June 2011 – Slurp, Life, BabyBloom

Try2Cycle

‘Try2Cycle’ from the Belgian designer Arnaud Eubelen is a progressive bicycle for 2 to 5 years old children. It helps to learn children, in a progressive way, how to ride a bicycle. The piece which allows the conversion of tricycle to bicycle mode is very easy to move. Once in bicycle mode, that piece is reused to keep the bike fixed upright once put away.

Hand-Held Fire Extinguisher

This is the first completely hand-held fire extinguisher we’ve seen. Apparently the one-time-use DKL can shoot suppressant about 10 feet out of the nozzle.

Life
Life from Andreas Ponti is a recycled paper-made water container. The idea is to dissuade people from using plastic bottles and use this one-day-use bottle instead. It’s crafted from natural cotton and recycled paper layer and it doesn’t use any chemical ink or adhesives that are tough to recycle. The handy green cord makes it easy for you to carry it along.

Babybloom

In a regular incubator, prematurely born babies can suffer brain damage due to overexposure to light and noise. Parents feel sad and powerless because of the limited contact. Heleen Willemsen graduated a few years ago on an improved design that invites parents to embrace their child and to sit in a comfortable position. A flower shaped cap can shut out light and noise. “The friendly design brings back the ‘babyness’ in the hospital”. Now the product is almost ready for market introduction. Watch the video /

Slurp

There have been many efforts in making digital gestures more tangible, and the Slurp digital eyedropper is another very interesting concept. It is a tangible interface for manipulating abstract digital information as if it were water. Rather than plug a usb drive into the port that corresponds with a specific file seen on a screen, just suck the file directly off the screen itself. Slurp is used like an eyedropper, it vibrates and displays light to indicate it’s state to the user. Watch the video /

Water purifier

This is an innovative reverse osmosis purifier, but it actually looks like a piece of art, not an appliance. The design is minimal and meant to be slightly organic – fluid like water. Hot, cold or room temperature – serve it up however you like.

Enamor

Enamor (an anagram of “one arm”), by designer Grace Lim, gives users with only one arm the opportunity to expand their cooking skills. The kit is simple and easy to clean and consists of both vegetable and meat cutting units that hug tightly onto any counter top.

Efficient design: enlarge sales and marketshare

What impact can design have on your business performance? A very large one. Especially if you implement design for a specific goal, so that it will give measurable results. In this serie about efficient design this time how design can be used to enlarge your sales and marketshare.

Do you compete mainly on price because your products do not dramatically differ from your competitors? Also other companies suffer from that. Mostly they will add more and more features to the product or come up with countless product variations.

That is how they loose contact with the consumer, who might not need those features and hence they loose more market share. As we design for experience, we help corporations to come up with new adorable offerings, that help them to differ from competition, raise higher margins and gain back market share.

Case: Music Centre
We designed a totally new concept with 250% higher margin potential then the present products of the company and we found a new distribution channel willing to run this product with 600 stores and a better shelf position, leading to more market share.

Client
Dutch manufacturer of consumer electronics

Strategy
Using design for experience, research into positioning of competitors, user friendly design, a lot of attention to details and attractive styling.

Case: Snooc
We developed a fully new hair styling product with 400% higher margin potential compared to competition offerings for the European markets. We received new distribution offerings for this product for Europe and the USA, leading to more market share.

Client
Asian manufacturer of personal care products

Strategy
Design for experience, testing with hair stylists, cross pollination by using automotive design styling, much attention to details.

Quickstart
Did you not work before with a design studio? Or do you like to try out our way of working, compared to your partner design office?

Then the Design Quickstart is an excellent project, offered to you for reduced rates. Read more about a quickstart project /

Turn-key product design
Do you want to realise a turn-key design project from plan to production? Do you need extra knowledge or capacity for your product development? We love to work with your team and take care of your concerns.

Our speed of product development and the possibility to develop both the product as the electronics and software are two reasons why companies work with us. Read more about turn-key product development /

Design News
David Carter’s POP UP

It’s not magic . . . It’s the power of your imagination! Follow the instructions and embark upon a magical journey! Each page of this surprising, irresistible book instructs the reader to press the dots, shake the pages, tilt them, and even blow on them – who knows what will happen next!

Kevin Angeloni Gris 12

Another way of seeing the gray pencil that everyone knows and is an indispensable tool for all creative minds.

Rubber Glass

Looks like glass, breaks like glass, but feels like rubber. This is a polyurethane that enables you to create glass and ice-like objects without the hassles of conventional breakaway plastic products. Unlike other plastics, this product cures at room temperature; once cured, it is odorless and easy to handle. You mix it up and shape it into whatever you need.

