Showing posts with label design. Show all posts
Showing posts with label design. Show all posts

2012-06-14

Kinetic Creatures Cardboard Robots

Kinetic Creatures Cardboard Robots | TechNewsDaily.com


A designer-artist couple from Portland, Ore., figured out how to create walking robotic animals — an elephant, a rhino and a giraffe — using nothing but paper.


Lucas Ainsworth, an industrial designer working at Intel, and Alyssa Hamel, a public-school art teacher, took their inspiration from Dutch artist Theo Jansen. His Strandbeest (beach animal) creations are giant mechanical contraptions — in part made from waste, including plastic bottles — that harness wind power to walk on their own.



What are Kinetic Creatures? | Kinetic Creatures

The kits were prototyped, developed and are currently made using a laser cutter, but it takes over two hours and expensive laser-time to build each kit. Now that the designs are done, we are launching a Kickstarter project to cast the patterns onto die-cut-tools at a local cardboard manufacturing facility in Portland, OR.  Using a die-press, the time-per-kit comes way down. That means we will be able to share the Kinetic Creatures, using sustainable materials and 100% local manufacturing, with hundreds of Makers and art students.

Kinetic Creatures by Lucas Ainsworth & Alyssa Hamel — Kickstarter


Kinetic Creatures also...

encourage people to build with their hands, minds and imagination. Use sustainable and recyclable materials and support local manufacturing.

Kinetic Creatures takes a complex mechanical linkage, popularized in Theo Jansen’s Strandbeest, and makes it accessible through an easy assembly and friendly cardboard form.

A collaboration between Alyssa- a Visual Arts Teacher and Artist and Lucas- an Industrial Designer, the Kinetic Creatures are intended to encourage building and thinking creatively at home and in the classroom.


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2012-05-29

The 'Circle' Printer Concept

Circle Printer Concept » Geeky Gadgets

Designer Yang Jae Wook has created an innovative take on the humble printer, re-designing the traditional rectangular design in to something a little more rounded.

Circle concept reinvents the printer - PC & Tech Authority

Posted on Yanko Design, mock ups show that this "continuous printer" takes up less space and looks infinitely better than regular printers – all good stuff considering we no longer print off every email we receive.

The sheet of paper slots in the top of Circle and then rotates around the vertical drum before it's ejected out the other side. It's not a particularly revolutionary mechanism – pun intended – but no-one seems to have applied the idea in this way before.


Circle – A Continuous Printer by Yang Jae Wook » Yanko Design


One of the most annoying computer peripheral on anyone’s desk is the printer. It’s noisy, it vibrates and it takes up so much space! Which is why I’m all for innovations that look at minimizing size without losing functionality. ‘Circle’ is one such attempt that has impressed me. One look and you won’t even realize that it’s a printer, looks more like humidifier or a fancy pot. Wish that manufacturers would look in this direction too; HP are you listening?



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2012-04-19

The Sandman an Electric Vehicle backed by Human Propulsion

Sandman | Environmentally conscious vehicle


Meet the Sandman. It's the official name of this four-wheeler, which is unlike any Holden panel-van we've ever known.

According to its designer, 20 year-old Slovakian Adam Danko, the single-occupancy vehicle was designed for young, active, environmentally-conscious people.

The Sandman's design recently won Europe's Allivision09 competition, a contest that focused on "Ideas for a Better World" and attracted about 650 entries.


Allivision09 Competition: the winners - Car Body Design

The Sandman is a type of transportation vehicle targeted to young and active people, who like sports and need an affordable and practical car. It is powered by a combination of human propulsion and an electric engine, which helps to pedal along.

"The winning project best met all criteria of the competition. It’s about clean design, which is very sovereign in its expression," commented Václav Capouch, Škoda Auto designer and one of the jury members of the Allivision09 competition.


One of the finer points about the Sandman is that it is both a city vehicle and an off-road alternative with all-terrain suspension fitted to both the front and rear.

A pair of joystick-style levers alongside the seat steer the Sandman's mountain-bike (or perhaps tractor) inspired tyres through the terrain.

For safety reasons the seat is adaptable and it comes with a seatbelt to keep you strapped in whether you're going over moguls or speed humps. The cockpit also houses an LCD readout screen.


