Designs for the Better World

Posts tagged “Gadget

Frostie – Digital Music Player Concept

Have you ever tapped a table with your fingers as if you were playing the piano? Or drums? Air guitar? Yes I have and I wish there were real sound made according to the movements of my fingers.

So what about a digital music player that not only plays music like iPods, but also actually plays sounds in your mind?

If it could listen to your song and adjust the tone, it would be more fun. Auto cord sounds would be exciting.


I love music, but I’m not satisfied with a digital music player I can only carry with me. I want something that can be part of me; something that is with me all the time, gives me what I want and creates what I imagine. You know, music is not only for listening.

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Trou – Hologram Projecting Flexible Mobile Phone Concept

This is the second idea I submitted for a future mobile design competition held last month. The theme was “Design the mobile phone of 2020″.

trou2_image2

trou_image1

The technology of holography is progressing day by day. In 10 years, I hope it will have already been developed for mass production and will of course used in our mobile phones. The area conventionally used for a display in a mobile phone will no longer need to be a screen with 3D projecters. Instead, it could be a hole, which allows another useful purposes.

trou_human_image1-2

At the same time, the materials used for the outer body of a mobile phone will become softer and softer. By successfully combine those attributes, there could be a mobile phone with a flexible vacant frame, which projects hologram in the vacant area.

When you have it in your hand, you can use it just as a conventional mobile phone except for the fact that what you see is 3D holography!

trou_human3_image
Because its frame area is flexible enough to let your wrist go through the hole, you can wear it around your wrist. A quick phone answering can be done while you are wearing it.

trou_human3-2_image

trou4_image
3D projectors are located inside the flexible frame, which project dramatic holography.

trou3_image

trou5_image

trou_7_image2

trou_8-2_image3

trou_9_image1

trou6_image2

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Funny USB Memory Sticks #5

Funny USB Memory Sticks #5
How about a USB memory stick that looks hungry when there’s no data in it?

Funny USB Memory Sticks #5
The inflated belly means the memory is full.

Funny USB Memory Sticks #5

Funny USB Memory Sticks #5
This one is different from the other previous ones.

Funny USB Memory Sticks #5
Plug it in a USB port and start pumping it, then on the screen, the icon scatters what’s in it.

Funny USB Memory Sticks #5
The harder you pump, the farther the icons travel.


Also visit the other series of this gadget.


Part1


Part2


Part3


Part4

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iAcqua

Maybe I’m into projector concepts.

It’s an iPhone stand with a transparent touch screen, speaker and projector.
Dock your iPhone at the top.

iAcqua- iPhone speaker, visualizer, projector

Tilt it slowly to either side and your photos, songs or movies start running one after another at random like water coming out from a fountain. Each image will disappear in a few seconds. You can touch a photo to see it, a movie to play and a music icon to play the song.

iAcqua- iPhone speaker, visualizer, projector

iAcqua- iPhone speaker, visualizer, projector

Now turn up the faucet and when the dish is full, the images will be spilled on the floor, which are actually projection from the stand. You can also tilt the stand to spill images little by little to a certain direction.
And now you can play with larger images.

iAcqua- iPhone speaker, visualizer, projector

When you play music, you can see the visualizer working. Spill the visualizer on the floor and you see “full-screen” projected visualizer!

iAcqua- iPhone speaker, visualizer, projector

iAcqua- iPhone speaker, visualizer, projector

behind the scenes
Behind the scenes on my Flickr
.

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Snowcorn: Another Sixth Sense Device Concept

It took a few days to render these images and while I was rendering them, I was surprised to see this demo at TED. The concept is almost identical! How nice!

bracelet with camera, projector and wifi

Mine’s a bracelet like flexible device with a camera, a projector and Wifi installed. You can also put it on anywhere on your cloth around your chest or neck.

bracelet with camera, projector and wifi

The transparent part is a screen to show basic function or the time. Customize it with the colors and style you like.
Complicated controls can be done in the projected UI.

bracelet with camera, projector and wifi
Scan a business card to add the person’s name and other information to your address book through wifi.

bracelet with camera, projector and wifi
Translate a word/phrase you’re not familiar with in a book.

bracelet with camera, projector and wifi
Look for a way to get to a station on a train map.

There could be a lot more ways to use this device, so I’ll make the posts later.

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Sign Language Interpreter

sign language interpreter
The camera captures the motion image of the speaker’s hand gesture. It translates it into an oral language and gives out the translated words.

sign language interpreter

sign language interpreter
(the camera capturing the image)

sign language interpreter

You can pre-choose what kind of voice you’d like it to speak in. I’ll pick up tat of George Clooney’s. 🙂

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Speech Balloons for the Hearing-Impaired

Speech balloons in comic books show very well how the characters speak. If we could instantly visualize how people speak, wouldn’t it be nice for the hearing-impaired? It means they can SEE our voices.

Speech balloons for hearing-impaired
Stressed words are rendered larger than those spoken less loudly.

Speech balloons for hearing-impaired
Arrows of the balloons show from where it’s spoken (of course).

Speech balloons for hearing-impaired
A scream is shown in a balloon with jags.

Speech balloons for hearing-impaired
Imitation sounds are also rendered, but with other colors than spoken words.

Speech balloons for hearing-impaired
When spoken to from out of the screen, it shows the words with the direction the voice is from.

Speech balloons for hearing-impaired
A pair of glasses with the same functions could replace the device if we could figure out a good way not to block visual information.

Also visit the other series of this gadget.


