Tag Archives: Graphics

This sleek drone fits in your pocket and transforms uses its magnetic modular design!

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The rise of drone photography and videography has opened the door to plenty of technological and design advancements. Likewise, with the rise of social media, drones have seen some major improvements across the board, spanning from obstacle avoidance to camera quality and speed. Adding portability to the list, industrial designer Kendal Toerner conceptualized Xenon Drone, a handheld and modular drone designed for the most rugged of adventures.

Xenon Drone was first designed for the drone videographer looking for a drone that’s as durable as it is portable. Noticing the lack of handheld and high-quality drones on the market, Toerner sought to balance functionality and space. Broken down into three pieces, Xenon Drone is made from recyclable, plant-based thermoplastic and features a magnetic launching pad wedged between two drone modules. To communicate Xenon’s portability and simplicity, Toerner designed the drone to be versatile in its assembly, resulting in three different possible forms for flying and stacking achieved via magnetic connectors.

Getting Xenon Drone out of your hands and into the sky is simple—users need only attach the two drone modules at their center magnetic grooves, connect their propellers, and let it fly. One end of each module contains the chunk of embedded electronic wiring; the other end holds Xenon Drone’s triple-axis gimbal camera and batteries. But, while getting it up in the air is exciting, Toerner didn’t lose sight of the importance of a safe landing. Embedded with ultrasonic sensors, Xenon Drone depends on a magnetic landing wand to guide its safe descent—by raising the magnetic wand, Xenon Drone can land safely no matter where it flies from.

Users can also control Xenon Drone’s route from their smartphones using an elastic joystick controller that can adapt to almost any smartphone. From your smartphone, Xenon Drone’s joystick controller displays the drone’s altitude, distance, and velocity, as well as the haptic joystick and pan controls. In addition, integrated GPS technology and Bluetooth connectivity allow users to locate Xenon Drone wherever it lands.

Designer: Kendall Toerner

Broken down into two parts, each module of the Xenon Drone attaches at its magnetic center.

A launching pad was wedged between the two modules to ensure an effective takeoff.

Embedded magnetic springs pluck out to deploy each drone module.

After the two modules connect, propellers are attached before Xenon can take flight.

Xenon’s magnetic connector.

Users need only attach the two modules and connect their respective propellers.

A magnetic landing wand guides Xenon in a safe descent.

An elastic joystick controller allows users to choose Xenon’s route.

“By modulating an electromagnetic force on your fingertip, the flat surface of the controller feels just like a joystick. The further from the center, the more resistance. This allows for eyes-off flying, mitigating finger-drifting issues,” Toerner notes.

“Using the onboard transceiver, GPS, and Bluetooth, the exact location of the two drone parts is always known even when they separate.”

“A camera with a triple-axis gimbal allows for optical image stabilization and manual panning. Having both a wide-angle and telephoto lens allows for unique options when capturing adventures.”

“A thermoplastic, layer-based circuit board can be decoupled from its components with a hot liquid solvent, allowing for reuse and recycle of almost every part. Xenon is manufactured using renewable energy, plant-based thermoplastic, (recyclable) metal, and can be fully disassembled because it uses fasteners and a removable thermal adhesive.”

The rolling green roof of this modern art museum was built with to merge art preservation with futuristic technology!

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On one hand, museums are known for keeping paintings and artifacts of ancient civilizations with preservation being the goal. On the other, more modern museums incorporate some of the most advanced technology of today into their exhibitions to introduce the exciting possibilities for the art of tomorrow. Enacting his own preferred modern technology to conceptualize a modern art museum for the city of Tehran, architect Milad Eshtiyaghi hopes to evolve this relationship between today’s technology and the preservation of Islamic and Iranian art.

Known for designing bold, daredevil retreats stationed on the edge of mountain summits and cliffsides, Eshtiyaghi maintained the same mythical energy for his most recent rendering of Tehran’s Modern Art Museum. From an aerial viewpoint, Eshtiyaghi’s museum does not form any distinct shape, progressing past geometric, sharp angles for a gleaming white roof that slopes and bulges like a white tarp covering a wild landscape. Modern museums are generally known for their conceptual architecture, a form Milad Eshtiyaghi executes well considering his wide array of escapist hideaways. The green space that surrounds Eshtiyaghi’s museum tightens the museum’s abstract energy with rolling green roofs that mimic the overlapping lines of soundwaves, offering a place to rest on its manicured lawns.