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2012-03-05

Audi Visions OLED Technology




Berlitz is one of the development engineers who have helped put Audi in the lead in modern automobile lighting technology. LED daytime running lights and headlights are development milestones; the next step forward will be OLED. Displays using this technique have already reached series production maturity in the electronic industry. Berlitz and his team cooperate closely with Audi Design on utilizing OLEDs as exterior lighting for the automobile

More details and a video of Audi's concept OLED designs

Audi actually has 3 OLED based designs. The first is rather simple - rear lights that are made from four small red OLED panels, and a flashing turn indicator made from 8 panels.

The second OLED application is covering the car with stripes made of hundreds of small triangular OLEDs. This is beautiful, and also enables the car "to be identified in a whole series of ways that can be constantly varied".
The third application is the rear-mounted "swarm" - which makes tiny OLED lighting panels into a large display.


Audi Visions OLED Technology

The Audi roadmap for introducing OLEDs to series production will take several years to put into effect. At the current level of development, the new diodes only withstand low currents and the acceptable temperature range ends at about 80 degrees Celsius. OLEDs will make an appearance as rear lights in the relatively near future; for brake lights, which have to be about five times brighter, a few more years will elapse. But Berlitz can also visualize white OLEDs being used for daytime running lights and side lights.

The biggest target of all – especially for Audi’s designers – are three-dimensional OLEDs. The first prototypes are now appearing as part of a project with public support. They are fascinating: delicate, almost weightless ring-shaped sources of light, installed on various levels in the rear light units of an Audi TT.

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2012-02-26

OLPC's XO 3 a $100 Solar-Powered Tablet

The Next List: Yves Behar wants design to change the world - Feb. 24, 2012

A $100 solar-powered tablet is coming soon

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- You may not have heard of Yves Behar, but chances are you've seen his designs.

He's the visionary behind the popular Jawbone Jambox sound system, Herman Miller's Sayl chairs, Swarovski chandeliers, and even New York City's free condoms.

The Swiss designer, now based in San Francisco, has plenty of commercial hits. That gives him the financial freedom to pursue his belief that design can change the world. It's a passion he put to work on his most famous project, One Laptop Per Child, better known as "the $100 laptop."

Now he's nearing completion of the sequel: A $100 tablet. It's rugged, solar-powered, and designed for children in the world's poorest countries.




Gizmo - OLPC XO 3.0 Tablet - YouTube

The first tablet from One Laptop Per Child gets unveiled! It is a pretty nice device and should cost $100. It features a very low power consuming Marvell ARM processor, up to 1GHz speed, 500MB of RAM, USB ports, 4GB of storage. It can also run Android, Sugar OS, even Linux.



OLPC's XO 3 tablet uses 1GHz ARM SoC to run Sugar Linux or Android - News - Linux for Devices


One Laptop per Child (OLPC) demonstrated a "fully functional" version of its long-delayed XO 3.0 tablet, equipped with a 1GHz Marvell Armada PXA618 processor running Sugar Linux or Android 3.x. Like OLPC's XO 2 laptop, the eight-inch tablet is aimed at educational systems in developing nations, and it will feature an optional sunlight-readable Pixel Qi touchscreen plus the ability to draw power from an optional solar panel or crank charger.
[...]
The XO 3.0 tablet will feature the 1GHz Marvell Armada PXA618 SoC, a member of Marvell's PXA610 line of ARMv7 processors, and will also include an Avastar Wi-Fi SoC, say Marvell and OLPC. The XO 3 ships with a standard LCD touchscreen or an optional Pixel Qi low-power, sunlight-readable display, say the partners. Other features are said to include a "unique" charging circuitry that can be charged directly by solar panels, hand cranks, and other alternative power sources. Alternative power has been a longtime goal of OLPC that wasn't implemented in earlier XO designs.

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2011-04-09

Citroen's Evomobil and UFO Concept Cars by Ora-Ïto

Milan Design Week: Evo Mobil And UFO By Ora-Ïto For Citroën - Bornrich



During the Milan Design Week from April 12-17, 2011, Ora-Ïto will highlight its ‘Mutation’ family, which includes the Evo Mobil and the new UFO concept car for Citroën. Ora-Ïto has considered the codes, the DNA and the industry philosophy to modernize these two monumental sculptures.

