What kinds of designs stimulate our instincts and satisfy our curiosity?
Cat Toy Design
2024
Overview
What kinds of tools stimulate our instincts?
In this thought experiment-style design project, designers from Yamaha and Yamaha Motor collaborated on a common theme: cat toys.
Cat toys may not have any apparent relationship to musical instruments or mobility devices; in that sense, this project doubles as an attempt to reexamine the essence of the value both Yamahas have pursued. For many years, we have produced musical instruments and mobility devices that deliver enriching experiences to people. As for what makes the experiences enriching, these instruments and devices must go beyond fulfilling a function—they must be so enticing to touch and play and use, so captivating that time simply drifts away.
Does anything typify the value Yamaha brings more than stimulating instincts and curiosity in this way?
To explore this idea more purely, we shifted our perspective from humans to cats. Cats are bundles of curiosity—they become engrossed in things that interest them and have no problem ignoring things that are unappealing. That is why cat toys must be designed to stimulate their instincts, intuitively capture their interest, and keep them engaged. This challenge is much like designing musical instruments and mobility devices that humans find captivating.
In this project, we assumed a cat’s perspective to explore a vision for tools that stimulate curiosity. In a process that was both serious and fun, designers from the two companies devised three cat toys that examine the essence of enriching experiences that typify Yamaha.
Strumming Box
A cat scratching post that embodies the way much-loved musical instruments change their appearance over time. Several sheets of paper of different colors are stacked on the scratching surface, and by scratching, different colors appear from the underside and various patterns are made. The more the cat sharpens its claws, the more the scratches become etched into the surface, and before long they look like a worn-out guitar and show a unique surface finish created by the cat. The scratching post was created by Yamaha designers, who understand the enjoyment of owning an instrument for a long time and making it your own.
Designer: Hinako Matsui/Yamaha Design Laboratory
Cat Music Box
You can create melodies by inserting music making note plates into the slits of the outer ring of the cat wheel. As the cat walks on the inner ring, the double wheels rotate and a giant music box begins to play. A large reduction gear mounted in the center reduces the rotational speed of the outer wheels. This allows the melody to be played at an appropriate tempo when the cat moves quickly. The user can freely arrange the melody by choosing the note plates for the cat to play. The cat's capricious movements will make the music andante or allegretto. There may also be times that the cat moves backwards to create unexpected music. This is a new cat wheel that two Yamahas propose.
Designer: YAMAHA MOTOR DESIGN
Neko-Yama
Cats like to get into tight spaces, crevices and holes; sometimes they end up squeezing into surprisingly tiny spaces. This seemingly reckless behavior produces humorous scenes, but it also seems as though they enjoy challenging their own physical limits. If that's the case, Yamaha will put on a platform for cats to challenge themselves to their hearts’ content.
The transparent stage, named Neko-Yama, consists of various holes, tunnels, dents and bulges. They invite cats to enter small holes and irregular crevices in various positions. This is a distinctly Yamaha proposal for a playground, designed to stimulate a cat’s instinct to take on challenges and give owners the pleasure of watching their pets at play.
Designer: Kazuya Washio/Yamaha Design Laboratory
Process
We developed our ideas based on the question of how to pique a cat’s curiosity. We proceeded with our explorations by focusing on simple movements as well as on auditory stimulation and unpredictable experiences created when humans are included. We also analyzed why musical instruments and mobility devices captivate people and incorporated the distinctive perspectives of the two Yamahas in an effort to propose even more unique ways to play.