Inside, the shapelessness of Tehran’s Modern Art Museum provides an eccentric stage for contemporary art exhibits. The museum’s tower wing spirals above the rest of the exhibition space, bringing guests to the museum’s highest vantage point via a web of winding, interconnected staircases. Etched along the tower’s facades and the museum’s main lobby, circular holes infuse the museum’s industrial interior with plenty of sunlight. Throughout the museum’s interior and exterior spaces, Eshtiyaghi hoped to communicate the significance of modern technology when used for art preservation, merging the age-old practice of museum work with today’s technological advancements.

Designer: Milad Eshtiyaghi

Without any distinct shape, Eshtiyaghi’s Modern Art Museum welcomes contemporary art, for all its abstract, shapeless glory.

Like many modern museum spaces, Eshtiyaghi’s Modern Art Museum features an outdoor plaza and interconnected green spaces.

Various vantage points puncture the museum’s facades.

The museum’s tower spirals above slopes and bulges of the museum’s white roof.

Holes are dotted across facades to bring in natural sunlight to the museum’s industrial interior.

 

Rolling green roofs mimic the flow of soundwaves.

Inside, staircases interconnect to form webs of walkways for guests to explore.

This modular furniture series reuses same construction pieces to adapt to your tiny living space!

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Modular furniture is a tiny home’s most coveted design secret. As cities across the globe grow in population, living spaces are shrinking. Those who live in cities mostly live in tiny apartments or shared homes that require a lot of space budgeting. Meeting the spatial demands of tiny living spaces, furniture designers Lee PinYi and Su Ching Yao developed a modular, versatile furniture system called Better.

Better includes a collection of furniture pieces, ranging from office desks and bed frames to task chairs and coat racks, that hinge on a modular design to adapt to changing needs over time and provide extra storage space in small living spaces. Packaged just like a piece of furniture from IKEA, Better comes complete with simple, yet comprehensive assembly instructions and interchangeable parts that can give each piece of furniture a whole new look and function. Just like IKEA, Better boasts a simple and clean design scheme. Each piece of furniture shares assembly components, allowing users to swap different parts out for new ones, creating a totally new piece of furniture.

For example, a desk from Better might require the same parts used to build a coat rack, allowing users to recycle building materials and create their own piece of furniture from the start. Interchangeable parts also allow users to build on fully assembled pieces of furniture, adding storage compartments or leg rests when necessary. The height, finish, and integrated shelving for each component can be adjusted at any time by the user to build a piece of furniture totally unique to their own needs and living space.

Designer: Lee PinYi & Su Ching Yao

The same legs used to build the task chair can also be used to build the office desk and coat rack.

With an elemental look, Better’s collection of furniture evokes Scandinavian design.

Interchangeable assembly design and hardware lend to a simple construction process and modular deisgn.

The same construction pieces used to build the chair can be used to build a coat rack.

Users can also add on storage units like shelves and racks to make more use of each piece of furniture.

Following an easy-to-understand assembly process, Better’s furniture comes together quickly.

Integrated shelving units can be incorporated into every piece of furniture to ensure optimal storage.

Additional shelves can be latched onto the side of desks or even underneath for a neat footrest.

The chair follows the same, simple assembly scheme, allowing for a seamless building process.

The foot rest on the task chair can be adjusted to any desired height.

The workbench can also be adjusted according to your height and space available.

Users can build a chair or a stool following Better’s assembly instructions.

The coat rack can carry as many racks as needed, allowing users to add or take away when necessary.

By getting creative, users can turn average workbenches into sleek entryway shoe benches.

The workbench can also double as a cot.

Better’s line of furniture is inspired by the simplicity of Scandinavian design to fit into any living space.

Packaged like IKEA furniture, Better leans on a simple and clean design scheme.

Face Masks are not going anywhere, so this mask is built with an opening for drinking liquids safely during travel

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Wearing face masks in airports and airplanes can get uncomfortable, especially if your trip is a long one. It can become difficult to breathe, there’s no eating or drinking, and it gets pretty sweaty under there. After traveling forty hours from the United States back to China, designer Ruitao Li developed the Umai Facemask, a silicone face covering with a breathing valve, air filter, and small mouthpiece slot that can be used to eat and drink while wearing the mask.