Part1:”Future of Internet Search: Mobile version”


Part2:”Future of Mobile Internet Search: Applications”

future search mobile #3-2
Part3:”Look at What You Don’t See Through Glass”

future mobile search for diet
Part4:”Future of Mobile Search for Diet”

future mobile search
Part5:”Future of Mobile Search- Search Beyond Time”

future of mobile search6
Part6:”Future of Mobile Search- Power of Visualization”

future mobile search
Part7:”Future of Mobile Search: Virtual Shopping #1″


iPhone with Looking Glass
See also the iPhone version of this concept.

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Horizon

If we can build flexible OLED like this, we won’t have to worry about what size of a monitor you’ll buy any more.

future desktop concept

future desktop computer concept

future desktop computer concept

future desktop computer concept

Future Desktop Computer Concept

horizon

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Lifenote Personal Tablet

Lifenote Personal Tablet (PT)

Now I can tell one of the announcements I mentioned at the end of 2008.

Lifenote is an innovative technology development company based in Los Angeles, California. The company was founded in 2008 by two UCLA graduates who dreamed of a world free from paper clutter, and a learning environment that is more intuitive, productive, and collaborative.
They approached me for help in 3D molding last year, and I helped out mainly with the 3D mock designs, initial modeling and rendering of the Lifenote Personal Tablet, which is specialized for digital writing and viewing electronic documents. They were in CES 2009 to introduce this tablet as well as other great products, so some of you who visited CES might have known it already.

Anyway, it was a lot of fun creating mock designs of a REAL gadget. I hope I can do it again.

Lifenote Personal Tablet (PT)

Lifenote Personal Tablet (PT)

Please note that the copyright belongs to Lifenote, not me. So if you want to use the above image/s, please contact Lifenote.


Lupa

Lupa
Lupa
Lupa
Lupa
Lupa
Lupa
lupa

“Lupa” is loupe in Spanish, Czech, etc.
It’s fun to design a mobile phone based on a certain concept.

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Wild Fold

With Samsung Flexible OLED, how we fold a mobile phone could be limitless especially if it could work as a touch screen.

pen-like folded phone?

pen-like folded phone?

pen-like folded phone?

pen-like folded phone?

slanted fold phone?

slanted fold phone?

slanted fold phone?

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Tired of Numbers?

Fun, interactive desktop hygrometer and thermometer just for fun.
Interactive hygrometer

Interactive thermometer

Interactive thermometer
Red circles become blue when the temperature becomes negative.

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Swing, Charge & Study

Sway, Charge & Study
Swing this many times and you get some electricity to charge your iPhone. This time, its motion censor sends your form data to your iPhone so that you can see your own golf swing animated.

Sway, Charge & Study

Sway, Charge & Study

Sway, Charge & Study
Compare your form with that of Tiger Woods?

Sway, Charge & Study
Caution: Make sure you are not too close to anyone when playing.

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See also the previous post.


Glassy Glassy

The previous mobile phone concept seems popular, so I made a few more designs with double glassy layers. Your fingerprints would have to be cleaned off so often, but I want to have one like these.

glassy phone

glassy phone giving the feeling of depth

glassy phone giving the feeling of depth

glassy phone giving the feeling of depth

glassy phone giving the feeling of depth

glassy phone giving the feeling of depth


It was used in the TOTOTA official near future mobility life short movie!


You Can Work It Out

handgrip battery charger

handgrip battery charger

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See #2 of this concept.


Double Layered Transparent Screen

Double layered transparent screen for a mobile phone would give a feeling of "depth".
It would give a feeling of “depth”, I guess.

Double layered transparent screen for a mobile phone would give a feeling of "depth".

Double layered transparent screen for a mobile phone would give a feeling of "depth".

Double layered transparent screen for a mobile phone would give a feeling of "depth".

Double layered transparent screen for a mobile phone would give a feeling of "depth".

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Your Desktop To Go

wider but thinner than mac mini

next mac mini?

next mac mini?

next mac mini?

optional keyboard + screen

optional keyboard + screen

new mac mini?

next mac mini?

new_mini

Don’t die, Mac Mini!

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Flexible Trackpad Turning Mouse

Flexible trackpad turns mouse

Flexible trackpad turns mouse

Flexible trackpad turns mouse

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Desktop Clock

mac-like aluminum desktop clock

mac-like aluminum desktop clock

mac-like aluminum desktop clock

mac-like aluminum desktop clock

Sorry for the slow update. I have so many ideas scribbled in my Moleskine, but these days I just haven’t had enough time to have them rendered to introduce here. I’ll make a few posts about some future digital gadgets from next time.

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Just a Sketch: Keyboard

Keyboard

Keyboard

Keyboard

Keyboard


Just a Sketch: Mobile Phone

Tired of the boring design of my mobile phone, just drew one like Nokia Aeon that I wanna have.

want a mobile like this!

want a mobile like this!

mobile phone concept

want a mobile like this!

want a mobile like this!

want a mobile like this!



See the next mobile phone concept, too.


Future Camera Concept

future camera concept

future camera concept

future camera concept

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Snow Globe Screen

Philips Momento + a snow globe

snow globe screen

snow globe screen

snow globe screen

Snow Globe Screen

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Future of Mobile Search: Virtual Shopping #1

future mobile search

future mobile search

I’m pretty sure companies like Ikea would quickly start to use this device this way if it became really available.

Also visit the later series of this gadget.


Part1:”Future of Internet Search: Mobile version”


Part2:”Future of Mobile Internet Search: Applications”

future search mobile #3-2
Part3:”Look at What You Don’t See Through Glass”

future mobile search for diet
Part4:”Future of Mobile Search for Diet”

future mobile search
Part5:”Future of Mobile Search- Search Beyond Time”

future of mobile search6
Part6:”Future of Mobile Search- Power of Visualization”

Speech balloons for hearing-impaired
Part8:”Speech Balloons for the Hearing-Impaired”


iPhone with Looking Glass
See also the iPhone version of this concept.

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