Developing a cooking robot for pets requires the integration of dispensing, water, temperature, cleaning and a simple user experience. Marta Arisa, co-founder of Kibus PetCare, explains how her team took an idea to a commercial device through years of prototyping and user testing. Episode 27 of Toque de Ingenio examines a physical product in which food preparation, electronics and industrialisation must work together.
Guest: Marta Arisa, co-founder of Kibus PetCare.
Interview published: November 11, 2024. Episode: 27. Duration: 1 h 10 min.
In this episode:
- How do food, mechanisms, and cleaning relate to the design of a household device?
- What did the prototypes and tests observed in unfamiliar homes reveal to the founding team?
- Why a crowdfunding campaign can validate interest, and at the same time, reveal a market problem.
The conversation reflects Kibus’s situation in November 2024. Marta reviews the development, market entry, and future growth objectives. The article focuses on the design and engineering decisions; the dietary assessments featured in the video are based on the guest’s perspective and do not constitute nutritional guidelines for a specific pet.
Design a system consisting of a machine and feed.
Kibus offers a solution that prepares food using a dehydrated formulation. The device includes containers and mechanisms for managing ingredients and water, as well as a dish for the animal to eat from. The conversation also describes programming functions via an application.
This architecture treats the food as a variable within the technical project. The size of the pieces, their fat content, and their behavior during dispensing all impact the mechanism’s operation. Developing the apparatus and then finalizing all aspects of the consumable would have left a significant part of the problem unresolved.
Marta explains that both lines of development progressed in parallel. The team had to study how the product moves and how it’s mixed. This is a clear example of integration: a component can function independently, but can also create difficulties when interacting with the rest of the system.
In the product design and development, That interdependence necessitates defining interfaces between different disciplines. Mechanical design, electronics, and the development of consumables must share working conditions, tolerances, and acceptance criteria.
A pet-friendly cooking robot is also designed to be self-cleaning.
One of the priorities Marta remembers is to prevent each meal from requiring the user to disassemble numerous components. Hygiene and ease of maintenance aren’t presented as added details at the end – they are integral to the design from the outset.
The team needed to ensure that the food preparation process didn’t unnecessarily dirty the inside of the machine. Daily cleaning should be compatible with a typical household routine. This objective imposes restrictions on the measuring, mixing, and movement of the product.
This case allows us to formulate a useful question before industrializing any appliance: what will the person have to do after using it? If maintenance requires too much effort, a technically correct function may lose value in actual use.
La user experience and UX/UI design They encompass both the practical application and that physical interaction. Tasks such as planning a meal, replenishing supplies, accessing a plate, or recognizing an issue should all be understood as part of a single process.
From the initial concept to a marketable product.
Edgar asked how long it took to find a solution that could be sold. Marta responded that it took four years, which was different from the initial expectations of the team. The conversation uses this difference to explain the complexity of starting a business with hardware.
It’s not just about getting a single unit to function once. We need to address geometries, materials, mechanisms, testing, and manufacturing preparation. Furthermore, a decision can necessitate a review of other parts of the product, particularly when there are dependencies between the food and the device.
When discussing prototypes, Marta refers to a more advanced version and several significant iterations. She doesn’t provide a complete inventory of all the partial tests. What’s important is the process: the design was constantly evolving as new behaviors emerged that the team couldn’t verify simply with a single idea or drawing.
Los functional prototypes They are specifically designed to transform uncertainties into observations. In a project of this type, a test can focus on measuring a specific ingredient, examining a particular component, or assessing how a user responds to a maintenance operation.
Testing in real homes and hearing from new users.
Marta described testing the product in people’s homes who were familiar with the team, and then with users who didn’t know the team. This evolution helped them to gain opinions that were less influenced by personal relationships. The way the product was used and the dog’s reaction also provided valuable information.
In initial testing, a prototype might behave differently in a development environment than when implemented in a real home. Some units were installed for a specific trial and then removed afterward. This process distinguished between the initial observation of a product’s use and its sustained application.
Marta recalls changes in details that were not yet clear, such as a component of the food supply. The purpose of the test was to identify those behaviors before increasing the number of units in circulation.
For a product engineering firm, this means preparing for field validation: what needs to be observed, who is using the unit, how issues are reported, and what changes are accepted. A general positive opinion is less valuable than understanding exactly where a specific difficulty arises.
Crowdfunding: validating demand and reviewing the business model.
After years of development, the team needed to assess the actual willingness to buy. Marta highlighted the difference between receiving positive feedback and finding customers.
“I need someone to pay for that”.
Marta Arisa 39:16.
The Kickstarter campaign generated interest, but also presented a challenge. As he explains, a significant portion of the purchases were coming from the United States, while the device and its food supply chain were initially designed for Europe.
The issue wasn’t simply about selling the machine. The model involved providing the consumables, including manufacturing, distribution, and access to each market. The conversation illustrates how a positive commercial signal can reveal an incompatibility with the operation the business is prepared to maintain.
The lesson involves validating the entire business system. Product demand, manufacturing capacity, and consumable delivery must align. An isolated area of interest won’t resolve these dependencies.
Closing the scope to move towards industrialization.
Another key learning from this episode is the difficulty of stopping the introduction of improvements once a product hasn’t yet reached the market. Marta explains that the distance from the customer can fuel a cycle of perfectionism and the addition of new features.
The need to test and evaluate products necessitated prioritizing. Following prototyping and industrialization, the company faced a distinct commercial phase. In November 2024, Marta outlined growth objectives for nearby European markets.
I summarised it as:
“Now is the time to grow”.
Marta Arisa 1:02:16.
For other hardware projects, “closing” a version means defining what it needs to achieve in order to move to the next phase. This decision requires evidence and shared priorities between the business and the technical team. It doesn’t mean considering all future development as finished.
Questions regarding prototyping and the industrialization of hardware.
Why did Kibus develop both a machine and food at the same time?
Because the characteristics of the food affect the dosage, mixing, and cleaning processes. The device needed to function with a specific consumable. The case demonstrates that these conditions must be incorporated into the mechanical design and the overall testing process.
What insights do tests with users who are unfamiliar with the team provide?
They help to observe usage without relying on the opinions of family or friends. Marta describes tests in homes and the collection of specific issues. This information allows for identifying adjustments before scaling up production and distribution.
Does a crowdfunding campaign validate the entire business?
You could provide an indicator of demand, but also reveal problems related to logistics, market, or supply. Kibus needed to sell a device and fulfill its needs. Both parties needed to be viable in the context of the purchases.
Four key learnings for developing a household product.
- Treating the consumable and the device as a system from the outset.
- Include cleaning, restocking, and maintenance as part of the design requirements.
- Testing with real users and recording issues to enable informed decision-making.
- Validate the market, manufacturing, and distribution processes before scaling sales.
In i-mas, the product design, electronic engineering, and industrial assembly They help connect an idea with its creation. If you’re preparing a physical device, you can Please tell us about the intended use and the tests carried out. To move forward, or to finalize the next step.
To continue reading: The design and manufacture of the Citring juicer..
Source of article: Interview with Edgar Guerrero and Marta Arisa on Toque de Ingenio, published on November 11, 2024. The links to the quotes are connected to the video; the development recommendations are a summarised editorial analysis of the case.