While we haven’t entered a post-COVID era yet, we are seeing a small light at the end of the tunnel. Rounding the corner, many restaurants and bars are opening back up to the public around the world. However, with new variants causing hot spots and surges all over the world, masks are still as necessary as ever. The Umai Facemask comes as a set, including the silicone face mask as well as a water bottle with a soft, bendable straw that fits into the mask’s mouthpiece slot.

Users can fill their bottles with their preferred beverages and say goodbye to airplane dry mouths. The removable straw can even be swapped from Umai’s water bottle and used to drink from another one. Umai Facemask’s breathing valve and air filter also make wearing a face mask feel a little more comfortable. Powered up with a type-c charge, the air filter ensures that the air you’re breathing in is clean and fresh, while the breathing valve circulates the air inside the mask to avoid the damp humidity that comes with conventional face masks.

Not eating and drinking while wearing a facemask has to be the hardest thing about traveling nowadays‒who doesn’t love airplane food? Designed to make the experience of modern travel feel a little more relaxed, the Umai Facemask doesn’t compromise the face mask’s primary purpose of keeping viruses and bacteria at bay, it enhances it. With adjustable aluminum nose pieces, hypoallergenic silicone covering, and several air filters, the Umai Facemask ensures comfort and safety.

Designer: Ruitao Li

Complete with a mouthpiece for eating and drinking, the Umai Facemask was designed to make modern travel more comfortable.

Constructed from hypoallergenic silicone, the Umai Facemask doesn’t cause acne or oily skin.

Traveling during the COVID-19 era requires a lot of caution, which can get uncomfortable.

Ruitao Li aimed to make a comfortable and safe face mask for the modern age.

Umai comes as a set, including the face mask, water bottle and bendable straw, and a type-c charger for the air filters.

Ruitao Li found that the most comfortable material for their face mask was silicone.

Medical professionals can also enjoy the benefits of eating and drinking while wearing a face mask.

The soft, bendable straw can be used for any water bottle as it is detachable.

Stocked with plenty of air filters and breathing valves, the Umai Facemask provides plenty of clean air to breathe.

This sleeping pod features a smart mattress + a full entertainment system to revolutionize your airport experience!

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We’ve all either missed a connecting flight or even our first one and have had to find that somewhat (hardly at all) comfortable spot in the airport where we could kill a few hours before our rescheduled flight. If you haven’t been there–consider this a cautionary tale. While being stuck in an airport is never comfortable, designer KAI XIA developed a Sleep Experience Center, a snoozy oasis where users can kill those hours, otherwise spent sleeping upright in a worn-down, leather waiting chair, in blissful comfort.

Sleep Experience Center is essentially a sleeping and living pod that can be stationed in any setting from an airport to a remote science research center. The pod offers a soundproof place of respite stocked with everything from a full entertainment system to a smart mattress that adjusts to your preferred sleeping conditions. Designed for Keeson Group, Sleep Experience Center took to spaceships and luxury automobiles for inspiration, fusing advanced technology with a contemporary, sleek interior to deliver optimal resting conditions.

The showstopper of the pod is definitely the mattress, boasting integrated smart technology that uses software algorithms and hardware sensors to automatically adapt to each user’s body and ideal sleep settings. The freestanding pod is defined by four separate zones: a sleeping area, entertainment center, storage zone, and control module. If users hope to catch some Z’s or play their favorite video game while waiting for their flight, an automated service offered through WeChat grants them access to the pod. Inside, an operation panel allows users to choose their own (restful) adventure.

Everything from aromatherapeutic lamps to a built-in air filtration system fills out the interior of KAI XIA’s Sleep Experience Center. Atmospheric lighting can be manually adjusted, while the air filtration system runs out of sight underneath the pod’s bed. Inside, users can top off their smartphones with some battery juice and enjoy a quick bite to eat before takeoff.

Designer: KAI XIA

Taking inspiration from spaceships and luxury automobiles, Sleep Experience Center looks sleek and packs a lot of punch.

The Sleeping pod looks right at home in contemporary airports, its optic-white finish blends in with any design.

