functional fabric mesh network

#AquaFabric #GoldVeins #ConceptualDesign #Functional #Network #Connectivity #FluidShapes #Futuristic #Electronic
#Img2img #AiArt #AiArtists #StableDiffusion #AiArtCommunity

this IRL: https://aieris.art/featured/functional-fabric-mesh-network-eris-and-ai.html

The paper on git mentioned below (which paper has mysteriously appeared at https://user.fm/files/v2-70616ae0bb8486581447a54b89c79292/derosso2016-git.pdf) speaks of “conceptual design”, which I’m not familiar with. However, it’s described in a way that reminds me of conceptual blending (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conceptual_blending). Long shot: is there an intellectual connection? Might make for an Oddly Influenced episode. (Connection to Christopher Alexander seems more likely.)

#conceptualDesign #UX https://mastodon.social/@gvwilson/110867522248703490

NewTerritory imagines inhaler for microdosing psychedelics

UK design studio NewTerritory has developed a conceptual wellness product for inhaling psychedelic drugs in microdoses, in anticipation of a future in which the substances are legalised for mental health treatment.

Titled Human Nature, the proposal envisions how psilocybin – the psychoactive compound produced by hallucinogenic mushrooms – and lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) could be consumed in small, regular doses to improve wellbeing.

NewTerritory has imagined the Human Nature inhaler for microdosing psychedelics

In the concept, the drugs are contained in biodegradable capsules and dispensed via a simplified inhaler known as a spacer. As these pods are pressurised at lower levels than a standard inhaler, this would allow users to breathe in their contents in small sips.

With the project, NewTerritory hopes to bring attention to the growing body of evidence, including from Imperial College London's Centre for Psychedelic Research, showing that psychedelics could help treat depression and other mental health issues.

The device would dispense psychedelics in microdoses

"At the moment, people are starting these clinical trials and actually find it difficult to continue them because the substances are so heavily regulated," NewTerritory creative director James Ravenhall told Dezeen.

"So we wanted to shine a spotlight on how they could become part of our everyday, or every other day."

There is also commercial potential in the field, with some research predicting that the market for psychedelic drugs will more than double by 2027 to reach a value of $10.75 billion.

The drugs would come in biodegradable capsules

NewTerritory based the product concept on the way that cannabidiol (CBD) from the cannabis plant is now being sold and marketed as a wellness product.

With this in mind, the Human Nature inhaler draws on a popular wellness practice known as breathwork, in which breathing exercises are used to help calm the mind.

Similarly, the spacer would allow users to consume psychedelics slowly, almost meditatively over several minutes, with the whole experience taking on the feel of a healthy ritual, NewTerritory said.

The capsules are inserted into the spacer to allow for a slow inhalation process

NewTerritory imagined four types of capsules in its concept. The studio claims that the Focus pod containing LSD would improve short-term memory and increase concentration, while the Create capsule with psilocybin would help to enable creative thinking and expression.

The studio also envisaged two pods containing non-psychoactive substances that are more widely in use: Dream, containing the sleep hormone melatonin, and Relax, which contains CBD that NewTerritory says could ease cognitive tension and limit the production of stress hormones.

[

Read:

Eight design-led products for cannabis smoking including bongs and pipes

](https://www.dezeen.com/2022/04/20/cannabis-smoking-bongs-pipes-ashtrays/)

The pods would be sent out in personalised packs direct to consumers and paired with companion products, including an app with guided meditations and wearables such as contact lenses or patches that would track physiological changes.

The latter two products would help people to gain a better understanding of their bodies and their reaction to different drugs, NewTerritory said.

NewTerritory imagines four types of capsules – Focus, Create, Dream and Relax

Even though clinical research has explored the effects of both small and large psychedelic doses, Ravenhall said the studio chose to focus on microdosing as "a little bit of a soft entry into the world of psychedelics".

"With the stigmas that are associated with psychedelics, large dosing becomes something that alienates a lot of people," he said. "And actually, microdosing has an immense amount of benefits and those kinds of small, regular dosages help create ritual and habit."

"It is also semi-similar to the world we're now in with CBD, where at one point it was about large doses, usually smoked. And now, it's about very, very small doses being woven into our food, our drinks, those kinds of things."

