Tag Archives: Central Saint Martins

Learning, Playing, Performing, this modular gadget with interchangeable gaming + music interfaces lets you do it all.

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Designed as a direct opposition to devices that encourage endless media consumption, KANO-XP focuses on creation and experimentation. With a Game Boy-inspired aesthetic, the KANO-XP boasts of a modular interface system, alternating between gaming controls to a synth to a MIDI pad.

I imagine this is exactly the kind of thing the folks at Teenage Engineering would create, although the KANO-XP is the brainchild of Cameron Bensimon, a final-year student at Central Saint Martins, London. Designed to help empower teenagers when it comes to creation (and occasionally recreation), KANO-XP introduces them to the joy of music-making before they slip into the addictive grasps of social media and streaming apps.

The bright orange handheld gadget runs on a Raspberry Pi Compute Module, and features a small display along with the interchangeable interface system. The two main interfaces are the traditional synth interface, modeled on the popular piano keys, and the MIDI button layout, designed for electronic music production. “The modularity makes it a perfect tool for DJs as a soundboard or a synthesizer, or it could be the brains of a robot for a high school project”, says Cameron. The latter example would most likely be powered by the KANO-XP’s third interface, a gaming control layout comprising a D-Pad and 4 action buttons. Given that the KANO-XP is a student project and not a commercial one, there isn’t much clarity on the kind of software it would run, but Cameron mentions that KANO-XP’s design is open-source, and can support additional peripherals like sensors, transmitters, or even a webcam.

Ultimately, it’s merely a tool for youngsters to unleash their creativity. The musical interfaces allow kids to explore, experiment, jam, and compose, while the gaming interface either serves as an input for robotics-inspired projects, or just as a way to casually let off steam by playing a few games between projects!

Designer: Cameron Bensimon

The Bridge desk adds a roof garden right above your workspace for a touch of greenery in the office

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Merging the outdoors with the indoors, the Bridge is a work-desk accessory that adds greenery to your workplace. Quite literally a breath of fresh air when it comes to furniture design, the accessory sits on top of any open desk design, occupying the ‘no man’s land’ in between opposing workstations, and comes with a channel on top that’s designed to house an entire row of indoor plants.

The Bridge builds on the increasingly popular idea of an open office and a collaborative workspace (as opposed to compartmentalized cabin spaces). It’s entirely made from plywood and can be flat-packed to a location and assembled on spot. It uses wooden joineries instead of metal/glue fixtures, and can be assembled and propped onto any open desk, uplifting your current workspace with a neat touch of greenery. The channels are big enough to hold potted plants and they give you the freedom to add plants of your own choice. Since the plants sit in their own planters (instead of directly in the wooden channel), they can easily be watered too without worrying about wood-rot or exposing the plywood to excess water/moisture. Just be slightly wary against dropping water on the expensive computers/equipment below!

Designer: Rowena Potter

The design comes from Rowena Potter, an artisanal designer and a final-year student at Central Saint Martins, London.

The entire design is made using only 1 sheet of plywood board utilizing the simple CNC machining process.