Here, Sleep Experience Center is positioned in either a mall or airport shopping center.

Inside, Sleep Experience Center would feature everything from a smart mattress, to a full entertainment system.

By signing up through WeChat, users are granted access to the snoozy oasis.

Charging ports and storage areas fill out the inside of Sleep Experience Center.

Designed for any setting, Sleep Experience Center can even be stationed at remote science research centers.

Mood lighting enhances sleeping conditions to ensure a restful getaway.

This EV charging solution uses a network of charging drones to charge your car anytime, anywhere!

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Every day we move closer to a more sustainable future, and the automobile industry is quickly gaining traction. However, more and more electric vehicles are on the road each day, and drivers feel the heat with the lack of available charging stations. With so many EVs on the road and so few charging stations, many EV drivers admit to feeling anxious during road trips, having to worry about their car dying of charge at any moment. A group of Seoul-based designers hopes to relieve some of that stress with their new EV charging solution called Nebo, a network of charging drones that bring the electric juice directly to EVs.

To ensure their EVs remain charged when traveling, drivers often have to adjust their routes to incorporate charging stops along the way. Cutting out the extra travel time those routes take up, Nebo users can request charging drones to fly to their EV and power up their vehicles on the road. Then, drivers can plug in their destination from a dashboard display, and Nebo will find the quickest route and create a charging schedule for the trip, ensuring that EVs are fully charged. Each charging drone contains electromagnetic and ultrasonic sensors to locate and latch onto the roofs of electric vehicles.

Once securely stationed atop the EV, charging coils transmit power between Nebo and the electric vehicle. The drones would also feature bladeless wings, allowing for a compact build that can slide into itself during use. An accompanying app would also allow users to request Nebo on the go. This would come in handy when your EV is parked, and you want to get some extra charge before taking the car out for a drive.

Since EVs are hitting the roads more than ever before, the need for charging stations is growing. However, considering the lack of charging stations, those who drive electric vehicles have to worry too much about how they will get a charge. To help quell the anxiety felt by drivers of electric vehicles, Nebo brings the charge to drivers using a network of charging drones anytime, anywhere.

Designers: Junpyo Hong, Jayoung Koo, Yang Dong Wook, & Dongjae Koo

Sleek by design and discreet in appearance, Nebo is a charging drone that brings power to EVs on the road.

Electromagnetic and ultrasonic sensors help Nebo locate and latch onto EVs.

An intricate build reveals the vision sensors, charging coils, and bladeless wing system that gives Nebo such a slim body.

When latched onto the EV, Nebo’s wings slide into its body to give it a more compact structure.

























A dashboard display allows users to log trips into Nebo’s GPS technology that creates a charging schedule for each trip.

Vision sensors allow Nebo to track your EV.

An accompanying app allows users to request charging drones on the go.

Nebo charges your EV while you’re driving, cutting out the extra time it takes to find charging stations.

Once your EV is fully charged, Nebo takes off and flies back to its own charging station.

The team of designers created a life-size paper model of Nebo.

This instant tiny coffee brewing bottle mixes water with coffee grounds to make a cup in seconds!

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I’m part of the crowd that thinks getting coffee should be a reasonable excuse for being late. Business meetings, sports games, parent-teacher conferences, and lunch reservations can wait. Coffee comes first‒always. Some of us are thinking about coffee before we even brush our teeth in the morning. If you can skip the coffee, all the power to you. Besides the pursuit of punctuality, having access to a quick caffeine fix when you’re camping or on a road trip makes the difference between Hell and happiness. That’s just the truth. Giving life to that caffeine fix, Chinese designer Jiia Liu developed Saturnbird, a modular glass bottle that brews coffee in a matter of seconds.

Saturnbird comes in four pieces: a brewing top, liquid basin, lid, and coffee pods, allowing for easy brewing and cleaning. In Liu’s 3D visualization, the pods each seem to contain instant coffee grounds that turn into iced coffee when mixed with water. Once the liquid basin is filled with water, users can mix in a pod of coffee grounds, screw the brewing top back on, shake the bottle, and voilà! Instant coffee. The liquid basin displays line measurements that, when filled with water, indicates which coffee pod to pour‒140ml of water requiring a smaller pod than the pod mixed into 210ml of water. Featuring such a simple brew method, Saturnbird could become the go-to accessory for many campers whose first thought in the morning isn’t the chorus of chirping birds or the beautiful landscape, but how they’re gonna get their paws on their first cup of coffee. The liquid basin is constructed from glass with a silicone-coated glass brewing top and lid for a non-slip grip, allowing you to bring Saturnbird on hikes or water-based activities.

