Tag Archives: Hongik Grad Show

When AR and VR meet the outdoors. This mixed reality headset was designed to be worn everywhere

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Metaverse, meet universe. So much of our AR and VR experience is limited to the indoors. When the landline became a truly wireless (or cordless) device, the first thing that people did was move around with it. No wires means no boundaries, and the smartphone experience is proof. You can use a phone in the subway, on a mountain, even in the middle of a lake. AR/VR headsets? Not so much.

Designed as a graduation project by the students of Hongik University, Calypso is a mixed reality headset that’s designed to be worn and experienced outdoors. While the original intent of the MR headset was to be able to visualize micro aspects of the world like viruses in a much more observable way (making the microscopic world macroscopic), the Calypso’s design treatment is quite impressive, with the way the headset promotes outdoor use without sacrificing functionality or processing power.

Designers: Hyelim Shin & Youngin Cho

So, how does Calypso do that? Well, it works quite like a desktop computer does… by separating the display from the processing unit. The Calypso’s processor sits in a cylindrical gadget that straps to your body, while the display itself fits around your head, with both the devices interfacing wirelessly. Cameras on the headset send information to the ‘computer’, and the computer in return sends data back that gets displayed on the headset’s tinted MR glasses.

This separation is truly a thing of marvel, as it allows the headset to be a slick, non-clunky device (unlike current AR/VR gear that actually look like massive cinder blocks strapped to your face). Pretty much just the way a cloud server works, all the processing happens ‘outside’ the headset. If I had to draw a parallel, Google’s Stadia would be the perfect analogy. Instead of owning a powerful gaming computer that runs processor-heavy games, Stadia lets you outsource the processing online, so you’re just effectively streaming the game while playing it. Calypso works similarly, with the headset and the body-worn processor interfacing wirelessly.

This really removes all constraints for the headset’s design. There’s no need for a large CPU/GPU, a massive battery, inbuilt memory, or advanced cooling systems. The headset is now a rather sleek looking wearable that clips together magnetically near the bridge of the nose.  Wear the headset when you want to, unplug it and have it resting around your neck when you don’t… it’s entirely up to you.

Cameras on the Calypso give it its augmented reality abilities and spatial awareness. The Calypso comes with two cameras/sensors beside each lens, creating an array of four sensors near the nose, as well as two cameras on either side, above the cheeks. Astute observers will also notice the bone-conducting headphones on the temple-stems, allowing you to immerse yourself in audiovisual content.

The Calypso’s ‘meat’ lies in its body-worn processing center. This cylinder contains everything the Calypso needs to be a high-performance device. It houses a motherboard, CPU and GPU, storage, battery, cooling system, and speakers on each side that work in unison with the headset, sending and receiving information in real-time.

Is something like Calypso possible in real life? Well, the most immediate concern is sheer latency, given the amount of data input/output happening between the two devices. Something makes me think that 5G could, to some degree, solve those problems, although a simple cable also works, personally. Sure, it destroys the futuristic illusion of having two wireless devices, but then again, is a cable really that bad after all??

The post When AR and VR meet the outdoors. This mixed reality headset was designed to be worn everywhere first appeared on Yanko Design.

What would thrift shopping look like in the metaverse?

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Built around the idea of a digital universe (or a metaverse), Around is a unique approach to thrifting, that facilitates the exchange of original products through online trading… and relies on NFTs to act as a proof of product authenticity as well as a sort of warranty card.

Sure, cryptocurrencies and NFTs are an absolute curse for the environment, although this new conceptual VR marketplace is certainly doing its part by promoting a somewhat sustainable culture of second-hand product ownership and an extension of a product’s life cycle. Meet ‘Around’, a metaverse marketplace for your physical goods. Much like a digital storefront like Amazon or Shopify, it allows products to be bought and sold, although it lets individual sellers sell their own belongings, sort of like a virtual garage sale – think eBay but better. What’s interesting about Around is that it doesn’t just let you buy and sell used goods, it’s a comprehensive virtual world where even your digital avatar buys and sells items too… so a pair of actual Jordans purchased in the physical world would also mean that your digital avatar would own a pair of Jordans.

Secondhand products are simply auctioned off to the highest bidder in this virtual universe. Your digital character participates in a bidding war with other characters, and the person who wins the bid doesn’t just get the actual product shipped to them, they also get the bragging rights of their avatar owning a digital copy of the product too (similar to buying skins on Fortnite). Along with the digital copy, your avatar even acquires the product’s NFT, which acts as proof of ownership and authenticity. An NFT is minted for each individual product, sort of like a digital badge, and when you sell a product, the NFT gets transferred to its new owner. The NFT serves as a warranty certificate in the real world, allowing brands to live up to the promise of their product’s quality, and for the added flair, it displays as a digital badge in your digital world, allowing you to flaunt your swag in the real world as well as the metaverse!