Evo Mobil - Citroën | Ora-ïto




Evo Mobil - Citroën

On the edge of the hy­poth­e­sis and the con­tem­po­rary art, this hy­brid ob­ject is based on the ful­fill­ment of child’s dream with an ob­vi­ous com­mit­ment for the ecol­o­gy. In the vo­cab­u­lary of Ora-ïto, we find a re­al as­ser­tion ex­press­ing and re­al­iz­ing the imag­i­na­tion. In­spired by the in­no­va­tive “Trac­tion Avant” from Cit­roën and based on his de­sign­er’s com­pe­tences, Ora-ïto re­flects on the er­go­nomics of the in­te­ri­or of this first mo­d­ule. He has worked on the codes, the DNA and the phi­lo­so­phy of the car in­dus­try to mod­ern­ize it with the ex­ist­ing pos­si­bil­i­ties and tech­nolo­gies.
[...]

UFO - Citroën | Ora-ïto

UFO - Citroën

Ora-ïto has na­t­u­ral­ly imagined other mo­d­ules to join the ini­tial pro­ject. A cont­i­nu­i­ty of the imag­i­na­tion al­low­ing to mul­ti­p­ly ac­tions and give another re­flec­tion to “Evo­mo­bil”. He has cre­at­ed «UFO» which is in­spired by an icon­ic car from Cit­roën. The DS mod­el com­mon­ly used by the presi­dent is now en­rolled in­to the «ge­net­ic trans­for­ma­tions” from Ora-Ito artis­tic vi­sion. The ve­hi­cle is based on the fu­ture of tran­s­port mixed with one of the most fa­mous cars in the world.
[...]

Air Sculptures:


Ora-Ïto has also planned a monumental installation over the 476 meters of the Via Montenapoleone, one of Milan’s main streets. Inspired from the Citroën’s DS logo in 2D, the designer has created a 3D volume to represent these 8-meters architectural structures. These pieces of art seem to be floating in the air.

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2011-03-11

The Uncanny Valley

Uncanny valley - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The uncanny valley is a hypothesis regarding the field of robotics.[1] The hypothesis holds that when robots and other facsimiles of humans look and act almost like actual humans, it causes a response of revulsion among human observers. The "valley" in question is a dip in a proposed graph of the positivity of human reaction as a function of a robot's lifelikeness.


A number of design principles have been proposed for avoiding the uncanny valley:
  • Design elements should match in human realism. [...]
  • Appearance and behavior should match ability. [...]
  • Human facial proportions and photorealistic texture should only be used together.  [...]





If you want something non-human to emote like a human, you can’t just slap human eyes on it and call it a day.


When cartoony characters move like humans, you get that cheap rotoscope/mo-cap look, but when real people move like cartoons you get the Black Hole Sun music video;


Cartoon characters with human skin stretched over them just look horrible:


Most Realistic Android Yet: Have We Passed the Bottom of the Uncanny Valley? | Discoblog | Discover Magazine



His name is Geminoid DK, and yes it’s a he: Henrik Scharfe of Denmark’s Aalborg University worked with Japan’s Kokoro entertainment company to create this avatar of himself. The android holds the distinction of being the first Geminoid modeled after a non-Japanese person (it’s also the first facial-haired bot of the lot).



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2010-12-21

The YikeBike Electric Folding Bike

YikeBike - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

YikeBike

The YikeBike mini-farthing is a type of folding bicycle released on 2 September 2009 at EUROBIKE. It weighs 9.8 kilograms (22 lb) and when folded, it is small enough to fit in a backpack. The YikeBike was invented by Grant Ryan and designed by a team in New Zealand over 5 years. It is the smallest and lightest electric folding bicycle in the world.[1]


YikeBike Electric 'mini-farthing' Goes On Sale For $3,600 - Born Rich



The super-light electric folding bike takes around 20 minutes for an 80 percent charge. A full charge takes 40 minutes. The YikeBike comes with one charger, one charger cord, a carrying strap and a toolkit with tire inflation adapter and allen keys.


