UNYQ
UNYQ gaming products
Biometric wrist support 3D printed by UNYQ.
UNYQ has announced three personalised gaming products produced with Carbon’s 3D printing technology and developed in partnership with IKEA and Area Academy.
The products include a biometric wrist support, soft vented keycaps, and a portable mouse ‘bungee’. They are being brought to market under the UPPKOPPLA – meaning ‘online’ – collection which has been established by UNYQ and IKEA. Their initial aim is to change the way people game, making the activity a more comfortable pastime.
It is estimated there are more than 2 billion gamers around the world, spending a collective 14 billion hours a week immersed in video games. Remaining seated for hours on end can cause strains and stresses on the body, and so the partners set about designing and printing a series of parts that would offer ergonomic benefits to gamers.
The biometric wrist support is connected around the wrist, separating the user’s arm from the desktop and maintaining it at the correct height in accordance with the keyboard to reduce strain on the tendons. Meanwhile, the soft, pliable, vented keycaps serve to make the keyboard feel like a physical extension of a gamer’s fingers and the portable mouse ‘bungee’ prevents the tangling of wires by clamping the user’s mouse cable in place.
UNYQ and its partners are to make the products commercially available next year, accessible via a mobile device app, where users can use their own phone cameras to create personalised and customised versions of the accessories. Though the partners will look to leverage its concept and target other industries, they decided focusing on an ‘underserved’ market like the gaming industry was a good place to start.
UNYQ
Close up of UNYQ's 3D printed wrist support for gamers.
Close up of UNYQ's 3D printed wrist support for gamers.
“The gaming community has been overlooked for a long time when it comes to furniture and accessories that are functional and customised, as well as aesthetically suit individuals’ preferences,” commented Eythor Bender, Co-Founder and CEO of UNYQ. “We have the ability to address the unique needs of these individuals and, in turn, personalise, protect, and improve their game. Additionally, the generative design and additive manufacturing process simplifies and shortens value and supply chains, making it easily replicable across different products, more affordable and allowing individuals to partake in the design process.”
“UNYQ has developed a method of creating solutions that fit everyone’s unique needs and tastes, letting customers take design into their hands,” added Michael Nikolic, Creative Leader at IKEA of Sweden. “It is a great way to give customers exactly what they want, and it also minimises waste as production is directly aligned with demand and there is no inventory. We are really looking forward to see where this new way of working will take us and are excited to continue to collaborate with UNYQ.”
