Design Translation · 2010

Concept: IKEA Planner

What if IKEA gave you a digital tool that understood the dimensions of your room? The idea: a simple planner where users set their floor plan, and IKEA furniture fits right into it.

Brand
IKEA
Date
2010/09/13
Planner
Emplace
The IKEA planner showing a finished room in isometric view with a chest of drawers, a bed and a table placed on the floor plan, and a list of VIKA tables on the right
Users can save space planning time with the IKEA Planner app. Users also can update the plan anytime

Problem

The existing online space planners gave users too many tools. Building a complex floor plan with them was harder than it needed to be.

The Floor Planner web app showing a flat pink square on a grid, with Construction and Library tool panels on the right
Floor Planner App
Three outlined shapes, a rectangle, an arched shape and a cross-like shape with curves, each beside the list of clicks and tools needed to draw it

Shapes

The floor plan, by combining shapes, is more effortless than outlining.

Four blue basic shapes on yellow: a square, a right triangle and two quarter circles
Build floor plans with geometric shapes.
Three outlined shapes marked 5, 6 and 20 beside the same shapes built from combined blocks, marked 1, 3 and 10
The floor plan, by combining shapes, is more effortless than outlining.
A grid of fifty-four blue shapes on yellow, made from squares, triangles and curves in many combinations
Users can build infinite shapes.

Floor plan

After the user assembles the master shape, Emplace automatically generates a floor plan according to the dimensions entered.

The IKEA planner on its Floor tab with a square being resized on a grid next to a combined shape, a Combine button, and a module list of a square, a triangle and quarter circles
Scaling, rotating, and snapping shapes to the grid system saves the user time.
The IKEA planner showing an outlined floor plan with empty dimension fields on each wall, and a Next button
After the user assembles the master shape, Emplace automatically generates a floor plan according to the dimensions entered.

Furniture

When the user drags a selected IKEA furniture, the application projects its footprint on the floor.

A table being dragged in the room, with its footprint shown in blue on the floor
When the user drags a selected IKEA furniture, the application projects its footprint on the floor.
A table dragged over the bed, with its footprint shown in red on the floor
Red means stop. Notice the place button is disabled.

Why IKEA

Buying from IKEA is really buying a living experience for your space.

You can find paper measuring tape in every store because IKEA knows customers need room dimensions to shop well. Why not bring both the room information and IKEA's solutions into one digital tool? Visualizing the space helps you pick the right fit and plan holistically.

Closing

The best shopping experience starts at home.

2010/09/13

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