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An Add-On Kitchen Drawer and Worksurface

Core 77 - Wed, 2024-03-27 23:10

For those that don't have enough storage space in their kitchen, here's an add-on countertop drawer with an additional pull-out surface.

Conveniently, the drawer and the pull-out surface can be vertically swapped to suit your set-up.




With an interior height of 9cm (3.5") the drawer's not massive, but it's good enough for storing cutlery, foil on rolls, teabags, etc.

Made of powder-coated steel, the drawer is manufactured by Japanese housewares brand Yamazaki. It retails for ¥10,925 (USD $72).


Crowdfunding Smash: This Stair-Climbing Robot Vacuum

Core 77 - Wed, 2024-03-27 23:10

Last June we showed you this Migo Ascender, a stair-climbing robot vacuum:

That's an animation, of course. But now developer Migo Robotics has finally produced the real deal, with both vacuuming and mopping functionality.

On floors it behaves like an ordinary robot vacuum. When it vacuums stairs, however, the internal roller rotates 90 degrees and the unit moves laterally.

The company says the unit can climb a broad range of stairway types:

In between cleanings, the camera- and LIDAR-equipped unit docks itself in a cooler-sized recharging station. The dock also automatically empties the dustbin and changes the water, the company says. (You, of course, have to change the dock's dust bags, refill the removable clean water tank, and empty the removable dirty water tank.)

They also claim the unit can cover 500 square meters (5,380 square feet) on a single charge.

While I'm impressed by the engineering that went into this, I'm skeptical of a $1,500 product this complicated from a company that hasn't yet established a track record. How much mopping can it really do, with a 6-oz tank? How well does the automatic dustbin emptying work? Where do you take the thing if it breaks?

As usual, my skepticism is not shared by Kickstarter backers, who have propelled the Ascender to $1.6-million-plus and counting, with 35 days left to pledge at press time. Perhaps they were lured by the discount: Though it's meant to retail for $1,500, the Kickstarter offerings start at $850, with an estimated July delivery.

Here's a demo video, if you're interested:


A Swiss Design for a Space-Saving Locker Room

Core 77 - Wed, 2024-03-27 23:10

A Swiss company called Zippsafe has designed a new type of locker room.

Intended to cut down on space needs by businesses, Zippsafe's design consists of narrow textile "lockers"—really, a sort of side-access garment bag, containing a plastic valet—that take up far less space than traditional metal lockers.

"Retractable hangers and side pockets neatly organize belongings. With two interior compartments in each bag and a separate shoe drawer at the bottom, clean and dirty items are easy to segregate."

There is a minimal bench surface provided for donning/doffing shoes.

Despite the narrow amount of space allotted to each bag, the company says they can accommodate bulky items like helmets. (The bags simply expand into their neighbors.)

The zippers electronically lock and unlock via RFID cards carried by the employees.


My first thought was, would I want to zip a wet rain jacket into one of these and leave it there all day? The company's solution: "Ventilation is built into the Zippsafe system and continually circulates air through the lockers, drying damp clothing and shoes, and reducing odors. Active carbon filtration in the ventilation system lowers humidity and impedes pathogen growth." On that latter note, they also say the bags can be removed for cleaning, though it's not clear what the procedure is; do these go into a washing machine?

Zippsafe launched in Europe eight years ago, targeting office buildings, department stores, industrial facilities and healthcare facilities. Having found success there, they're now making a push to expand into America.

Here's the system in action:


Ncore’s Not Your Granny’s Coherent NoC (Network-on-Chip)

Design News - Wed, 2024-03-27 16:42
Things have evolved beyond all expectation since I designed my first ASIC.

Bridges and Cargo Ships Don’t Mix

Design News - Wed, 2024-03-27 05:00
The collapse of Baltimore’s Key Bridge early Tuesday morning was not the first time a bridge fell after being hit by a ship.

Alternative Form Factors: Non-Wrist-Based Watches

Core 77 - Tue, 2024-03-26 22:29

Designed for "people who live or work in environments where they don't want something on their wrist [but] still want immediate access to the time," these Clip Watches are by the Ohio-based Dakota Watch Company.

They might not appeal to office dwellers, but for someone working in manufacturing, where wearing a wristwatch might be a safety no-no, they make sense. For that environment, the Cage Clip line comes with a protective aluminum cage that can be screwed on.



I think they could have done a better job with the cage, which to my eye greatly reduces legibility, but we live in the era of branding.

Their Ana Digi Miniclip model is aimed at outdoorsfolk and contains a compass.

There's also this digital Digiclip version.

