The Madillo helmet’s design allows it to work as an indicator and distress beacon

Disruptive in both form and function, the Madillo helmet is quite unlike any helmet you may have seen. For starters, it ditches the regular hard-hat shell you’d expect from a helmet, for something Lukas calls an auxetic material, or a material capable of stretching in a given direction. This material and unusual pattern gives the Madillo the ability to comfortably take the shape of your head, embracing its shape. Connecting cords hold the helmet together and can be stretched through the earpiece (image above), to adjust the Madillo helmet’s shape.

Its hollow, grille-like design also allows light to pass through its crevasses, giving the Madillo the ability to work as an indicator. A thin lighting module sits under the outer material, shining to indicate when you’re turning left or right. Visible to the people beside and behind you, this feature helps fellow drivers know where you’re headed… but that’s not all. The Madillo comes with a life-saving beacon too that lights the helmet up to attract the attention of passers-by. Additionally, it even sends an SOS signal out to the nearest hospital and summons for an ambulance, while transmitting your location to make sure you’re escorted to safety.

The Madillo Helmet is a winner of the iF Design Talent Award for the year 2018.

Designer: Lukas Franz (University of Applied Sciences)

Stale Cabbage Patch

Love this concept of the Fridge Magnet that features a QR code-scanning function. Basically it provides information on the shelf life of food and keeps a tab on the expiry dates. In a good way, it also acts as an interactive, informative tool for children. It displays the image of the food item, its name, and place of origin, production date, proper temperature for preservation, and expiry date.

Here is how it works:

  • As the days progress, Fridge Magnet will change color, creating a strong visual reminder about the food’s level of freshness.
  • Green means the food is fresh, and red means the food has deteriorated and cannot be eaten.
  • Fridge Magnet also can be used as a children’s toy, helping children to learn more about food while they play.

Fridge Magnet is a 2013 red dot award: design concept winner!

Designers: Hu Yaxing, Chen Zhipeng, Liao Haibo & Tang Yigang

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(Stale Cabbage Patch was originally posted on Yanko Design)

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How Toxic Are You?

With the current GMO outcry, it is important that we ensure that what we are eating is nutritious and not the opposite. Nurtima is a kitchen scale that calculates the nutritional values, possible toxins and freshness of your food and ingredients. The scale combines piezoelectricity with smart and flexible technologies, and is charged by bending repeatedly. This action creates enough electric charge for the scale to operate for the duration required.

  • The scale along with weight, analyzes the food’s or ingredient’s weight, basic nutritional information (energy, protein, carbohydrates and fat content), freshness level, and cautions the user of high levels of the most common toxins, such as mercury.
  • It can also be used as a traditional kitchen scale when measuring ingredients in a bowl.

Nutrima is a 2013 Electrolux Design Lab semi-finalist.

Designer: Janne Palovuori

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(How Toxic Are You? was originally posted on Yanko Design)

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Colored Tiers Are Safer

The Discolor Tyre is a concept where the age and durability of the car tire is indicated and communicated through its color. Basically a tire is good for around 20,000 kilometers, and then its kinds worn out. With the Discolor Tyre, the tire takes on a bright orange hue once it is worn out and requires immediate replacement. It saves you the trouble of keeping a constant check and acts as a good warning system to keep your travels safe.

The Discolor Tyre is a 2012 iF Design Talents entry.

Designers: Gao Fenglin & Zhou Buyi

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(Colored Tiers Are Safer was originally posted on Yanko Design)

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Tasty Tastings

A wholesome, flavorsome meal is what cooking is all about. You know you want to serve the perfect dish for family and friends, but sometimes the right flavoring can get the better of you. To make sure that you always dish out the perfect meal, Tastee helps you by doing the tasting for you. Shaped like a spoon, the device is laced with receptors based on the human taste bud. This means it is adept at telling you if you got the flavors right, or if you need to add a pinch of salt and a dash of vinegar!

Tastee is a 2012 Electrolux Design Lab top ten finalist entry.

Designer: Christopher Holm-Hansen

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(Tasty Tastings was originally posted on Yanko Design)

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RGB + LED + USB = blink(1)

While I particularly like the look and programmability of the L8 SmartLight, it might be a bit showy and overkill for many needs. If you’re looking for a simpler way to indicate activity on your computer or the internet, you might want to check out this little gadget instead.

blink 1 a

It’s called the blink(1), and it’s a tiny programmable RGB LED with a USB connector on the end of it. Just plug one into a spare USB port, and you can program it to blink or glow in any color based on software triggers from your computer. For instance, you can have it glow when you have a new email, or maybe when a friend signs on to Skype. It can be used to indicate pretty much anything you’d like. And if you’ve got more than a single available USB port, you can go to town with multiple blink(1)s.

The blink(1) will ship with apps for Mac OS X, Windows and Linux, and since its designed to be Open Source, you’ll be able to custom program it for other applications as well – and there are C and Java APIs for low-level access. Each tiny blink(1) sells for $30(USD), or you can pick up a two-pack for $55 over on Kickstarter. The project has already surpassed its funding goal, so it’ll definitely go into production.


Smart Flame Control

Smart Angle is a visual aid for flame control on a gas stove. While cooking Chinese food, the hot Wok and ingredients are not the only thing you need to have a control over. The heat or the flame of the gas is the other key element you need to keep an eye on. The conventional way to control the flame is to bend at the waist and peek at the burner and then set the flame. Smart Angle eliminates this dangerous step by using refraction.

As the designers explain, Smart Angle helps the user to be more intuitive at controlling the flame while cooking. It prevents occupational disease that might occur in the long term; example: back and waist injuries.

Designers: Hsu Sean & Yih-Wenn Luo

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(Smart Flame Control was originally posted on Yanko Design)

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