YikeBike - The world's first super light electric folding bike. | Urban Freedom


Awards and Guinness record for YikeBike

YikeBike, the compact electric bike named by Time Magazine as one of the top inventions of 2009, has won the Supreme Award for Product Design and Gold Award for Consumer Product at the 2010 Best Design Awards. YikeBike also won first place in the International Design Awards “Urban Sustainable Design” category and has been included in the Guinness Book of World records as the most compact electric bike in the world. It has also won a 2011 iF product design award.
[...]



Collected from: YikeBike






Collected from: YouTube - YikeBike [HD]

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2010-12-07

The Jaguar C-X75 Concept Car

Jaguar C-X75 on Cool Hunting

Elegance, power and sustainability combined in Jaguar's 75th anniversary concept car





Jaguar C-X75 Concept Car Revealed at the Paris Auto Show - News - RoadandTrack.com



As part of its ongoing celebration of its 75th anniversary, Jaguar unveiled the C-X75 supercar concept at the Paris Auto Show. This Jag is a unique 2-seater that blends electric power with gas turbine technology.





The C-X75 – At a Glance

DESIGN – A celebration of 75 years of beautiful, fast Jaguars which points the way to a new design language

PERFORMANCE – 0-100kph (62mph) in 3.4 seconds, top speed of 330kph (205mph) and 80-145kph (50-90mph) in just 2.3 seconds

PROPULSION SYSTEM – A Range-Extended Electric Vehicle (RE-EV) using a unique combination of electric motors and micro gas-turbines to increase its range to 900km (560 miles)

EMISSIONS – A zero tailpipe emissions range of 110km (68 miles) while running solely on battery power

SUSTAINABILITY – By capitalizing on its plug-in charge capability the C-X75 will produce just 28 grams of CO2 per kilometer on the EU test cycle

CONSTRUCTION – Jaguar's advanced lightweight aluminum construction techniques provide great weight-saving and economy benefits. Additionally, up to 50 percent of the metal content is recycled

ACTIVE AERODYNAMICS – Drag coefficient of 0.32Cd and active downforce created through the use of an underbody Venturi

THEATER – A dramatic entrance to the car is created by striking electro-luminescent wire lighting which alters to enhance the driving experience

UNIQUE USER INTERFACE – The touchscreen Jaguar Co-Pilot interface manages the information workload by predicting the needs of the driver

BESPOKE MATERIALS – Interior seamlessly blends traditional, hand-tailored leathers with textured neoprene panels and two different aluminum finishes


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2010-09-06

Drzach & Suchy -- Magic Shadows

DrzachSuchy.ch




*Drzach
architect, works in Basel
studied at ETH Zurich and at GSD Harvard University
worked in New York, Berlin, Zurich and Basel
combines art and design
creates furniture and portable display spaces
*Suchy
cryptographer, software engineer, works in Zurich
studied at ETH Zurich and at Carnegie Mellon University,
worked in Zurich, Pittsburgh PA, and New Brunswick NJ
experiments with holograms and Fourier transforms
Collected from: DrzachSuchy.ch

YouTube - shadow clouds

An introduction to shadow clouds.
For more info see http://DrzachSuchy.ch/shadow-cloud


Collected from: YouTube - shadow clouds

YouTube - thru religion


A spatial object by Drzach & Suchy, based on shadow clouds.
For more info see http://DrzachSuchy.ch/shadow-cloud


Collected from: YouTube - thru religion

The new materiality of shadows

Picture puzzles were used by artists as early as the middle ages, in order for example to convey a hidden message which is only revealed to the observer from a specific perspective – in other words the observer's position determines the nature of the perception.

Drzach & Suchy's artistic work is based on a further fundamental observation, which is independent of the point of vision of the observer: the shadow which is cast by a physical object is dependent on the intensity and location of the light source and the shape of the object.
A shadow casting panel by Drzach & Suchy: depending on the incidence of light we see either Le Corbusier or Mies van der Rohe.


Shadow cloud: how it works

[...]

The idea of shadow clouds can be summarized as follows: the shadow cast by flat, thin elements depends on their relation to the direction of illumination: elements perpendicular to illumination cast clear shadows, while the shadows of elements parallel to illumination are practically invisible. Moreover, the elements perpendicular to the illumination can be arbitrary shifted along the illumination without changing the overall shadow cast by all the elements. This allows for a random, cloud-like placement of elements in space.


