This Metal Jellyfish Kinetic Sculpture is by mechanical artist Eli Yoo.The video appears to be an animation, but if the real deal does in fact move like that, I'm impressed."Despite their apparent intricacy, the pieces are surprisingly minimalist. We use the bare minimum to repli … | Continue reading
A company called Notch sells these baseball caps with two notches in the bill. Why the notches? To accommodate the wraparound sunglasses favored by soldiers, paramilitary types and others. "I'm a veteran of the US Marines," writes company co-founder Paul Cunningham, "and had alwa … | Continue reading
Something that often happens to industrial designers and engineers: You spend so long staring at a screen and working a mouse, that you itch to make something with your actual hands. So it went for British industrial designer Paul Drake, a/k/a Ziggy-Moto. "Born partly out of the … | Continue reading
Not into shoelaces? These Furoshiki kicks by Vibram let you wrap your feet rather than tie them in: "Inspired by the Japanese tradition of wrapping, carrying and holding objects, the soft upper fabric wraps comfortably around the foot, and secures snugly for a quick, easy fit. [T … | Continue reading
The Snowdog is a less expensive, more portable and arguably safer alternative to the snowmobile. It's essentially a mechanical sled dog with 13.5 hp, allowing it to tow 440 lbs (200kg). It fits in the back of a pickup truck or SUV, and they run just $5,000, versus the $7,000 to $ … | Continue reading
For those who dislike the aesthetic of modern keyboards, California-based Datamancer makes (or at least, made) a line of mechanical keyboards styled to look as if they're from eras past. Rather than plastic, these involve wood, aluminum and brass.The Diviner Keyboard "Drawing in … | Continue reading
On an industry tour through Switzerland, American construction pros Matt Risinger and Jordan Smith visited homebuilder Kung Holzbau. The company builds timber homes that are free of adhesives and metal fasteners; they use those wooden nails we wrote about.And amazingly, the insul … | Continue reading
This Clipen, by South Korean design consultancy Design Rangers, is a pen that has a clip integrated into the length of its body. It can be slid onto documents or a notebook. Whether or not this was their intent, this object is a good example of designing something specifically fo … | Continue reading
This Gruzovikus concept for a self-driving tractor cab is by Art Lebedev Studio."A regular semi today looks like a mad brick: it has horrible aerodynamic qualities. Gruzovikus has a streamlined screen in the front that separates the oncoming air flows while protecting the sides f … | Continue reading
Vanlife product company Mogics has developed the Vanlife Tube, a watertight rig that allows you to shower inside of a minivan. It consists of a flexible tub that breaks down to just 12" in diameter, and which can be easily drained afterwards. This all sounds wildly unlikely, but … | Continue reading
While learning about hard hats, I poked around in a heavy equipment user subReddit where participants traded tips about finding comfortable hard hats. This would be a goldmine of info for an industrial designer trying to improve the UX of hard hats.A number of the posters recomme … | Continue reading
Etsy seller funky3Dfaces can 3D-print your head, for you to pop onto a Lego mini-fig. Just follow the photo instructions……and then you're immortalized in Lego:Although the photo instructions say not to wear glasses in the photo, the heads can be printed with glasses if specified … | Continue reading
In the 100 years since it's been invented, the design of the hard hat hasn't changed all that much. Edward W. Bullard, the inventor of the original hard hat, would recognize most of the features.Here we'll look at Klein Tools' 60401 hard hat, a commonly-available model you can pi … | Continue reading
There's really no way to look cool on a tandem bicycle. But perhaps a third wheel will distract onlookers more than two people cycling in a fighter-jet configuration.The Defender 250, by German manufacturer Dolas Bike, boasts three wheels in-line and a gigantic 48V battery poweri … | Continue reading
Here's a curious object: This Consolidated Number Stamp, for journalers who want to make their own little calendars.Devised by Japanese stationery company Shachihata, it consists of 38 individual stamps (31 dates plus 7 days of the week), along with two blanks, so that you can sn … | Continue reading
Here's what we looked at this week:Hyundai unveiled their concept for a tire with automatically deploying snow chains.Desk Design History: The rise and fall of hideaways and cubbyholes.A great hack for easily cleaning the inside of a bottle.Industrial design firm Cardboard Helico … | Continue reading
