Singapore, 25 October 2013 – Rewarded for the innovative design of its Avionics 2020 cockpit, Thales is a proud recipient of this year’s prestigious Red Dot Design Concept Award. Thales is also ranked amongst the “Best of the Best” award-winners, since its Avionics 2020 cockpit has been selected as one of the 50 design concepts which stand out from the 5,000 applications submitted from over 50 countries worldwide across all categories.
Avionics 2020 represents a new generation cockpit founded on the principles of natural, hands-on interaction and human-machine interfaces. With a user-friendly cockpit layout, it incorporates tactile displays, providing pilots with an intuitive way of interacting with all aircraft systems and functions. Set for entry into service in 2020, the Avionics 2020 cockpit is simple to use and to train with, allows complex tasks to be managed easily and provides an efficient and modern environment in which to work.
Developed at Thales’s cockpit innovation hub, in Bordeaux, France, the Avionics 2020 cockpit has brought together pilots, researchers, engineers, psychologists, physicians and world-class experts in the field of human-machine interfaces and has resulted in a cockpit design that is entirely cenetred around the pilot.
Thanks to this multi-disciplinary approach and its two partners – Félix & Associés and Use Design – Thales has succeeded in creating a seamless cockpit where hardware and software interactions are entirely consistent from a look-and-feel perspective.
Commenting on the award, Bruno Nouzille, VP, Technical, of Thales’s Avionics business, said: “This is a major reward for the forward-thinking innovation policy we’ve put into place. It is supported by a structured process, teams with unrivalled expertise in human factors and human-machine interfaces and a workspace tailored to foster creativity, communication and the development of new technologies.”
Avionics 2020 represents a major milestone towards implementing the ODICIS (One DIsplay for a Cockpit Interactive Solution) concept. A futuristic cockpit concept, ODICIS highlights the types of technologies and innovations expected to become the norm on commercial aircraft in the next twenty years. ODICIS received the French Design Institute’s “Janus de la Prospective” label in 2012.
About Thales
Thales is a global technology leader in the Aerospace, Transportation and Defence & Security markets. In 2012, the company generated revenues of €14.2 billion with 65,000 employees in 56 countries. With its 25,000 engineers and researchers, Thales has a unique capability to design, develop and deploy equipment, systems and services that meet the most complex security requirements. Thales has an exceptional international footprint, with operations around the world working with customers and local partners. www.thalesgroup.com
About the Red Dot Design Award
The Red Dot Design Award is an international product design prize awarded each year by the Design Zentrum Nordrhein Westfalen in Essen, Germany. There are prize categories for product design, design agencies, and design concepts. Since 1955, designers and producers can apply for the prizes with the winners being presented in an annual ceremony. http://red-dot.org & http://www.red-dot.sg.
