The archive · Product Ideas · Product decision · 2019
igus ReBeL: a six-axis robot arm made affordable by an all-polymer shell
igus put a low-cost strain wave gear and an all-polymer shell on ReBeL, turning a six-axis robot arm into an affordable, light product — Red Dot 2019.
igus GmbH
What it had to solve
Six-axis articulated arms normally need costly precision components, and igus's robolink family had never produced one. The goal was an affordable robot whose motors, cables and control electronics could live inside the arm itself.
How it works
ReBeL is a six-axis articulated robot arm from igus's robolink family, and its design starts from a price problem. For the first time in the family it uses a low-cost strain wave gear, which made the sixth rotation axis possible so the arm can turn and reach every position.
Instead of a heavy metal structure, the external shell is made entirely of polymers. Motors, cables and control electronics are installed inside the arm, so the robot is self-contained, cost-effective and light.
Red Dot's jury drew the direct line between the two choices: the synthetic materials make the arm affordable, and they create a unique, appealing appearance. ReBeL won Red Dot Product Design 2019.
Why it lands
- A conventional six-axis arm relies on costly precision mechanics, so a low-cost strain wave gear was the enabling choice.
- An all-polymer shell cuts material cost and weight far more than optimizing a metal design would.
- Housing motors, cables and control electronics in the arm removes external boxes and makes the robot self-contained.
- Affordability plus a distinctive look lets a motion-plastics maker sell a robot to users who never bought one.
What it did
ReBeL won Red Dot Product Design 2019. The jury said the synthetic materials not only make the robot arm affordable; they give it a unique and appealing appearance, putting a six-axis robot within reach of users who could not justify conventional arms.
What you can take
Price can be a design decision, not a consequence: choosing a polymer shell and a low-cost gear made a six-axis arm affordable in a way machining the same metal design cheaper never would.
Since then
Red Dot 2019 became the proof point for ReBeL as igus pushed low-cost automation across its robotics range. The award record publishes no sales figures, so the case rests on the idea: changing the shell material and drive architecture is what turned a six-axis robot from an investment into a commodity part.
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