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2010-06-18

The MetroNaps EnergyPod

Nap in style, Thats how google does it anyway!



A reporter found a alien like pod while visiting  Google HQ’s in Mountain View. The Contraption you see, is a Mountain View Nap Pod or the EnergyPod, like they call it.


Googlers Take Naps In Bizarre Contraption


How does Google keep its employees fresh for long days and nights of working? With sleep pods.


FT reporter Richard Waters was in Google's Mountain View headquarters yesterday and snapped this photo of an anonymous Googler catching some rest. When Richard walked past the pod later, he said a pair of female legs were sticking out from the pod.

This contraption is a MetroNap EnergyPod. Metronap says it "harnesses science and NASA technology" to deliver a refreshing nap for users.


 Click here for more pictures and information on the EnergyPod


The EnergyPod


The MetroNaps EnergyPod solves a contemporary problem: most work spaces do not offer their employees a place to rejuvenate. The result is that people seek rest in places not intended for it: at their desk, in a conference room, a parked car or even the bathroom.

Based on years of research and thousands of design hours, the MetroNaps EnergyPod is the perfect place to quickly and effectively enhance your energy. Designed to be installed almost anywhere, the EnergyPod is a self-contained productivity device.


EnergyPod


Key Features & Benefits
  • Room within a room
  • Inbuilt Bose sound system
  • Contemporary design
  • Zero gravity technology
  • Controlled nap timer
  • Gentle waking sequence
  • Privacy visor

Sources
Nap in style, Thats how google does it anyway!
http://igyaan.in/2010/06/18/nap-in-style-thats-how-google-does-it-anyway/
Googlers Take Naps In Bizarre Contraption
http://www.businessinsider.com/google-sleep-pods-2010-6
MetroNaps / The EnergyPod
http://www.metronaps.com/mn/the_metronaps_service/the_energypod
MetroNaps. Fatigue Management, accredited training and napping solutions for safety critical workplaces
http://www.metronaps.com.au/australia_files/products/energypod.aspx

Related
40 Googlewinks | Tech Blog | FT.com
http://blogs.ft.com/techblog/2010/06/40-googlewinks/
Google Employees Sleep In Alien-Like Pods
http://gizmodo.com/5566465/google-employees-sleep-in-alien+like-pods
The MetroNaps EnergyPod: For the Serious Power-Napper
http://www.luxist.com/2007/05/10/the-metronaps-energypod-for-the-serious-power-napper/
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2010-04-30

SUPERBIEN 2D/3D Animated Graphic Designs

Envision: Step Into The Sensory Box
An experience-based video mapping designed by the agency and the Department Superbien New Media Agency / Auditorium. The public was invited into a cube and discover an artistic vision of the tagline of the event: Transforming the Mobile Experience.
clipped from vimeo.com
Lighting Design and Light Art Magazine Image Patachromo by Superbien patachromo6
PATACHROMO™ is a light installation whose animated content is based on the concepts of CHROMOtherapy which is seen through PATAphysics prism. This program is presented through a sequence of 2 minute-long light animation slots. It enables you to tackle the wintry greyness with serenity thanks to the exposure of your chakras to a healing light given out by a 6.65 sq meter LED support.
clipped from vimeo.com

Street Art

The Cloud by SuperBien

Le-nuage-04_bd-550x366
Friends of SuperBien collective send us some pics and a video of "The cloud", a nice atmospheric installation they just did in Paris during the Nuit Blanche 2009.
clipped from vimeo.com
blog it
Sources:
  1. Envision: Step Into The Sensory Box - Simplicity in form with dimensional color to create the sublime.. | CreativeApplications.Net
  2. ENVISION : Step into the sensory box on Vimeo
  3. Patachromo by Superbien | Enlighter Magazine
  4. PATACHROMO™ on Vimeo
  5. Everyone is an art director *Art *Photography *Design *Music *Cinema tchi tcha *Fashion *Street art: Street Art
  6. SUPERBIEN présente « LE NUAGE » on Vimeo
Related:
  1. SUPERBIEN Alex Mestrot & Tom Chosson
  2. SUPERBIEN on Vimeo
  3. Mobile World Congress | Global Conference for Mobile Technology and Business
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