Industrial Designer in Los Angeles. Transforming Concepts into Market-Ready Realities.

SCUBA™ SWINING TODDLER BATH TOY

Turn Bath Time into Fun Adventure!

Brand: Munchkin
Launch: 2017

“Let's go for a dive next bath time”

The Munchkin Scuba Swimming Bath Toy brings underwater bath-time fun, featuring a flapping fin that makes the diver swim through water and a pull-cord headlamp for interactive play. Designed to help toddlers develop hand-eye coordination and cause-and-effect understanding.

Colorful toy figures of a boy and a girl mermaid with speech bubbles saying "안녕?" and "Bonjour".

INSIGHTS

Colorful toy mermaid with orange hair, pink star on head, green and pink dress, pink tail, and smiling face.

“OUR EXISTING MERMAID BATHTOY IS HAVING A TROUBLE. SALES WERE DOWN & NEGATIVE REVIEWS ARE INCREASING. WE NEED A NEW PLAN”

Three colorful plastic toy characters resembling a boy in a blue whale costume, a yellow and orange fish, and a pink octopus, isolated on a white background.

“WE NEED TO INTRODUCE A NEW BATH TOY TARGETED FOR BOYS & GENDER NEUTRAL SKU. WE SHOULD FOCUS ON CREATING A SCUBA CHARACTER”

Colorful animal-shaped rubber toys with round bases, depicting a polar bear and a penguin, set against a plain white background.

“WE HAVE BEEN TRYING HARD TO MODERNIZE OUR BRAND & PRODUCTS. LET’S AIM HIGHER!”

PROCESS

A timeline of deep-sea diving suits from the 17th century to the modern era, with corresponding images and sketches illustrating the evolution of diving technology.

A step-by-step guide on how to assemble a Munchkin mermaid figurine, including technical drawings, parts laid out, tools, and a child playing with the toy in water, with the finished toy packaged in a box.

DEVELOPMENT

Collection of colorful children's toys arranged in a timeline with labels indicating years ago, illustrating a design evolution from an existing mermaid figurine to a fish, submarine, duck, penguin, and other aquatic-themed toys.

RESEARCH
Competitor analysis through customer reviews and purchasing samples to review.

Market research sheet for Disney and TOMY swimming toys, listing toy names, prices, age suitability, positive and negative reviews, and characteristics.

PLANNING
Reviewed existing products and build a strategic planning.

Sketches and a small toy figure of a cartoon girl in a pink dress with green and red details, a character in a yellow and blue costume, a character in a green and gray costume, and a character in a white and blue costume, all with round faces and smiling expressions.

IDEATION
Explored early concepts through hand sketching and Adobe Illustrator.
Special thanks to product design intern Jody Wung.

Technical drawing of a humanoid robot with measurements, showing front, side, and back views.

2D DESIGN
Created detail profile drawing in Adobe Illustrator with dimensions before starting 3D CAD modeling.

Technical drawing of a shoe sole with measurements, showing the sole's shape, heel, and tread pattern.

3D MODELING
Developed 3D CAD models in SolidWorks with manufacturability in mind, optimizing geometry to avoid sharp edges and simplify production.

COLLABORATION WITH ENGINEERING TEAM
Collaborated with mechanical engineers to develop DFM (design for manufacturing) parts.

Three robot figures in gray, white, and yellow, each with interchangeable parts including heads, bodies, and legs, laid out on a white surface.

HANDMADE SCULTURE & 3D PRINTED PROTOTYPES
Collaborated with a hand-sculptor and developed 3D printed prototypes for testing.

A person holds a white balloon with a string attached, submerged in yellow water, while another hand with a black watch gently holds the balloon.

MANAGING SALES SAMPLES
Coordinated with external prototype makers to deliver sales samples for client and internal presentations.

Diagram of a mechanical component showing instructions to reduce the height of the rib at a specific interior location.

IMPROVEMENT
Found out there were some issues for the swim features and further modified design details for an improvement.

Toy figure of a person with a round face, wearing a yellow vest with a red heart on the back, blue pants, and orange fins as feet, with a blue scuba suit, helmet, and a red fire extinguisher on the back.

COLOR-MATERIAL-FINISH
Developed CMF specifications to guide manufacturers in achieving intended color, material, and finish outcomes.

Two Kinder Surprise toys, one with a smiling boy face and the other with a backpack design, standing on a grid cutting mat, surrounded by partially assembled toy parts and tools.

TESTING
Collaborated with engineers to create functional prototypes and swim features were tested.

Close-up of a smiling emoji mug with a yellow face, black eyes, and pink mouth, partially obscured by torn yellow paper with PANTONE color labels and weight information.

MANAGING PRE-PRODUCTION SAMPLES
Reviewed and validated pre-production samples to confirm design intent and manufacturing readiness prior to production.

FEATURE

Simply pull the headlamp and let the scuba boy swim around in your bathtub.

Animated cartoon character wearing a blue and yellow life jacket, orange flippers, and a helmet, floating in the water and releasing a red and white buoy with a cord.

Colorful toy rocket with a figurine wearing a yellow shirt, blue pants, and orange fins, splashing into water.

Disassembled toy submarine with blue, white, yellow, and orange parts, including a figure of a boy inside, a propeller, and screws on a white background.

Packaging of a Munchkin scuba swimming bath toy featuring a smiling diver character with orange flippers, yellow life vest, and a blue helmet with an orange and white light on top, with a photo of a young child holding the toy on the package.

Colorful mermaid bath toy with a smiling cartoon girl character, yellow hair, pink star accessory, and pink tail, packaged in a plastic and cardboard blister pack.

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