As for where on the body they're meant to be worn, I suppose a belt loop. The orientation of the watch face makes sense, in that you'd be grabbing the object and flipping it towards you to read the time.

It might be neat if you could rotate the face to choose your own orientation, so that in a base camp setting it could serve as a tiny wall clock. But I suppose that would add a level of manufacturing complexity that would drive the cost up.

Speaking of cost, the Cage Clip models run $75; the Digiclip, $55; and the Ana Digi Miniclip is $70.

Core77 Weekly Roundup (3-18-24 to 3-22-24)

Core 77 - Tue, 2024-03-26 22:29

Here's what we looked at this week:

The Yasuhiro TV craftsman makes workshop jigs with beautiful forms.

This week MSCHF released these 2x4 work boots, which are all outsole.

Max Lamb's deceiving-looking 005 Lounge Chair looks both uncomfortable and comfortable.

Cheng Chang, an ID student in the RCA's Design Products program, designed this stabilizing robotic tail for zero-gravity environments.

The Aerocart: A geese-inspired towed cargo glider that would save massive amounts of fuel.

This Unu "cat tree system" looks great…in the renderings.

The Canvas, a lamp designed for recording your sketching with a smartphone.

The Bowlus Rivet: A self-propelled camping trailer that you can park by remote control!

Lincoln has introduced "Digital Scent" cartridges to tune the smell of the interior of the new Nautilus.

Some outside-the-box thinking with this Takibi Stand, a space-saving Japanese alternative to the barbecue grill.

The Wildo Fold-A-Cup is a classic 45-year-old Swedish design for a folding cup.

Form follows function with these lantern hangers, designer unknown.

Trolling brands by democratizing access to color: With his Tiff*** Blue paint, British artist Stuart Semple takes on luxury brand Tiffany & Co.

These eye-catching, handmade-in-Japan outdoor tools are by 0/0 Neru Design Works and Asimocraft.

Here are some behind-the-scenes adjustable shelving designs by Laurent Deroo Architecte.

Great Industrial Design student work: Physical Tools for Digital People, by ID student Supreetha Krishnan.

Form follows function with this early design for an adjustable industrial task lamp.

Here's how SpaceX's crazy high-speed astronaut escape chute is deployed and used.

Industrial Design case study: Thrive improves Irwin's drill bits.


Industrial Design Case Study: Thrive Improves Irwin's Drill Bits

Core 77 - Tue, 2024-03-26 22:29

"Solving two problems at once in a single, hybrid product," writes Atlanta-based industrial design consultancy Thrive, "means challenging the status quo at every point—from performance expectations to manufacturing to marketing." Here we'll look at how this philosophy was applied in their case study for Irwin's Speedbor drill bits.

MAKING A BIT THAT'S MORE THAN THE SUM OF ITS BITELegacy tool company Irwin was looking to enter the wood-boring accessory market with a competitive edge. The problem? The category consisted of two types of bits: flat and auger, and neither offered a strong point of entry. That's when THRIVE stepped in to add a new product profile to the mix.

BRING NEW THINKING TO OLD MARKETSThe wood-boring category was primed for a shake-up. Flat drill bit sales were declining and auger bits were too specialized a category for a newcomer to break into it easily. We began looking for a sweet spot between the two product types that would introduce fresh expectations and set Irwin apart.

GET INTO THE HEAD (AND HANDS) OF THE USERConventional wisdom suggested that faster drill time was better, so Irwin's competitors were in a constant race for drill bit superiority based solely on speed. We questioned that wisdom, querying contractors of all types to see what really made a difference on the job. We discovered that faster wasn't the issue—effort was. With hundreds of holes to drill each day, arm fatigue was a huge problem.

CHANGE THE CONVERSATION AROUND QUALITYDespite our findings, the feeling internally and in the market was pretty set: faster always equaled better. To shift this mindset, we developed a testing protocol to compare competitors' claims. It turned out that "faster" only meant 50 seconds a day or .5 seconds a hole gained. The current gains were doing little to help work sites win.TAP THE BEST OF BOTH WORLDSReturning to current options, we found that both types of traditional bits had their issues. Flat bits were cheaper, but were slower because they required more effort to push through wood. Auger bits were easier to use, but generally more expensive. We combined the two to capture the best of both and came up with the Speedbor bit: screw tip and auger head with the body of a flat tip. The result: a faster bit that also immensely reduced effort and hand fatigue.


REINVENT THE MANUFACTURING PROCESS

Since our design was more complex than previous product types, typical modes of manufacturing proved expensive. We traveled the world searching for a cost-effective process and found it in South America. There we pioneered the process, then adapted it for mass manufacture in Asia to keep costs competitive with traditional drill bits.

