September 3, 2019
Japanese artist and designer Yukako Hihara has created a pair of shoes that uses magnetic forces to create the physical sense of walking on the moon. The “anti-gravity” shoes were created as part of an experiment to offer consumers a product that made them feel like they were flying. To create shoes that give the sensation of defying …
August 26, 2019
Innovative sportswear and sports gear company, Vollebak, has launched a jacket that will reflect all colors of the visible light spectrum. The Black Squid Jacket is a fully waterproof and windproof outer shell that mimics one of nature’s most mesmerising innovations – the adaptive camouflage of the squid. Over the last 500 million years they’ve …
August 23, 2019
Researchers at Keio University in Japan have developed “Arque,” a robotic tail that humans can wear to improve balance. The device was informed by the ways animals passively use their tails to shift their center of gravity. Arque consists of interlocking plastic vertebrae that use a spring-based structure to handle shearing and tangential forces. Each vertebra is controlled …
August 12, 2019
Robots and prosthetic devices may soon have a sense of touch equivalent to, or better than, the human skin with the Asynchronous Coded Electronic Skin (ACES), an artificial nervous system developed by a team of researchers at the National University of Singapore (NUS). Sciencedaily.com reports that the new material has high responsiveness and robustness to …
Industrial designer Yael Akirav has explored a new way of turning on light fixtures by using 3D printing of conductive filament directly on a textile, which is then folded using origami techniques. When the printed material conducts electricity, the origami-like intersecting folds of the fabric turn on the light by contracting and stretching the structure. The rigid printing onto …
July 29, 2019
Researcher and designer Rosie Broadhead recently unveiled Skin II, a probiotic clothing concept activated by sweat to reduce odor and promote healthy skin. The clothing was developed in collaboration with microbiologist Dr. Chris Callewaert of Ghent University, to explorethe beneficial effect good bacteria can have on our skin. Skin II harnesses probiotic technology to allow the …
June 27, 2019
Greek designer George Bosnas thinks the traditional waste management process is lengthy and uses a lot of energy. In response, he created the sustainable approach to a traditionalegg carton – the Biopack. For this designer, an alternative to “reduce, reuse, recycle” is “use, plant, grow.” According to an Inspiralistarticle, Bosnas was looking for a way to create a package …
June 24, 2019
Scientists are tackling the world’s need to keep plastics out of landfills and waterways. One method may be found in making the most of seafood waste. A Science News article reports that the shells of crustaceans contain chitin, a material that has many of plastic’s desirable properties, but it can take weeks or months to biodegrade, rather …
May 9, 2019
A transformative poncho is the latest collaboration between Nike and Tom Sachs. The poncho has taken four years to arrive at this patent-pending stage of design, according to a report on designboom.com. Jarrett Reynolds, Nike’s senior design director for apparel special projects, developed the slim-line pack containing a quick-deploy and easily repacked poncho as part of a …
May 6, 2019
VISIONknit, a technical knitting company based in Toronto, Canada, and Canadian collaborators Composite Creations, have launched a 3D knitted canoe. The VISIONknit material can be used on modern flat (v-bed) knitting machines and knit into patterns, accompanying logos and other design features. According to an article in Knitting Industry, the company’s patent pending material is a …