A companion app would allow users to track changes to their body

NewTerritory designed Human Nature's packaging with reference to homeware and domestic objects. Drawing on the playfulness found in the work of Spanish designer Jaime Hayon, the shape of the pods is a visual metaphor for their intended use, so Dream has a cloud-like form while Focus comes to a sharp point.

The studio also researched emerging materials to make the product more sustainable, imagining the spacer in reground aerated glass and the pods in a kind of biodegradable algae packaging that would dissolve in water.

The app would be paired with patches

NewTerritory is a London-based studio founded in 2014 by Luke Miles, the former design head of British airline Virgin Atlantic.

With cannabis now legal in several countries, designers have created a range of different products for marijuana consumption from sculptural bongs to edibles in minimalist packaging by Dosist, which are sold via luxurious dispensaries such as Toronto's Edition.

The post NewTerritory imagines inhaler for microdosing psychedelics appeared first on Dezeen.

#all #products #design #productdesign #health #drugs #mentalhealth #healthproducts #conceptualdesign

Oio and Space10 envision IKEA furniture that can evolve and adapt to users' needs

Furniture company IKEA and its research and design lab Space10 have worked with creative studio Oio to create the Updatables concept furniture, which would use artificial intelligence to tell owners how it can be updated.

Oio and Space10 imagined the Updatables furniture pieces being able to communicate when they were getting worn down and suggest adaptations to give them a longer life.

A chair could be turned into a chair-bookshelf hybrid

Users would scan the Updatables furniture using an app, which would use artificial intelligence to give the piece a voice to let its owner know its needs.

Augmented reality technology would be used to visualise how the furniture could be updated using extra parts from other pieces of IKEA furniture. For example, a simple chair could be adapted into a chair-bookshelf hybrid with an added reading light.

Updatable furniture would use parts from other IKEA designs

The conceptual idea would reduce waste, IKEA and Space10 said, as it would help people to better visualise how they could extend the life of their furniture.

"Unfortunately, many objects today are more easily disposed of and replaced than upgraded or downcycled," Oio co-founder Matteo Loglio said.

"We feel Updatables can help inspire people to reduce this waste by giving objects a renewed purpose," he added. "By also giving agency to the object, it can share its point of view and unlock a new relationship with us – one where nurturing it can allow it to become something else and grow with us."

The project would work by scanning the furniture with an app

Describing Updatables as "fully-fledged evolutions of existing IKEA furniture," Space10 said the app would use "an evolutionary algorithm – a piece of machine learning code inspired by biological evolution" to create the new furniture.

Each updated piece of furniture would be unique, with discarded parts added to a circular ecosystem from which they could be used by others for their furniture updates.

[

Read:

Space10 shares platform for people to create "dream home" for bees

](https://www.dezeen.com/2020/05/20/space10-open-source-bee-homes-design/)

"By connecting with people in this way and increasing the circularity of these items, sustainability would only increase," Space10 said.

"Updatables imagines a future where furniture evolves together with other members of the household, creating emotional connections with objects and encouraging a more thoughtful approach towards disposal and waste."

Repairing and changing the furniture could help reduce waste

The initiative is part of Everyday Experiments, an ongoing series by IKEA and Space10 that aims to challenge the role of technology in the home.

Space10 has previously worked with Mexican designers to showcase novel uses for local biomaterials, and it and IKEA also recently developed a series of open-source bee homes that anyone can design for free.

The post Oio and Space10 envision IKEA furniture that can evolve and adapt to users' needs appeared first on Dezeen.

#furniture #all #design #technology #ikea #space10 #conceptualdesign #ai

Anna Resei designs Tele-nomadic Sheltering Unit as a moveable urban dwelling

Designer Anna Resei has created a conceptual design for a modular structure that can be used as a moveable shelter, which was shown as part of this year's Southern Sweden Design Week.

Design Academy Eindhoven graduate Resei made the speculative Tele-nomadic Sheltering Unit to promote a "more elastic" approach to living.

The modular design can be assembled to create a shelter

The Tele-nomadic Sheltering Unit, which was on show as part of the Southern Sweden Design Days design festival in Malmö, Sweden, was constructed to be both durable and moveable so that future nomads can set up shelter anywhere.

Resei's design comprises a steel structure, two recycled acrylic glass plates, a patterned seat, resin bricks and a small dot matrix-screen, as well as a selection of smart textiles.

Acryclic glass plates rest on a steel frame to form a bed

The structure can be dismantled and carried on the body, with the seat strapped to the back, the fabrics rolled-up and the bricks attached to the soles of the feet.