CHANGE THE MARKET FOREVERIn the past, wood-boring bits had been a quiet, unremarkable staple on hardware store shelves for decades. Focus groups that used the Speedbor bit, however, were so effusive that it caught the attention of both of the U.S.'s largest home improvement retailers. Each incorporated the product into their house line of tools. Thus, through research and ingenuity, we created a distinct, hybrid product that improved speed, ease-of-use, manufacturing practices and the standard for excellence in an otherwise staid market.


Behind-the-Scenes Adjustable Shelving Designs by Laurent Deroo Architecte

Core 77 - Tue, 2024-03-26 22:29

Parisian architecture firm Laurent Deroo Architecte designs a lot of interiors and fixtures for French fashion brand A.P.C.'s stores. These fixtures can be seen by anyone who walks into the store. But unseen by the public is this cool hideaway shelving system, also designed by LDA, at A.P.C.'s headquarters in Paris.

It's a 15-meter-long wall of folding shelves, with built-in lighting, that the company uses when deciding how to display new collections.

Here's how they get it out of the way when it's not needed:

Made of ash, plywood and steel, it was fabricated by French design/build company PEF.

Here's another adjustable shelving system LDA designed:

Pretty cool design! And not attributed to a client, so this one may just have been part of LDA's design process.

Start Small and Find the Fastest Change To Create Impact

Core 77 - Tue, 2024-03-26 22:29

The Core77 Design Awards Interaction category includes interactive content and user interface design for websites, mobile devices and experiential installations. Examples include: software, mobile apps, interactive projections, products with embedded user interface, animations, simulations, and robotics.

The Apps & Platforms category evaluates web or mobile screen-based software programs designed for user-friendliness. Examples include: mobile apps, websites, computer programs.

Stephanie Aaron, Vice President and Design Lead, J.P. Morgan Chase.

As a Vice President and design lead at J.P. Morgan Chase, Stephanie Aaron focuses on making things simpler for employees and customers. She recently became the first designer to join an innovation team and is excited to use that platform to teach people "how to be more innovative in their product creation and build a pipeline of ideas generated by our employees who are so knowledgeable about our business and customers."

Prior to joining J.P. Morgan Chase, Stephanie worked with several other large financial firms as well as the New York Federal Reserve. For more than a decade, she ran her own design firm, serving clients such as The American Museum of Natural History, Citibank, and Barnes & Noble. In addition to her day job, the native New Yorker serves as North America regional coordinator for IxDA and enjoys reading and spending time with her 62-pound pit bull or kayaking on the Hudson River.

Stephanie cites "the degradation of design education" as her biggest concern for the design industry. She holds both a BFA (from the Cooper Union) and MFA (in Interaction Design from the School of Visual Arts) but finds that many designers' education today consists of little beyond short-term boot camps. And, as she said, "even those boot camps are struggling to survive. It takes more than a few weeks or months to acquire a skill and learn how to apply it, play with it, and get deep into usage and understanding."

To entrants in the Core77 Design Awards, Stephanie's suggestion is to start small, and find the smallest, fastest change that will create an impact. "Understand the business goals as well as the user goals for your products and make sure that they are not in conflict," she advised. "Have metrics that you can use to demonstrate the success of your project."


Tesselate Studio won the Interaction category in 2023 for the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.

The 2023 Core77 Design Awards winner in the Interaction category was "Tower of Faces: Augmented Reality Experience," created by Tessellate Studio for the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.

Peekabook | A Magic Portal Into Creative Imagination won the Apps & Platforms category for 2023.

The winner in the Apps & Platforms category was "Peekabook | A Magic Portal Into Creative Education" by STUCKMADE PTE LTD.

Our jurors want to see your ideas for innovating and simplifying the way we work and live. Submit your entry to the Core77 Design Awards today.






Form Follows Function: Early Design for an Adjustable Industrial Task Lamp

Core 77 - Tue, 2024-03-26 22:29

You've perhaps seen Dyson's Solarcycle lamp, which is adjustable in a Cartesian fashion to provide light exactly where you want it.


It was probably inspired by this early-20th-century design for an industrial task lamp, produced by the Faries Manufacturing Co. of Decatur, Illinois. It's pure form-follows-function.

Both the horizontal and vertical members were designed to slide within the connector, allowing the user to adjust the height and horizontal projection of the light.



The lamp is made of brass. My guess is it was painted red at some point after it had been removed from the factory in which it was used; paint on metal doesn't make much sense for parts meant to slide over one another.


