Otto Bock Healthcare wins the red dot: best of the best three times in this year’s red dot award: product design

Not once, but three times did Otto Bock Healthcare GmbH receive the red dot: best of the best in the category ‘Life Science Design’ of this year’s red dot award: product design. The outstanding design achievement of the leg prosthetic system ‘C-Leg®’ and the prosthetic foot ‘Otto Bock Trias’ impressed the red dot jury, as did the multifunctional spinal support bandage ‘Lumbo TriStep’, which Otto Bock developed in co-operation with the design company Resolut Design from Leipzig.

Otto Bock Healthcare has been a market leader in the field of orthopaedic technology for years and stands for innovative power and leadership in technology. Increasing mobility and enjoyment of life with the help of technology for people limited in their range of motion is the main interest of medical technology. Otto Bock Healthcare also attaches increased importance to the design aspect in medical technology and uses not only the latest technological innovations in its product development, but also high-quality, functional design.

The company’s motto ‘Quality for Life’ was clearly the focus in the development of the ‘C-Leg®’ and the foot prosthesis ‘Otto Bock Trias’. The aim was to create the first ever electronically operated prosthetic leg system, which offers the amputee more safety and comfort on the one hand, while on the other hand allowing more activity and a natural gait pattern. The ‘C-Leg®’ is the first hydraulic knee joint system worldwide with completely microprocessor operated stance and swing phases. In combination with the Carbon prosthetic foot, the filigree and functionally designed ‘C-Leg®’ as a modern and powerful systemic solution sets new standards for leg amputees according to the design experts. The stabilising element for the lumbar spine ‘Lumbo TriStep’ won over the jury with its ergonomic perfection and innovative use of material.

The jury of experts of the red dot award: product design 2007 was impressed by the rapid progress in the field of Life Science Design. Thanks to the increasing quality awareness and the consideration of the users’ needs, the attractive unity of form and function is getting more and more relevance for the markets. The high technical quality and the superior design achievements of Otto Bock Healthcare have already received several distinctions in the red dot design award. This year, the red dot: best of the best was awarded 43 times in total, but only four times in the category Life Science Design, three of which went to Otto Bock Healthcare GmbH alone.

red dot online talked to the designers of Trias and Lumbo TriStep:

>>Interview with Dr. Lüder Mosler and Justin Smith, Otto Bock Trias

>>Interview with Andreas Mühlenberend, Lumbo TriStep