While the design is a concept, rather than a finished product, the moveable shelter prototype is light enough to be carried by one person.

"The steel structure is a bit heavy but it's possible," Resei said. "The whole structure is assembled and modular, so it can be rearranged and carried with you – it imagines a future where we live in the open and collectively, and only own as much as we can actually carry."

The design can be carried

The Tele-nomadic Sheltering Unit's steel structure would always be set in the same configuration, creating a frame around which to build the shelter, but the project also includes five woven adjustable jacquard fabrics.

These were made together with specialist fabrics company EE Exclusives, and can be combined into different set-ups to protect nomadic users from the environment.

Conductive yarn would be used to harvest electricity

Resei imagines that as part of the design, the fabrics would eventually be woven from conductive yarn to harvest electricity for the "telenomads" using the shelter.

"It's meant to have conductive yarn woven into the textiles, so that your electricity could be refilled and then you would be fully self-sufficient," she explained.

[

Read:

3D textiles could "replace concrete and cement" in construction says Hella Jongerius

](https://www.dezeen.com/2021/04/30/3d-weaving-architecture-hella-jongerius/)

"And there's a little dot-matrix attached which would connect via the cloud, so you could find other telenomads nearby and get in touch with them, but you could also see what the weather is or [find out about] other situations," Resei added.

The project was made in collaboration with design studio Dutch Invertuals and futures consultancy The Future Laboratory.

Anna Reise's speculative design is targeted at future nomads

A number of recent projects have featured conductive yarns, including design studio Layer's Move seating for Airbus that has a smart seat cover connected to a series of sensors that detect both the passenger's body and the conditions of their chair.

Dutch designer Hella Jongerius has argued that 3D weaving could be used to interlace building materials with photovoltaic solar yarns and create architecture that responds to the weather.

The post Anna Resei designs Tele-nomadic Sheltering Unit as a moveable urban dwelling appeared first on Dezeen.

#all #design #installations #textiles #shelters #conceptualdesign

Morrama envisions recyclable and biodegradable Covid-19 test

Design agency Morrama has devised a concept for a Covid-19 test that is biodegradable and fully recyclable, right down to its packaging – potentially eliminating a common source of plastic waste.

The ECO-FLO test – which is, for the time being, a concept design only – would be the first in the world to be 100 per cent recyclable and biodegradable, according to Morrama.

The design agency devised the solution to cut down on the amount of single-use plastic generated by the pandemic. While both face masks and Covid-19 tests are at least partially recyclable, it is only through specialised facilities and not through residential collection, so must users have been advised to place them in the waste bin.

The ECO-FLO test has fewer parts than today's lateral flow test (left)

"At Morrama, we were inspired to create a test kit that doesn't contribute to the amount of plastic ending up in our landfills, so ECO-FLO was born," said the agency's founder and creative director Jo Barnard.

Morrama's proposal achieves this goal by making the test itself from moulded paper pulp, and its outer packaging from biodegradable NatureFlex film, which would both break down in approximately four to six weeks.

The other plastic elements – the swab, test tubes and their associated packaging – are all eliminated, as the agency rethought every step of the testing process to minimise materials and maximise ease of use.

The test would be made from paper pulp and the sachet from biodegradable film

Instead of the two mainstream test types on the market, polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and rapid antigen (lateral flow), ECO-FLO applies a new method called the Parallel Amplified Saliva rapid POint-of-caRe Test (PASPORT).

It works with only a saliva sample, so there is no need for buffer solution or a nasal swab – an element that can be difficult to use for those with disabilities or impairments, or when testing children.

The user would only need to spit on ECO-FLO's absorbent pad, close the test package and push the moulded button to transfer the sample from the absorbent pad to the test strip.

All of the instructions are printed directly on the test

All of the instructions are printed directly on the test so there is no need for additional leaflets, and it is made more readable by replacing the currently used scientific notations – such as "C" for "control" and "T" for test – with simple checkboxes. In Morrama's conceptualisation, the packaging is the product.

"Thinking about the test as less of a product and more a piece of functional packaging really influenced the direction," Barnard told Dezeen.

"Packaging by its nature should always be designed for end-of-life, so we started not with a design, but with materials that can be recycled and recaptured."

