”

Based on these three principles, we refine the experiential value unique to i-PRO, fostering a stronger brand and a sense of expectation for the future.

Design Development

We collaborate with internal departments and external organizations in our commitment to
creating new value through hardware and software product design, and next-generation designs.

Product Design

Speaker Camera

A design that quietly watches over you, ensuring safety and peace of mind

Our customers expressed the need to speak to the user immediately from a remote location.

The speaker camera was developed in response to the growing need in medical and care settings to speak to patients remotely.

The ability to speak to patients and monitor their situation remotely helps put patients at ease. The camera was also developed to reduce staff workload in the face of severe labor shortages.

A newly recruited designer took on this project, tackling a complex interplay of many requirements.

They held repeated discussions with the planning, design, and sales departments, while researching security equipment and specific requirements in medical settings. Through this iterative process, they gradually refined the design’s appearance and usability.

The design blends seamlessly into its surroundings without creating a sense of being watched

The designer’s primary focus was to create a design that blends seamlessly into the environment of medical and care settings without feeling intrusive.

The goal was to allow patients to focus on their treatment in peace of mind, without feeling they were being watched. For some time, we brainstormed aspects from the structure and functionality to the tactile feel and installation methods.

Naturally this camera has a lens, but the exterior appearance was complicated by additional components including a speaker, microphone, and infrared light.

To address this, we developed a black area on the body to consolidate the lens and lights, making them less conspicuous. We also aligned the speaker openings to create an uncluttered minimalistic appearance. We believe that it successfully maintains functionality while blending seamlessly into the surroundings to be as unobtrusive as possible.

Facilitating a range of installation methods required close collaboration between the engineering and design departments

It was crucial to accommodate different installation requirements for each site.

Given the need for diverse installability, including on walls, ceilings, shelves, and poles, we worked closely with our mechanical engineers, and successfully integrated the rear stand into the enclosure design without compromising structural integrity.

The designer in charge of the speaker camera tackled the new challenge of addressing medical and nursing care needs in their first project leader role at i-PRO.

During the development process, they faced a steep learning curve in technical aspects such as structural strength and thermal management. At times, they felt challenged at the prospect of bringing design concepts to life. But working with the project members to incorporate better ideas into the product proved a rewarding.

Reflecting on this first challenge as an i-PRO product designer, they stated, “I learned that design is never a standalone endeavor; rather, its quality is refined through collaboration with various departments.”

The resulting speaker camera was recognized for successfully balancing environmental harmony, ease of installation, and safety at an advanced level, winning the 2025 Good Design Award.

Today, its use has expanded beyond medical and care facilities to include fitness centers, laundromats, and retail stores. With its discreet, unobtrusive design, we believe this product contributes to people’s peace of mind and safety.

・Link to the Good Design Award
https://www.g-mark.org/gallery/winners/29913?text=i-PRO

Product Design

Millimeter-wave radar

Balancing functionality with an exterior design that seamlessly blends into its surroundings at airports and other large-scale facilities

A New Challenge to Address Issues Unique to Large-Scale Facilities

Personnel at large-scale facilities such as power plants, airports, and seaports face the challenge of monitoring vast areas, creating a heavy workload. These expansive sites contain various equipment and infrastructure, and often experience false alarms triggered by the weather, which increases management costs.

To address these challenges, i-PRO launched a project to develop a weather-resistant millimeter-wave radar capable of monitoring wide expanses. Our designers were involved in this project from its initial research phase.

The designers faced the challenge of developing a product that was user-friendly and blended seamlessly into the surroundings, while incorporating technology capable of accurately detecting people and vehicles even at night or in bad weather.

The design process was far from straightforward compared with optical cameras. Designers worked closely with the engineering department to gradually refine the design, addressing limitations in radar performance and the need for frequent revisions based on testing, until they found a viable solution.

A layout developed through trial and error

Through a process of trial and error, the designers developed a layout with a camera positioned between two millimeter-wave radars.

With this configuration, they found a way to ensure the required performance while reducing the intimidating appearance typical of conventional box-shaped radars, finally achieving a compact, cohesive design.

They worked closely with the development team through repeated adjustments while grappling with the challenges of the new mechanical structure, steadily refining the design to achieve a balance between functionality and aesthetics.

Achieving better enclosure design and miniaturization

Designers sought to achieve both improved casing design and miniaturization based on testing conducted at the i-PRO Kaizuka facility. Through persistent testing to balance performance and aesthetics, their efforts led to the creation of a far more compact design.

This millimeter-wave radar is increasingly being adopted as a new security solution at large-scale facilities, including power plants, airports, and seaports.

It received the 2025 Good Design Award and was praised as “a product that achieves a high degree of harmony between functionality and aesthetic design, contributing to labor-saving in security operations and reduced environmental impact.”