This other version, also by Faries, can be seen in what was likely the original finish.

Note that the different position of the bulb and socket in this design necessitated adding a gooseneck.

It also has an added feature lacking in the painted model: A handy ring up top for moving the lamp.

The two lamps above are being sold by antiques dealer Industrial Artifacts, at the individual links above. Asking price is $1,250 for the painted one and $1,835 for the gooseneck. I'm in the wrong line of work.

Genesis Moves To the ‘Next Level’ With the Neolun Electric SUV and Magma Hot Rods

Design News - Tue, 2024-03-26 20:33
Genesis unveils a model positioned against the very best and introduces its new Magma performance brand.

Top Trends in Robotics for 2024

Design News - Tue, 2024-03-26 19:50
Two robotics organizations lay out the developments in robotics that we can expect through the coming year.

3 More Commonly Overlooked Techniques for Developing Reliable Firmware

Design News - Tue, 2024-03-26 17:40
Here are 3 more tips to help you develop more-reliable firmware.

AMD Targets Edge Apps to Strengthen Its FPGA Portfolio

Design News - Tue, 2024-03-26 15:48
Latest FPGAs offer high I/O density and interfacing flexibility for edge-connected sensors, cameras.

Top 20 Engineering Schools by Salary

Design News - Tue, 2024-03-26 11:02
Do you see your alma mater here? There are new schools in the 2024 listings.

Great Industrial Design Student Work: DIY Filming Tools

Core 77 - Mon, 2024-03-25 22:20

Here's a wonderful project by ID student Supreetha Krishnan, done while pursuing her Master's at the RCA in London. The project was done as part of their Object Mediated Interactions course.

While I'm not sure if social media has a net-positive influence on society, I can't deny that access to it should be democratized. That is the aim of this project.

Krishnan hails from Chennai, India, where she earned her undergrad in ID at the National Institute of Design in Ahmedabad.

Physical Tools for Digital People

The Filming Tools

Physical Tools for Digital People is a set of DIY filming tools for content creators in India to understand the reward mechanisms within social media algorithms. Through the use of cardboard, objects found in local stores and tutorial videos, the project allows creators to overcome the disadvantages they face due to the lack of resource and knowledge.While social media has empowered a number of content creators from non-urban backgrounds in India to gain income, independence and fame, the TikTok ban in 2020 made it evident that creators can be stripped of this income and power overnight. In light of the digital bias present in social media alternatives that have replaced TikTok, there is a need to empower creators from rural communities through media literacy and technological access to take back control over these platforms.As these algorithms continue to be trained to prefer high quality, high production-value content, how can we democratise the process of filmmaking to ensure these spaces remain diverse and inclusive?Social Media in India


Screen Captures of Content Creators from India and China

With the introduction of 'Digital India' across the state, access to affordable internet, cheaper phones and content in regional languages was been made available. This has enabled a number of citizens from tier 2, tier 3 cities and rural India to participate on social media platforms and contribute to the creator economy.In 2020, the Indian Government banned the use of Tiktok. This unilateral decision affected a number of Tiktok users who were dependent on the app. A majority of whom are 18-35 years old from Tier-2 and tier-3 cities. Tiktok's success could be attributed to its simple interface that overcame a language barrier, its library of regional music, easy editing tools and capacity to function on low internet speeds. These were features that other platforms (Instagram, YouTube, Facebook) were missing. Insta's 'Reels' displayed a number of biases that could leave content creators from marginalised backgrounds disadvantaged. Internet nationalism and the restricted access to social media in India is not an isolated incident but global occurrence that often goes unquestioned.Democratising Filming ToolsSocial media platforms rely on user-generated content and have been successful in decentralising content creation. However in order to cater to urban audiences, the algorithms display a preference to movie like, high quality, heavily curated content that requires special and expensive equipment in turn reducing the number of people who can participate and the diversity on the platforms.
Through the use of recycled cardboard and other packaging a number of low tech versions of the existing filming tools commonly used by creators were designed. Each filming tool is accompanied by a instructable that explains a certain aspect and reward mechanism of the algorithms on current social media platforms. Each tool offers a chance to learn about content creation filming as well has how the technology you own can affect your digital presence.The project has wider implications for the future of connectivity and mobile phone technology. The next couple of years will heavily dictate the freedom and flexibility digital spaces will have to offer. This project speaks to the need to consider people from all corners of the world when we make these decisions. A Growing Material Library

Cardboard joinery 1

Cardboard joinery 2

Cardboard joinery 3

Cardboard joinery 4

Cardboard joinery 5


Material Library of Found Objects

Borrowing from the format of OpenStructures, the project intends to grow into a library of crowdsourced materials and cardboard templates that could be combined in different ways to create a variety of filming tools.The material library will populated by content creators to share their ideas with other content creators. This can very much be popularised via the existing DIY culture on platforms like Reels and Tiktok.Media Literacy

DIY Short Form Tutorials

User Testing – The toolkit was shipped to India for content creators to assemble and film with. A number of aspects of the prototypes were tested. Including details, affordances and the tutorial formats. Their feedback was incorporated into the final prototypes.

