The archive · Product Ideas · Product decision · 2014–2026
Canon's multi-position CT scanner wins iF Gold 2026
Aquilion Rise scans patients standing, seated or lying, with a single-support gantry and a lit 800mm bore — and wins iF Gold 2026.
Canon Inc. · Canon Medical Systems
What it had to solve
Standard CT only scans patients lying down, but many disorders — spinal alignment, organ prolapse, stenosis — only show under gravity. The conventional two-leg gantry also blocked staff sightlines and gave patients a sense of pressure.
How it works
Computed tomography was built around one posture: the patient lies flat. But many disorders — a slipped disc under load, organ prolapse, narrowed joints — only appear when gravity presses on the body, so supine-only scans missed them. A second, quieter problem was the machine itself: its two support legs blocked staff sightlines and gave patients an oppressive, trapped feeling.
Canon Medical and Keio University began joint research in 2014, verified the clinical value of standing and seated scans at Keio University Hospital from 2017, and in April 2025 launched Aquilion Rise, described as the world's first whole-body multi-position CT. One machine scans supine, seated or standing patients; the gantry hangs from a single cantilever, the bore is a wide 800mm and lit from inside, and the ~2-ton ring completes a rotation in 0.35 seconds.
The design didn't just move parts — it changed what a scan can show, and it was recognised across three awards: iF Design Award 2026 Gold (Canon's 32nd consecutive year of iF wins), Japan's 2025 Good Design Best 100, and the JIDA Design Museum Selection Vol.27 Gold.
Why it lands
- It redefined the category's core assumption — that patients must lie down — turning posture itself into the product's feature.
- The design solved human problems (patient anxiety, staff sightlines) with structure, not decoration: one support leg instead of two, light inside the bore.
- It was built from a decade of clinical evidence with a university hospital, so the creativity was anchored in measurable diagnostic value.
- One machine also expands hospital business: three scan positions from a single device with faster throughput, per the launch release.
What it did
It won iF Design Award 2026 Gold — Canon's 32nd consecutive year of iF honours — plus Japan's 2025 Good Design Best 100 and the JIDA Design Museum Selection Vol.27 Gold, while the launch release called it the world's first whole-body multi-position CT.
What you can take
When the category's constraint looks physical — patients must lie flat — question it: re-positioning the patient and re-hanging the machine created new diagnostic capability; the design followed.
Since then
Sales in Japan began on April 11, 2025, with the first unit in clinical operation at Keio University Hospital. Through 2026 the machine collected iF Gold plus Good Design Best 100 and JIDA Gold, and Canon Medical positioned multi-position imaging as a new clinical value stream, extending the company's iF award run to 32 consecutive years.
Sources
- 世界初の全身用マルチポジションCT「Aquilion Rise」を産学連携により開発
- 技術とデザインで従来課題を克服したキヤノンの全身用マルチポジションCT：Meet-up Canon Design 2025 レポート
- Canon recognized at global iF Design Awards for 32nd consecutive year
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