Cat Toy Design
2024
Yamaha Corporation and Yamaha Motor designers in the US collaborated on designing toys for cats.
Project Overview
Two companies, Yamaha Corporation and Yamaha Motor Co., Ltd. have worked together on concept designs for cat toys. Both Yamaha companies offer services and products to enrich people’s lives through musical instruments and vehicles. This time, they will study the design values of both Yamaha from the viewpoint of cats.
They explore the value of new designs by considering playthings that tickle cats' instincts and satisfy their curiosity. A cat toy requires visuals that convey its functions intuitively, is fun to use, and has an ingenuity that you won't get tired of. They propose three designs that satisfy these requirements from the perspective of 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 designed by Yamaha, who understands the enjoyment of owning an instrument for a long time and making it your own.
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.
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 proposal for a cat playground in the Yamaha style.
Creative Process