Instructables – Speaking with content creators who experienced the TikTok ban, it was interesting to see how they navigate these spaces and what their understanding of the algorithm on these platforms are. It came to light how much they have learned simply through observation of how other content creators use these platforms. A number of experts helped me with my research and provided me with feedback at various points of the project.

Video Tutorial Excerpts
Dissecting the algorithm and making this information tangible is central to this project. Instructables and DIY TikTok videos were designed for each filming tool to inform content creators of how their films can perform better on these platforms. Ultimately, these set of tools and Instructables make content creation equipment more accessible in order to inspire more creation by being DIY and low-tech.


SpaceX's Crazy High-Speed Astronaut Escape Chute

Core 77 - Mon, 2024-03-25 22:20

If something goes wrong on a launchpad, you want to get people away from the danger as quickly as possible. SpaceX is testing out these new emergency escape chutes, meant to get you away from the rocket and on the ground as quickly as possible:

Assuming multiple evacuees, I imagine once you reach the bottom, you've gotta scramble to not get nailed by the next person.

Eye-Catching Handmade Outdoor Tools by Neru Design Works

Core 77 - Mon, 2024-03-25 22:20

Speaking of the Naguri pattern, check out these wild-looking hatchets, machetes, hammers and sandwich makers by Japan-based 0/0 Neru Design Works:

Here's the design philosophy of company founder Tsuyoshi "Neru" Shigehiro:

"Give shape to what you want.""Items have the most value when they are new, and their value decreases as they get older. This is a common idea in Japan, which has a history of repeatedly scrapping and building, but overseas there are many things that don't lose value even if they are old.""Of course, it's not just that it's old; there's something about it that people find valuable. Neru Design Works aims to create products that will get better over time with use. The longer it is used, the more its presence will increase. If you can make something like that, I'm sure someone will still be using it 10 or 20 years from now."

Neru is a former textile factory worker whose hobby was camping, making him well-acquainted with outdoor tools. Neru was inspired to design these after noticing Japanese manufacturing was going into decline. Japanese cutlery is world-class, yet he watched as one Japanese blacksmith after another went out of business. Within his own field, textiles, he observed domestic production decreasing as orders went overseas.

Working in collaboration with outdoor products brand Asimocraft, Neru resolved to design useful objects created by skilled Japanese artisans. The oak handles are individually carved and the blades are made by craftsmen in Niigata Prefecture. (I was unable to learn where the sandwich makers are cast.) "Because I worked for a manufacturer," Neru said in an interview, "I wanted to pursue materials and individual manufacturing processes, and do things that cannot be done through mass production."

The objects are priced as follows:

Hammer ¥17,600 (USD $116)

Sandwich maker ¥24,200 (USD $160)

Hatchet ¥26,400 (USD $174)

Machete ¥29,700 (USD $196)

While these aren't exactly cheap, they've proven so popular that they're limited to one purchase per person, and Neru has occasionally had to resort to a lottery system to take orders. At press time all four were sold out, and retailer Life Over Ground was taking pre-orders, at the individual links in the first paragraph.

A Classic 45-Year-Old Swedish Design for a Folding Cup

Core 77 - Mon, 2024-03-25 22:20

The American layperson might not recognize this object, but in Sweden, it's an icon. This collapsible Fold-A-Cup was designed in 1979 by Wildo, a Swedish outdoor products brand:

"This small cup is ideal for saving space in your pack. With 250ml capacity, 25g weight and a folded height of 3cm this is perfect for lightweight use."

45 years later it's still in production, with one alteration: It's now made from a 50% plant-based TPE (thermoplastic elastomer), as opposed to in the '70s, when it was purely petroleum-based. "Since 2016," the company writes, "we have worked to find alternatives to [fossil-fuel-based] raw materials without letting the end result of a good product be compromised."

There's also a larger 600mL size, the Fold-A-Cup Big. (The original-size model can be nested within it.)

Swedish design association Svensk Form has classified the Fold-A-Cup as a work of art, conferring copyright protection.