This CORE 500™ Digital Stethoscope, by industrial design firm Y Studios, was designed for healthcare technology company Eko Health. Y Studios, founded in San Francisco in 2001, explains:"We took a very deep look at a classic archetype and identified critical areas where it could … | Continue reading
This water boil alert disc is designed for those with blindness or partial-sightedness, forgetfulness, or dementia.It was created for situations when someone might start to boil something in a pot, then either forget about it or not be clearly able to see that it's boiling. The m … | Continue reading
For industrialists in the early 20th century, worker safety was not a priority, and safety gear was not an industry. However, that would be changed by Edward W. Bullard, a lieutenant in the U.S. Cavalry during World War I. While fighting in France, Bullard became familiar with th … | Continue reading
I don't understand why you'd want a spiral staircase cast in concrete, but that's probably because I couldn't afford to have one made. An anonymous client of architectural design/build firm RAP did, and the firm's execution is pretty darn impressive."We are based in Rotterdam," t … | Continue reading
Bell + Howell, a purveyor of "As Seen on TV" gewgaws, sells this bizarre thing:The Socket Fanlight reportedly puts out 1,000 lumens of 5,000K light, and the diameter of the fan is 15.4". It's operated by wireless remote and runs $45. Convenience of installation aside, the Amazon … | Continue reading
The TempaComp is a compass and thermometer wrangled into a carabiner form factor. It's obviously not meant to bear loads, but borrows the form for the sake of convenient attachment. It's also got a brass split-ring up top.There are actually two compasses. The one oriented around … | Continue reading
I believe design historians will look back on this period, the 2020s, with great interest. Established objects are evolving and new ones are emerging—robots, wearables, mobility devices—with form factors that are far from settled. If history holds, a lot of these experimental for … | Continue reading
Retractable wooden bleachers like these are a common sight in U.S. school gymnasiums.I had no idea there was a more deluxe version. Hamari, an "auditorium furniture solutions" company based in Porvoo, Finland, makes these Telescopic Seats that are kitted out with upholstered fold … | Continue reading
It's almost frightening how quickly Tesla's Optimus 'bot has advanced. Earlier this year the thing moved jankily, and looked like this:Now its overall form has been streamlined, and its motor functions refined……and it currently moves like this: The dancing thing is dumb, but the … | Continue reading
This Sputnik Chair, by French artist Harold Sangouard a/k/a Harow, has a wonderful gesture to it.The seat is made of cast aluminum and the legs are steel, with the latter being offered in either raw or polished finishes. Pamono points out the difficulty of working with the dispar … | Continue reading
Cyrusher, a Chinese manufacturer of e-bikes, has branched out into electric-powered snowboards. The category's inaugural Ripple model features a 3000W motor driving a fat tire that sits in a cutout in the tail, mounted to twin shocks. The depth of the tire's penetration throug … | Continue reading
This amusing cat-based game is by Yuka Morii, a 3D character designer, author and design professor.Called Nego (surely a tongue-in-cheek mashup of "neko," Japanese for "cat," and the board game Go), it's based on cats' tendency to occupy whatever space is available.The objective … | Continue reading
Earlier we looked at a combination stool/guitar stand by Yamaha Design Lab. Reader Karl F. hilariously opined that it would be the perfect conversation starter for guitar owners eager to subject visitors to their playing skills.If that's you, they've also got a second design, mad … | Continue reading
Thus far, the design approaches for robots that humans will interact with have included: Humanoid, dog-like, form-follows-function, and even plain ol' cute. French "droid manufacturer" TwinswHeel, which makes electric urban delivery 'bots, is leaning into that last one. Their fou … | Continue reading
In the '90s and early 2000s, everyone wanted an Aeron Chair. Industrial designers Don Chadwick and Bill Stumpf had created an icon and an office status symbol. However, can you name a single design for a desk that everyone coveted in recent years? I can't.Things were different a … | Continue reading
Core77 reader Zac Feltoon writes in with a personal project: a fun, cylindrical wall hook which he fast-tracked through to production just in time for the holidays!Zac states: "itsahook solves a problem that has persisted unnecessarily in wall hook design, that is, clothing is of … | Continue reading