[

Read:

Kyoto University creates mask from ostrich cells that glows when coronavirus is detected

](https://www.dezeen.com/2022/01/11/ostrich-coronavirus-detection-mask-glow-kyoto-university-yasuhiro-tsukamoto/)

While the need for Covid-19 tests may be in decline, Barnard says the ECO-FLO design remains relevant for countries still undertaking mass testing, such as China, which is disposing of over a million kits a day.

It would also assist groups with accessibility requirements, such as the young, old and those with mental health or learning difficulties.

Results in simple English make the test easier to read

However, Morrama is also positioning ECO-FLO as a provocation for the world to start thinking about sustainable design for future pandemics now.

"Whilst much of the Western world has moved on from mass testing of Covid-19, there has been regular warnings from experts that pandemics are only set to become more likely," said Barnard.

"With the failures from our response to Covid still fresh in our mind, we need to act now to ensure we are better prepared in the future."

The moulded paper design includes a push button to activate the test

For the concept to become a reality, PASPORT would need to be approved for use in at-home test; currently, it is still in trials. Cost should not be a barrier, as Morrama expects the required paper injection moulding or dry moulded fibre processing to be cost-competitive with plastic injection moulding at volume.

In the more immediate future, another British company, SureScreen Diagnostics, has announced it will start making a biodegradable Covid-19 test cartridge from plant-based materials, eliminating one source of plastic from the kits.

Morrama was founded in 2015. The agency's past projects include the minimal Angle razor, also aimed at reducing plastic waste, and a series of "smarter phone" concepts aimed at improving wellbeing.

The post Morrama envisions recyclable and biodegradable Covid-19 test appeared first on Dezeen.

#all #products #design #sustainabledesign #conceptualdesign #coronavirus #morrama

Looop Can is a sanitary pad washing device for refugees

Product design student Cheuk Laam Wong has created Looop Can, a concept for a portable kit to clean menstruation pads that aims to reduce period poverty among refugees.

Each Looop Can kit includes a container for cleaning, 70 grams of baking soda and a reusable sanitary pad made from bamboo terry fabric called the Looop Pad.

Above: Looop Can kits include a container, baking soda and sanitary pad. Top image: they are designed for women living in refugee camps

Made from a recycled steel can, the washing device can be used to clean sanitary pads with just baking soda and 500 millilitres of water.

The kit has been designed so that women living in refugee camps can easily and discretely wash and dry their sanitary pads.

"Almost 60 per cent of female refugees suffer period-poverty problems as they spend their limited funds on food or nappies for their babies," Cheuk told Dezeen.

"A washing kit for reusable sanitary pads will benefit not only refugees and asylum seekers, but also people who have limited finances and insufficient education about menstrual health management," she continued.

Users insert their pad, add water and baking soda and then spin the container to remove blood

The Looop Can comprises a main cylindrical body with a screw-top lid and a hollow spinning device that can also be used to store the baking soda.

When the sanitary pad requires cleaning, the user places the pad inside the can before immersing it in water and baking soda, a natural cleaning detergent that helps to remove blood stains.

Once the cap has been screwed on, users can spin the device with their finger which requires "minimal human effort so that people who have period cramps can wash easily," the designer explained.

The spinning motion helps the baking soda and water to clean the pad. The user must then wait at least 30 minutes until the blood dissolves, before rinsing the pad three times.

The kits are an alternative to single-use plastic sanitary pads

After interviewing NGOs in Greece refugee camps, Cheuk realised that there was a need for a cheaper, longer-term solution to plastic pads.

"Plastic pads can’t work as they rely on NGOs' constant donation and lack culturally sensitive disposable methods," the designer said.

Although reusable pads are a slightly better alternative, Cheuk found that shared washing machines in refugee camps aren't always available for everyone.

"It means that people need to dry the laundry in their shelter and everyone can see," she explained.

By contrast, the reusable Looop Pads can be hung up to dry indoors and, if cared for properly, can last for up to five years.

According to Cheuk, "this covers the minimum time a refugee is likely to stay in a camp waiting for identity approval".

Each Looop Pad comes in three modular parts: a base made from bamboo terry, a bamboo fleece wing and the pad itself. This is made from a polyester-laminated material – a waterproof fabric used in nappies, diaper bags and mattress covers.

"Through researching the material used in reusable pads, I designed the pad to have separable layers so that they dry quicker regardless of the weather. The quick-drying bamboo fabric became an ideal option," the student explained.