The Scroll Bookshelf

The Scroll Bookshelf is one of the most basic ways of managing your books in a tidy fashion. A metal sheet covered with a plastic sleeve and two sturdy end-rolls is what its all about.

May 2011 – Gobug, Autism connects, Sprout pen

Philco PC

Created by design studio SchultzeWORKS this stylish computer was inspired by the 1954 Philco Predicta television. Keyboard and mouse are created in the typewriter style but also have steampunk features.

Easy Access Bottle Cap

The teardrop shaped Easy Access Bottle Cap is an example how better designed things indeed improve people’s lives.

Engrain Tactile Keyboard

Michael Roopenian’s Engrain Tactile Keyboard seeks to strengthen the relationship between users and interfaces by giving them a new experience of moving their fingers across waves. These waves are not freely carved but strictly follow the user’s habit of typing and their figures’ movement on keyboards. As a result, you may feel your fingers are part of the keyboard when you use the Engrain.

Estelle Sauvage

A lamp with a very unusual design, created by Estelle Sauvage. The lamp can be used to heat water for a cup of tea with the help of a small light bulb. Sensual and captivating work indeed.

Gobug. Autism connects

Gobug is an interactive toy designed to facilitate an inclusive social learning experience for children with Autism Spectrum Disorder. Up to two or three children can play with the toy simultaneously. Each user takes ownership of one controller. These controllers work in conjunction; each user points his remote in a direction, and the Gobug moves in the combined direction of the active controllers.

Zerotouch

The Zerotouch infrared touchscreen lets users paint into the air. It is a screenless, transparent multi-touch display that uses infrared sensors to detect user input.
Watch the video /

Infinite Combo Longboard

The Downhill Machine from Nuno Pereira isn’t your conventional longboard. With the adjustability of a race car packed into a skate, the DM was made for speed. Each of the deck-mounted aerospace grade aluminum trucks can be fine-tuned independently so adjusting the width, angle, wheelbase, ground clearance, lift, and downforce are all possible without the need for multiple decks, trucks, and risers of conventional skates.

Sprout pen

Igor Lobanov’s Sprout pen concept reveals the ink within its clear body in the form of a plant-like sprout. As you use the pen, over time the ink diminishes and the sprout shrinks as if dying, but when you stick the pen into its inkwell, the pen fills with ink, “growing” the sprout.

Sosia sofa

Emanuele Magini’s nutty “Sosia” sofa is a highly innovative, transformable piece of furniture. The model is completely convertible, thanks to a malleable fabric flap that allows the owner to rearrange it into a variety of shapes and sizes. No matter which configuration you decide on that day, the soft-cushioned seats will provide plenty of lounging comfort.

Squishy magnet

This magnet is soft and squeezable to the touch. In every other way it is like a normal magnet; it has a north and south pole, opposite poles attract, like poles repel, and it is attracted to standard magnets.

April 2011 – Dona, Just & more

Dona

DONA is a robot that interactively solicits donations from passers-by. It engages people in a pet-like interaction. People rarely respond to adult humans in need but babies and animals? It’s very hard for us to resist. A wonderful exercise in behavioral science, sociology and robotics.

Watch the video /

Just Simple

Just5 is a global provider of mobile phones that are designed for optimal ease of use, reliability and emergency response, offering basic features that are ideal for people who love things to be simple. Features include large buttons, a high-volume speaker for amplified sound, a long-lasting battery for reliability, and a Personal Emergency Response System. Is your grand mum still allergic for the mobile phone? Try this one!

The ideal pencil

The Mitsubishi Pencil Company’s Kuru Toga model features a gear inside that rotates the pencil lead every time it’s put to paper, continually keeping a sharp, centered point on it. It seems they really did create the perfect pencil after all.

Watch the video /

Pleasurehunt

Advertising material being instead of annoying froth a viral game, cool, interactive, which you will like to play again and again? Hard to believe? – check it yourself!

Left Shoe Company

The Left Shoe Company placed their 3D scanners at Heathrow airport. From now on you can scan your foot for free and get a lot of interesting information about yourself. And then (unfortunately only for men) you can place an order and within a couple of weeks get an individual pair of leather shoes. As an addition you can even more personalize you shoes with a prevocational inscription according to your own taste.

Flux Chair

The flux chair design from Tom Jacobs and Douwe Schouten is based on the fascinating principles of the art of folding. Just in 10 seconds and with a few simple actions you can make from a plastic envelope a stylish design chair. Watch the video /

Acousto Optical Lock

Have you ever paced up and down a rack of bicycles trying to remember where you locked yours up at? The Acousto Optical Lock from Liu Yu is a steel ripe style cable lock that sends out an audio signal and lights up when you press a key.