This bendable, silicone-coated cutlery is by New-Zealand-based baby products company Haakaa. "Make your little one's self-feeding journey easier with Haakaa's Bendy Silicone Cutlery Set! Our unique spoon and fork feature a flexible handle that can be bent and twisted to help your … | Continue reading
This self-sealing pour spout is by Cardboard Helicopter, an industrial design consultancy based in Cleveland. "The one-of-a-kind ball-bearing device creates an air-tight seal for freshness. Many iterations were completed to perfect the form of the spout to allow liquid to flow sm … | Continue reading
Steel wool. Magnet. Why have I never thought of this. via boingboing | Continue reading
Installing even "quick-fit" snow chains is time-consuming, fiddly and requires you to get on your knees. It's bad enough to do in your garage, and even worse when you drive into an unexpected snowstorm and have to do it on the side of the road.To eliminate this need, Hyundai and … | Continue reading
Here's what we looked at this week: An example of early American product design evolution in these 19th-century retail shopping bag dispensers. Tekpegs are durable clothespins designed in Australia. This SYSTM furniture, designed for healthcare facilities and commercial settings, … | Continue reading
ID firm PDR, based in the UK, designed this Deluxe Detangler comb specifically for afro-textured hair.This innovative comb allows for people with afro-textured hair to detangle and condition their hair at the same time, making these hair care steps easier and less time consuming. … | Continue reading
Did you use the word "glean" before you knew its original, agricultural definition? If you paid attention in Art History class, you've probably seen Jean-François Millet's "The Gleaners" painting. The sight of peasants performing the task reinforces that "to glean" means to extra … | Continue reading
Human beings have built tables for millennia; there's evidence the Egyptians had tables 4,500 years ago. The one pictured below, excavated from upper Egypt, is a mere 3,600 years old:Humans would not design desks until millennia later. Invented specifically for paperwork, their e … | Continue reading
These Mano Bricks and Blocks are by London/Sydney-based industrial designer Tom Fereday. Fereday started with the concept of traditional Roman bricks, then branched out into non-traditional forms—and a non-traditional material for bricks."Mano Glass Bricks are a celebration of mi … | Continue reading
I once had to help a neighbor move seven stubborn cows that didn't want to be moved. These things each weigh a half-ton and can easily crush you. It wasn't fun, took forever, and we had to settle for six out of the seven.Australian engineer and inventor Craig Stratton, who grew u … | Continue reading
The average toothbrush has around 2,500 bristles. This Samba Robotic Toothbrush has nearly 13,000, arrayed in a semicircle. It's made by oralcare company Curaprox. Designed for those with dexterity difficulties, the Samba allows users to brush their teeth without moving their han … | Continue reading
We last looked in on Swiss Mile's wheeled quadruped robot two years ago. In the time since, it's made astonishing progress. First off it's gotten a lot better at standing up--faster than I'm comfortable with, to be honest--and can now use its wheels as hands:Now the developers ha … | Continue reading
The Solar Mars Bot, by portable power company Jackery, is a concept for a ground-based solar panel with wheels. The idea is that it rolls around, autonomously, to find the sunniest spot nearby, then deploys its panels in alignment with the sun. "The Jackery Solar Mars Bot is a ga … | Continue reading
Now that ChatGPT can generate images, a manufacturing consultant who goes by the handle "The Manufacturing Millennial" has used it to depict fake Lego sets pertinent to his field:These are meant to be harmless parodies, posted to LinkedIn for fun, but you'd be stunned how many of … | Continue reading
Velavu provides comprehensive asset tracking solutions that can monitor vehicles, products, tools, people and any other operational component in real time with 24x7 visibility. Based in Ottawa, Canada, the company serves a wide range of commercial and industrial customers that ma … | Continue reading
For about 10 bucks, you can buy a bottle cage for your bike that weighs an ounce, or 28 grams. However, if you've got €380 (USD $411) burning a hole in your pocket, you can step up to this Superleggero bottle cage, which weighs just 14.7g. Made by Alpitude Bike Components, it's … | Continue reading