Cheuk wanted the design to be discreet so that women would feel comfortable using the kit

The pads are cut into a rectangular shape so that they don't resemble sanitary pads, something that can help minimise embarrassment and stigma associated with menstrual products.

"When the pad is hung up to dry, it isn’t obvious that it’s a menstruation product, and it only takes half a day to dry indoors," Cheuk said.

With injection moulding, Cheuk believes that the expected total cost for the product – which is currently at a conceptual stage – should be around £3 for the whole set, including the washing parts and pads.

Other designs for refugees include portable kitchens by graduate collective Soup International, which were designed to be used by Southwark Day Centre for Asylum Seekers (SDCAS) for cooking purposes.

The post Looop Can is a sanitary pad washing device for refugees appeared first on Dezeen.

#all #products #design #productdesign #studentprojects #periods #designforrefugees #conceptualdesign

The Butterfly Effect is a bridge to help insects cross the road

VenhoevenCS, DS Landschapsarchitecten and Studio Solarix have designed the Butterfly Effect, a proposal to stretch a treetop-level web over a Dutch motorway to provide insects with cleaner air above roads.

Currently a conceptual design, the project is a proposal for the Our Energy Our Landscape design challenge organised by Kunstloc Brabant, a cultural programme in the Netherlands' North Brabant province.

The studios have released renderings of the proposal

Dutch design studio VenhoevenCS collaborated with landscape architecture agency DS Landschapsarchitecten and solar energy firm Studio Solarix to imagine a membrane of solar panels that could span a road.

Called the Butterfly Effect, the web could be suspended across the A67 motorway on the Strabrechtse Heide, a natural heathland area in North Brabant, although its inventors said the concept could be replicated anywhere.

A web would be suspended across the motorway

Connected to trees on each side by steel columns, the web would stretch across the motorway and provide clearer air space for insects to cross the road above the traffic below.

"A motorway forms a huge barrier for many insects as the vortexes and currents in the air caused by traffic are deadly to them," VenhoevenCS architect and director Cécilia Gross told Dezeen.

"Research has shown that many insects, such as the Alcon Blue butterfly, only dare to cross the motorway when there is a traffic jam and the air is still," she added.

Shadows formed by the web's hexagonal structure would produce a unique driving experience

According to VenhoevenCS, 85 per cent of the world's food is dependent on insect pollination.

The Butterfly Effect would reduce the disruptive air currents produced by cars and encourage insects to travel across the road and pollinate plants.

Made up of hexagonal photovoltaic modules, the web's design is informed by a bee's honeycomb and would create a large surface area of solar panels that could convert sunlight into energy.

The designers expect that the technology for translucent photovoltaic surfaces will soon be available.

"The first generation of these energy-generating surfaces will consist of a thin translucent photovoltaic membrane," said Gross.

"Looking ahead we expect that developments mean that the next generation of these surfaces could see them being created from textiles, given the textile industry is already working on energy-generating fibres."

The web could stretch in every direction

Pollution would also be decreased as the nitrogen and particulates released by traffic would remain in the roadside woodland and act as a fertilizer for the soil.

This enriched soil would encourage further tree and vegetation growth, leading to a quieter motorway with noise reduced by dense woodland.

The bridge would encourage biodiversity

Gross explained that the Butterfly Effect's hexagonal structure means that the web could grow in any direction and could become a wider tool in urban landscapes such as above railways.

"It could be used as a blueprint in places where there is noise pollution, a lot of particulate matter or a high energy demand," said Gross.

"It will become a symbol of the type of energy generation that should be a priority, something that gives a helping hand to small ecosystems and in doing so contributes to a large-scale approach to climate change and biodiversity loss."

The project could be replicated above vast expanses of space

VenhoevenCS is a Dutch design office founded by Ton Venhoeven in 1995 with a focus on sustainable architecture. The firm recently revealed designs for a timber aquatic centre for the Paris 2024 Olympics.

DS Landschapsarchitecten is an Amsterdam-based architecture and urban planning company. Studio Solarix is a solar energy company, also based in the Dutch capital.

Other sustainable architecture includes a university building in Georgia, America, topped by a giant photovoltaic canopy.

The renderings are courtesy of VenhoevenCS, DS Landschaparchitecten and Studio Solarix.

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#all #transport #design #sustainabledesign #netherlands #insects #solarpower #roads #climatechange #conceptualdesign #venhoevencs