Soroban Colette Abakus by Toshihiko Sakai

Soroban Colette Abakus by Toshihiko Sakai is a highly esteemed winner of the very prestigious 2025 A' Design Award in Bronze in Kunstbedarfdesign Competition Category.

BronzeKunstbedarf· 2025

Soroban Colette Abakus

by Toshihiko Sakai

Client: Asahi Printing Co., Ltd.

A' Design Award in Bronze Winner in Kunstbedarf Category

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Verified Award Winner

Verify Award Status for #161708

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Colors

The Design

About Soroban Colette Abakus

Zuvor hatte der Abakus eckige Ecken, wurde jedoch mit einem sanfteren Design und abgerundeten Ecken neu gestaltet, damit Kinder ihn bedenkenlos nutzen können, ohne sich Sorgen zu machen, etwas damit zu beschädigen. Das Design verzichtet auf Schrauben, Nägel oder Klebstoffe und ist somit ein sicheres Produkt für kleinere Kinder. Durch eine Vielzahl kinderfreundlicher Farben wurden die Gestaltungsmöglichkeiten erweitert. Zudem wurde die Anzahl der Bauteile um 40% reduziert, was die Fertigung vereinfacht und effizienter gestaltet.

The Recognition

About the A' Design Award in Bronze

Soroban Colette Abakus ist Gewinner des A' Design Award in Bronze, einer hochprestigeträchtigen Anerkennung für herausragende Designs, die sich durch Kreativität, Einfallsreichtum und Scharfsinn auszeichnen. Bronze-Gewinner sind reichlich geschickte und auffallend kreative Artefakte, die die große Erfahrung, Fantasie und Findigkeit ihrer Designer belegen. Von Soroban Colette Abakus wird erwartet, dass es ein hochgeschätztes, bewundertes und geliebtes Objekt ist, das bemerkenswert professionell und innovativ ist. Dieses mit dem A' Design Award in Bronze prämierte Design verkörpert bewährte Verfahren in Kunst, Wissenschaft, Design und Technologie und ist hervorragend in seiner Liebe zum Detail. Soroban Colette Abakus befriedigt Bedürfnisse auf großartige Weise, berührt Wünsche, bezaubert Gefühle und spricht die Neugier an.

Behind the Design

Press Kit

Credits, team members and technical details provided by the designer.

Unique Properties: Previously, the abacus had square corners, but it has been reborn to gentler design having rounded corners so that children can use it without worrying about damaging something with the item. The design does not use screws, nails, or adhesive, making it a highly safe product for younger children. By having a variety of colors that children like, the options have expanded. Additionally, the number of parts has been reduced by 40%, making manufacturing simpler and more efficient.
Dimensions & Packaging: "Traditional abacuses were mostly 23 digits, but this product has 20 digits, making it ideal for beginners. As a result, it is now A4-sized and can be stored neatly in a school bag.

The main body is made of resin, which is stably supplied, and the weight as well as the size are similar to those of conventional products.

Number of digits: 20
Material: main body from recycled polycarbonate, beads from polystyrene
Package: paper box with a cover case
Weight: 158g
Length 60mm x width 283mm x height 17mm"
Tags: pop, colette, eco, 20 digit, colorful
Production Technology: Traditionally, abacuses were made from hard, heavy wood such as boxwood, which are endangered species and hard to obtain. Over 60% of the product weight is of upcycled materials. By integrally molding the beam and shaft parts like a fishbone, we succeeded in reducing the number of parts by more than 30% compared to conventional products. With all the efforts combined, we have established manufacturing that does not rely too much on individual craftmen.
Design Challenge: A modern arrangement has been added without disrupting the traditional use of the abacus. Additionally, since it will be used by children, we aimed for a safe design with no angular corners and no screws or nails. The most time-consuming task was to come up with a frame structure that integrated the beam and shaft in order to reduce man-hours. In terms of materials, from a sustainability perspective, we had to maintain enough strength while using recycled resin, which was a challenge.
Research: The traditional manufacturing of abacuses is a cottage industry, involving nearly 200 steps, each of which is highly specialized, requiring a large number of workers to manufacture one abacus.

Due to the decrease in successors, the production volume has dropped to about 150,000 per year, about one-twentieth from the peak of 3 million abacuses, making it difficult for abacus schools to secure the necessary quantities.

In addition, the raw material ebony is dependent on imports, and domestic boxwood is rated as endangered on the Fukuoka Prefecture Red List, making it depleted and in need of protection.
Inspiration: The abacus was introduced to Japan as calculator 450 years ago, and is popular even today as a traditional skill learning and brain training for children. However, as the design variations are limited because it is made of wood and traditional manufacturing process, children are currently unable to choose one that suits their preference. Manufacturing sites are facing problems such as aging of craftsmen, lack of successors, and less materials, and this shows the possibility that traditional abacus education will be reduced due to the shortage of abacuses, “sorobans” in Japanese. It is also required that newly developed products are eco-friendly.
Project Duration: The project was started in January, 2021, and was completed in April, 2024, It took 3 years for us to reserch and realize an ideal product.
Operation Flow: An abacus is designed to make it easy to understand the decimal system, with each column representing one digit. The thing that runs horizontally and divides the bead into one and four parts is called a beam. The beads at the top of it are called 5-beads, and correspond to five beads at the bottom. Use your thumb to move a 1-bead, and your index finger to move the rest. With this small abacus, users can add, subtract, multiply, and divide.
Patents: Patent applied
Patent application 2023-176919
Team Members: Toshihiko Sakai
Image Credits: N/A