What Around proposes isn’t something radically new, but it does package a few existing concepts, like product ownership, thrifting, NFTs, and the metaverse into a singular cohesive solution. It seeks to reinvent how youngsters shop in the future, offering an interactive, immersive virtual storefront that people can practically line up in front of to buy limited-edition merch, effectively turning the digital store into a new social space.

Designer: Jeongin Lee

The post What would thrift shopping look like in the metaverse? first appeared on Yanko Design.

This indoor dog game brings in the outdoors and hides treats for your pet to sniff out!

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Keeping pets entertained is a ‘round-the-clock sort of gig. Chew toys get boring too quickly and sometimes dogs might confuse their pent-up energy for a reason to take a walk – forty minutes and two laps around the block in and your dog still hasn’t gone number two, instead only endlessly sniffing and marking territories. While they might not be releasing what we’d like them to, even on those walks, dogs need ways to relieve energy. The constant stimulation that naturally comes with spending time outdoors gives your pup space and time to discharge all their energy, but it also shouldn’t be the only means for that. While taking your dogs on walks should always be encouraged, Gosewalk, a nose work play toy for dogs, offers a playful way for dogs to funnel their pent-up energy that won’t require putting on your outdoor shoes.

Designed by Jihyun Han, Gosewalk consists of two toy pieces, a multi-surfaced mat that resembles the different terrain found outdoors, and a silicone puzzle that stows away dog treats for your pup to sniff and find. The multi-surfaced mat brings the outdoors to your dog with different fabrics resembling different terrains. Twisted and shaggy polyester mimics the look and feel of grass, while tan corduroy and water-repellant canvas brings the colors of sand and soil to your dog’s snout. Pockets and flaps line the mat’s fabrics and provide perfect hiding places for treats and mixtures of herbs and scents to entertain your pup. The silicone puzzle, which seems to be a smaller, more portable companion piece to the bulkier mat, resembles the look of grass through its tender, spring green silicone nubs that grid the toy. Hidden compartments are carved into the silicone puzzle where dog owners can store treats for their pups to sniff out and munch on. Then, in the middle of the puzzle, a darker green, ruffled and leafy centerpiece camouflages yet another hidden storage compartment which can be used to stow away packets of herbal mixtures for dogs to sniff on while hunting for treats. Both parts of Gosewalk, the silicone puzzle, and the mat are washable and also designed to last long, so your pup won’t be able to dig this toy to shreds.

Gosewalk’s origin comes from the merging of three words: grass, nose, and walk. Taking a dog on a walk even one time will show anyone that a dog’s sense of smell is everything. Knowing that dogs make sense of their world through different smells and their memory associated with them, Han centered Gosewalk’s solution concept around the ability to smell and locate. Designed to offer the same effect that comes with taking your dog on walks outdoors, Gosework gives your dog reason to dig and chew and sniff until they’ve found all the hidden treats stored inside. Make sure your pup doesn’t get too good at the game though, treats add up, you know.

Designer: Jihyun Han

Air Purifying Window that uses sunlight to purify your home also creates a Foggy Screen to retain your privacy

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After spending a year quarantined with three roommates, the air quality in our apartment, if you can imagine, has grown quite stuffy. The solution seems simple: crack open a window. That’s true, we could do that, but giving our neighbors a clear view into our home does not sit well with any of us. For my roommates and I specifically, we have the bad luck of having large windows that look out onto a frequently traveled hallway, which gives our neighbors a clear window into our apartment.

Privacy or fresh air? That is the compromise that many apartment dwellers — especially those with ground-floor units — face. The Hazy Air Purifier is a window that ensures privacy while providing proper ventilation. How does it work? The device utilizes a new concept called HAZE, which uses sunlight to heat the air inside your home; this “heat haze” purifies the atmosphere and creates a foggy screen that obscures your interior living space from passing neighbors.

How does the Hazy air purifier fit into your living space? After all, windows come in all sizes. The designers fixed this issue with the Hazy’s height-adjustable frame. As long as your apartment has rectangular windows, the Hazy will likely be a perfect fit. Alternatively, the product also works as a standing unit; it doesn’t have to be fixed to the wall. Unfortunately, this method means losing out on the product’s main selling point: the hazy window effect. However, on its own, the Hazy air purifier’s unique shape won’t clash with your decor or clutter or living space, but may also attract some interested, quizzical questions from house guests.

Designer: Jisu Yang