The Concept-X unmanned excavator was one of 75 entries that won a Gold Award from a total of 10,000 put forward from 52 countries, and was chosen by a 98-member jury of independent experts from around the world.
Gold Award organiser iF International Forum Design commented on the excavator: "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."
The Concept-X excavator design is characterised by no cab for the operator and the four separated continuous tracks constituting the lower part of the machine. Doosan says the four-track configuration is advantageous for maintaining a stable position on uneven ground. The design proposes that all components except the excavator boom are to be motorised, with the circular indicator mounted on the joint areas providing easy recognition of the load.
The Concept-X unmanned automated and integrated control solution was introduced by Doosan Infracore for construction, quarrying and mining sites in 2019. It can perform work unattended by having drones to measure the workplace, automatically analyse the data, establish the work plan and transfer the data to machinery such as excavators and wheeled loaders.
Doosan Infracore has won awards two years in a row at the iF Design Awards, following on from the Product Discipline Award won by the new DL-7 range of wheeled loaders last year. The company has also recently won the Best of the Best at the 2019 Pinup Design Awards and the Main Award at the 2020 Red Dot Design Awards and the 2019 Pinup Design Awards.
“It is unusual for construction equipment to win the Gold Award at the iF Design Awards," said a Doosan Infracore official. "We plan to build a premium design image as represented by the award-winning designs of our new generation products."
The iF Design Awards competition has been held by iF International Forum Design since 1953 and is considered one of the world’s three leading design awards, together with IDEA in the United States and the Red Dot Design Awards also in Germany.
