The competition was a part of the World Design Capital Helsinki 2012 activities and saw 25 students in 5 teams from the Aalto University propose active antenna designs that are not meant to be hidden, but rather stand out as design pieces in their own right.
Two winning teams: Owl and Tetrix
Selecting the winner was tough for the evaluation panel that consisted of both design and technology experts from Aalto University and Nokia Siemens Networks. In the end, the best design award was shared between two teams, Owl and Tetrix.
The design of the Owl team allows the antenna to be customized to different cultures, cities and neighborhoods, while the team Tetrix got the essence of an active antenna and gave it a simple shape and design that could be installed both indoors and outdoors.
“The students applied multiple methods and tools for communicating their visions and making them tangible, and as a result we had a great variation of ideas from radical futuristic concepts to designs inspired by nature. It was all very intense, and I just tried to keep up with the ideas flowing in!”, laughs professor Kalevi Ekman, Department of Engineering Design and Production, Aalto University.
Sakari Sistonen from Nokia Siemens Networks sales introduced the active antenna technology to the students. “When we started the program, we went through the essentials of our active antenna system and I think these talented students adopted it all very easily, wanting to learn new things. For them, it’s important to stay connected and to be able to use their favorite apps, so I had an easy task explaining the role that the antenna plays in enabling that connectivity. For me, this program and working with these great teams was truly inspiring.”
Mock-ups of the two winning designs are now showcased at NSN Solution Experience Center in Espoo, where operators and other visitors from around the world can see them.
“We were looking for new, iconic mobile antenna designs, so it’s great to see the models representing new thinking in this area. I’d like to thank Aalto University and everyone in the team for great co-operation in this program, which is part of the World Design Capital Helsinki 2012 activities,” said Kai Sahala, head of mobile broadband marketing at Nokia Siemens Networks.
The model designs were created in Aalto Design Factory, where students had an opportunity to participate in the creation process.