Whether you’re waking up in a forest, hundreds of miles away from the nearest cafe or in a daze, five minutes away from your first job interview across town, coffee accessories like Saturnbird allow coffee drinkers to get in their caffeine fix and get on with their day quicker than they could muster up a lame (and unnecessary) excuse for being late. Go ahead and walk into that meeting with a cup of coffee in your hands. You deserve it (and the one after it).

Designer: Jiia Liu

Saturnbird’s glass liquid basin screws onto a silicone brewing top for a non-slip grip.

Users simply mix coffee grounds with water for instant iced coffee.

The screw-top lid of Saturnbird allows users to insert their own straw.

The measurement lines indicate which coffee pods to use.

Modular by design, Saturnbird breaks away from its four components for easy cleaning.

This moon village plans to harness solar energy to sustain tourism in the future!

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In the south polar region of the Moon, architects at SOM–Skidmore, Owings & Merrill have envisioned a Moon Village. In collaboration with ESA–European Space Agency and MIT–Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the debut of Moon Village at the 17th International Architecture Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia kicked off an initiative of returning to the Moon five decades after humans first set foot on its surface. Visualized on the rim of the Moon’s Shackleton Crater, the location was chosen with consideration for the near-continuous daylight it receives throughout the lunar year.

Primarily conceived of as a cluster of research stations, Moon Village would host an array of functions spanning from sustainability research opportunities to the future prospect of Moon tourism. The south polar region of the Moon supports the possibility of a self-sufficient settlement, receiving near eternal sunlight that could be harnessed and stored for energy. This part of the Moon also hosts a variety of untouched matter that could offer insight into the Solar System’s early history as well as the general emergence of our larger universe.

Above all else, the structure of each individual hub comprises a modular frame and protective exterior to cater to the varied projects taking place inside. Most of the action would be taking place in each structure’s open centralized space, leaving room for the supportive framework, made from titanium alloy to be built into each building’s perimeter. Describing the structure’s blueprint, the architects at SOM say, “The innovative structural design of the modules is a hybrid rigid-soft system, made of two key elements: a rigid composite perimeter frame and an inflatable structural shell that integrates a multi-layer assembly with an environmental protection system.”

SOM decided on an inflatable shell and rigid, if not a minimal internal framework to easily transport each structure’s building materials by rocket. The combination of a rigid framework and inflatable structural shell, made from open-foam polyurethane and double-aluminized Mylar for insulation, was also chosen by SOM to adapt to internal and external environmental conditions, optimize airflow, and maintain transparent working spaces, while the free centralized volume promotes efficiency and mobility for research projects.

Designer: SOM–Skidmore, Owings & Merrill

Located in the south polar region of the Moon, SOM’s Moon Village would harness energy from the sun to generate their research facilities.

Comprising a cluster of Moon Villages, SOM intended for a human-centric design when developing Moon Village.

SOM envisions solar towers to form grids around Shackleton Crater and harness the sunlight’s energy.

Inside, an open centralized volume will leave plenty of room for efficient working and unrestricted mobility.

The main internal structure will be located in the perimeter of each structure.

An external, inflatable structural shell will protect Moon Village hubs from micrometeorites.

The internal framework of Moon Village’s research hubs will ensure the structure’s stability and soundness.

The 17th International Architecture Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia hosted Moon Village’s model debut.

This glass fishbowl-like home has us re-thinking about how we connect with nature

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Now that we’ve been inside our homes for over a year now living in a fishbowl doesn’t sound all that bad. However, while many architects are turning to semi-outdoor designs to develop public facilities like restaurants and storefronts, the upcoming trend for homes in this new era finds their indoor spaces merging with the outdoors to get some natural airflow a good breeze. Architecture studio Veliz Arquitectos conceptualized what it might look like to turn a fishbowl into a modern house, turning an entire glass globe into a two-story home.

