What do a hybrid bicycle, a wind energy system and a first aid blanket have in common? Answer: all three were nominated for this year’s Red Dot: Luminary, the highest accolade of the Red Dot Award: Design Concept.

Red Dot: Luminary – The Copenhagen Wheel by Superpedestian Inc

And at the end of the awards night, held last Friday at the Red Dot Design Museum Singapore, it was announced that the top prize would go to the hybrid bicycle or “The Copenhagen Wheel” by Superpedestian Inc, a smart electric vehicle that learns how one pedals, and produces a pedal power that is 10 times stronger.

Red Dot: Luminary – The Copenhagen Wheel by Superpedestian Inc

The prestigious Red Dot Award: Design Concept has been enjoying a rise in entries in recent years, and this year is no different. The 2014 award received 4,791 entries across 29 categories and 63 countries, a 9 per cent increase from 2013. Of these, the international 22-panel jury had picked 202 concepts for the Red Dot award, with 40 honoured with the Red Dot: Best of the Best, and 62 concepts given an Honourable Mention.

Red Dot: Luminary nominee – Windflock by Emami Design

The Red Dot Award: Design Concept is well recognised for offering a unique level playing field to all product concepts and their producers. As Ken Koo, President of Red Dot Asia explains, “In the quest for professional-level work, this competition does not have a young designer or student category. Every submitted design concept, prototype or about-to-be-produced concept, is subject to the same level of jury scrutiny, with the name of each entrant masked during adjudication. Only the quality of the idea and design solution counts. Therefore, each winning work is accorded full recognition, without prejudice regardless of the designer’s degree of experience in the design world.”

Red Dot: Luminary nominee – First Aid Blanket by Zhejiang University

As was tradition, the awards evening last week concluded with the unveiling of the yearbook, which is a condensation of the competition and winners. Also unveiled was the exhibition of the winning concepts at the Red Dot Design Museum Singapore and online at the Red Dot Award: Design Concept website.

Red Dot Award: Design Concept
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