Cubee

For the contest Next 40, the goal is to envisage the future of presorting household waste in the home, in order to improve its perception among residents and their propensity to do it, as well as support its effectiveness. Imagining the home of the future, with sustainability and technology in settings where space is increasingly limited. So, we aimed to design a new product for the home that combines design, functionality and durability with digital technology.

/Research

What will it be like 40 years from now? (our vision)

In 2064, the city of the future is reinventing itself in response to the lack of space. Traditional skyscrapers have given way to futuristic vertical structures incorporating tiny houses, small, optimized, and eco-friendly dwellings.

upcycled food

8% of human-cause greenhouse gas emissions come from food loss and waste, which is why reducing food waste is considered the single greatest solution to climate change.

FOOD WASTE

In all industrialized countries, food waste amounts to about 680 billion dollars per year. About 47% of food is wasted at home, while the remaining 53% of waste occurs along the food supply chain. Food waste produces 1/3 of the world's food, nearly 1.3 billion tons is lost or wasted, with fruits and vegetables accounting for the largest amount of wasted food
according to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization

CIRCULAR ECONOMY

Preserve and recover as much value as possible from resources by reusing, repairing, refurbishing, remanufacturing, repurposing, or recycling products and materials.
Rethink our production and consumption patterns to extract fewer resources upstream, stop discarding downstream, and reduce or even eliminate waste at every stage of the value chain.

/Our target and goal

Our target

HOUSEHOLDS

IN THE KITCHEN

Target households, which are responsible for nearly half of food waste, and focus on fruits and vegetables, which represent the largest portion of wasted food. When cooking, people discard food waste, including vegetable and fruit scraps. Therefore, we should target individuals who already cook vegetables.

Our goal

Objectives

- Achieve a total or at least significant reduction in our food waste.
- Facilitate the transformation process to ensure it is not a hindrance.
- Provide a new perspective on food to change mindsets.

benefits

- Waste becomes a new exploitable food resource.
- More economical and ecological.
- Fun and engaging.
- Variety of new recipes to explore.

/Our solution

What it will be like 40 years from now With our solution?

Let's look 40 years into the future: food waste is the biggest polluter, resources may be scarcer in some countries, and habits are changing.We've come up with a solution to give a second life to forgotten foodstuffs at the back of the fridge, or peelings that are often thrown away.
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As the saying goes, "nothing is lost, everything is transformed". With Cubee, dry your food, blend it and transform it into infusions, broths and much more. Adapt the settings to your tastes and enjoy without further ado.The machine includes a dehydrator and a brewing machine. It has been designed to fit into any kitchen. Its rather compact shape, which can be adjusted using magnets, means that anyone can fit it into their space as they wish.

The technology used detects which food you're about to dry, so the machine automatically uses the right settings and recommends other foods to add using the same settings. What's more, the machine learns your tastes as it goes along to suggest recipes created just for you and based on your food.

Product sketches

Brewing machine

The brewing machine creates powder from food scraps such as vegetable and fruit peelings, which can then be infused or incorporated into a preparation. It suggests recipes based on the various powders you've created, or lets you customize your own preparations.

Dryer

The dryer allows you to dehydrate the different peelings by detecting the food and suggesting a dehydration time and heat.

Fridge compartments

Fridge compartments allow peelings to be stored in a fresh place before being dehydrated, thus ensuring better preservation in optimal conditions.

/Digital experience and interfaces

By including a digital experience with Cubee, users of the machine are supported in their preparation process. The aim is to minimize the number of complicated steps and let Cubee guide him. The machine manages dehydration times, preparation steps including mixing, powder quantities, etc., to obtain the best possible result.

Be guided

When the user is guided, they can first choose whether they want something more bitter, sour, salty or sweet. The algorithm then generates suggestions, which it can modify if it wishes to change an ingredient in the recipe, for example. Finally, he can choose the intensity of the infusion and also the size of the grind of the ingredients

Choose yourself

When the user chooses for themselves, they select the ingredients they want one by one. After, he can still choose the intensity and the level of grind he wants.

Add to favorites

When he chooses from his favorites, he can find the list and select one.

Dehydrate

The dehydrate function allows you to put peelings in the dehydrator which will automatically recognize the fruit or vegetable.
We can then confirm, and cubee suggests a cooking time, as well as a suitable temperature. For logistical reasons and to save time, she also suggests other peelings with similar times and temperatures to be applied simultaneously.

Feedback

Finally, after each creation, the next time it is used, Cubee asks the user for their opinion on their latest creation, in order to make ever more relevant suggestions.

/Identity

The logo design subtly reflects the shape and form of the product, giving it a recognizable connection while maintaining simplicity. By focusing on clean lines and minimal details, the logo embodies the essence of the product without overwhelming complexity, making it versatile and easily identifiable across various platforms. The simplicity also ensures that the design remains modern, timeless, and easy to recall, aligning with the brand’s core values.

The Cubee range is made up of 3 vibrant colors: orange, green and blue, and a more neutral brown, so there is a choice for everyone. We want Cubee to be a useful product, but also to dress up the kitchen by adding a discreet pop of color.