Envisioned somewhere in a snowy grassland, the Fishbowl House mimics the shape of a crystal ball, propped up on three sturdy wooden pillars that connect to the home’s exterior with a steel fastener. If ever constructed, the Fishbowl House would be entirely made from glass, merging the exterior with the interior. Inside, plants fill the scene, harmonizing with the natural world outside. Constructed from wood, the flooring and semi-outdoor deck helps to warm up the glass facade and make the cabin feel much closer to the natural world. Otherwise, guests can start up a fire in the home’s integrated fireplace for a cozy night of stargazing. For the days and nights, you’d like a little bit more privacy, curtains that seem to be constructed from wood descend from the home’s ceiling to cover the whole of Fishbowl House’s interior.

Veliz Arquitectos conceptualized the Fishbowl House to evoke a sense of safety for those living inside. Lifted above the ground, the Fishbowl House’s entrance is inaccessible without help from a stair or ladder extension. Yet, when the home’s curtains are drawn, the home gives off a den-like quality, oozing with warmth and comfort. Inspired to create a refuge in response to the constricted living situations brought on by the pandemic, Veliz Arquitectos notes, “The Glass Fishbowl protects us apparently, but it can be very fragile, inside it is the safest place and our best memories from the outside wrap us.”

While the design stands out from the crowd for sure, it may be taking things too far. Ironic, isn’t it that we are finally placing ourselves into glass bowls as we did to our pets so long ago. Sure, the world is all about new experiences, and love it or hate it, there is no way you will ignore a house like this. While it is pretty to look at, given the nature of glass, there is almost zero possibility we’ll ever get to see this in real. ANd for sure never ina typhoon zone!

Designer: Veliz Arquitectos

Curtains descend from the Fishbowl House’s ceiling to bring some privacy to an otherwise transparent glasshouse.

Propped up on wooden pillars, three metal fasteners join the pillars to the house’s exterior facade.

Totally transparent from every angle, the Fishbowl House features a warm lighting fixture for when the sunlight doesn’t pour in through the glass facade.

The home comprises two levels, the bottom houses the living area while the top floor keeps the home’s bedroom.

Positioned against the night sky, the Fishbowl House provides the perfect viewing spot for stargazing.

Filled to its brim with plant life, the Fishbowl House merges the outdoors with the indoors from the inside, out.

This alarm clock mimic’s the sun’s placement in the sky so you can always wake up energized!

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It’s not for everyone, but there’s nothing like waking up with the sun. Since getting out of bed with the sunrise is seen by some as only a sport reserved for the masochists among us, there are some alternative product designs that offer the same rejuvenated early-morning feeling, but don’t strain your eyes in the process. Incorporating the sunrise and sunset into an alarm clock’s digital facade, designer Yu Zechen came up with Sveglia Luce.

Zechen conceived Sveglia Luce in two shapes: one round and the other rectangular. Imitating the orbit around the globe, Sveglia Luce’s circular shape mimics a sunrise and sunset behind rows of mountain summits and a foggy horizon. Throughout the day, as time goes by, the illuminated sun travels the circumference of Sveglia Luce’s facade indicating the actual sun’s position in our skies. Zechen’s rectangular alarm clock still uses an illuminated sun as the clock’s main imagery, but instead of following the sun’s orbit around Earth and its position in the sky, it mimics a sunrise and sunset as viewed from a head-on perspective. Complete with alarm capabilities, night and day modes, as well as volume adjusters, Sveglia Luce blends a conventional alarm clock with an artful display.

In addition to the alarm clock’s imitative digital display, an accompanying scheduling app allows users to set their alarms remotely and taps into the same display as the physical clock, with changing home screens that project the sun’s placement in the sky. Now, no matter how late we sleep in, we can say we woke up with the sun.

Designer: Yu Zechen

As time goes on, the illuminated sun projection travels around the clock’s circumference indicating its real position in the sky.

A soft, optic white front display resembles those early, foggy mornings when the sun is still reaching its peak.

A rectangular display offers a similar projection, only displaying the sun’s placement when seen head-on.

An accompanying scheduling app allows users to control their clock even when they’re away from it.

The app also incorporates digital simulations of the sun’s placement in the sky.