Tactile Green Heater

This design by Younes Duret takes inspiration from Eastern oriental graphics and the traditional Moroccan hearth to create a transportable and calming space heater. The unit is composed entirely of recycled plastic.

Efficient design: quicker product introductions


What impact can design have on your business performance? A very large one. Especially if you implement design for a specific goal, so that it will give measurable results. In this serie about efficient design this time how design can be used to introduce products quicker.

Does the speed of product introductions become more important for you as well? Many R&D departments find that because of longer decision making processes and many people involved their time to market is no longer quick enough.

Design Tips
Speed does indeed become critical for companies when it comes to product introductions. R&D departments do not always have the resources and flexibility to quickly make decisions, therefore product developments take longer then needed and it becomes interesting to have product design done by a flexible design studio, which is quicker able to take a product from idea to production.

Case: Bloom Talk

Within 7 months this intercom system was developed from concept stage into production, including engineering, certifications, documentation, packaging, tooling, validations of first-out-of-tool products, quality assurance and a first production run of 1000 pieces.

Client

Belgium manufacturer of home automation systems

Strategy

Integrated development of both the electronics as well as the mechanical parts, strong project management, early stage involvement of manufacturing partners and suppliers.

Quickstart

Did you not work before with a design studio? Or do you like to try out our way of working, compared to your partner design office?

Then the Design Quickstart is an excellent project, offered to you for reduced rates. Read more about a quickstart project /

Turn-key product design

Do you want to realise a turn-key design project from plan to production? Do you need extra knowledge or capacity for your product development? We love to work with your team and take care of your concerns.

Our speed of product development and the possibility to develop both the product as the electronics and software are two reasons why companies work with us. Read more about turn-key product development /

Bluelarix presents on BNO Tallks

Different design studio’s presented different ways and visions on sustainable design during a full programm of BNO Tallks.


Inspiring was the way Andreas Knol from Bluelarix Designworks develops the Design Checklist, with a large number of sustainability aspects. This list is a fruitfull way to implement sustainable design before, during and after the design process. It is not just a memory list, but an extra inspiration during the design process.

Read more about BNO Tallks (dutch only) /

Design News

Paper / PP alloy

PEGA design & engineering introduces a new material: a recycled paper and polypropylene plastics based alloy that is attractive to the senses, environmentally friendly and uses the same injection mold machine and process as standard ABS plastic products. The paper PP alloy has the same high strength and elasticity as ABS, but is a cost effective, available, recyclable and reusable.

Squizits

Made for people who’s gotta keep moving to focus on mundane tasks. Developed in collaboration with a child with OCD and ADHD, Squizits provides children with a way to release excess energy through repetitive hand motions and various fidgets. Not just for kids, by the way!

Twist & Brush

A clever idea from Kawamura-Ganjavian: Twist & Brush, a convenient traveling toothbrush. You decide how much toothpaste you need, fill up the toothbrush, and twist to push the toothpaste up into the bristles.

March 2011 – Fiik, Ability, Bolefloor

Fiik

Fiik makes skateboards that cruise wherever you want, using an 800-watt motor and chunky, off-road tires. And that motor is controlled by a remote – you navigate yourself like you would a RC car. Watch the video /

Ability

Designed by pacemaker manufacturer Intrapace, the Abiliti stomach pacemaker is purportedly the first “intelligent” form of obesity intervention. Instead of simply constricting the stomach, the surgically-implanted pacemaker detects when a patient downs food or drink, and zaps the stomach with a series of electrical impulses to generate a feeling of fullness (the system utilizes the nerves around the stomach that signal fullness to the brain).

As a result, patients eat less than they would normally. The system goes beyond just zapping the stomach. It also collects information about food consumption and exercise, all of which can be downloaded to the doctor’s office or shared in the Abiliti online community.

Bolefloor

The wood pieces follow the tree’s natural growth, which creates the curves on the Bolefloor hardwood surfaces, that allows more floors to be created per forest, reducing the amount of natural resources taken up. And ofcourse much more beautiful then just straight pieces.

Cherry blossom soap

This cherry blossom soap exists of paper-thin pieces of guest soap that look like cherry blossom petals. Very sensual. Very.

Natural Self

Natural Self is a biodegradable flacon designed by Formboten. When the flacon gets closed a slitted closure covers the overhang of the PLA (Polylactid is a biodegradable thermoplastic derived from lactic acid) as a protection against skewing. A small PLA-label with the logo reveals the name of the fragrance which is scheduled for a natural cosmetic product.

Endoscope Camera

This endoscopy camera is one cubic millimeter in size and has to be more palatable than usual cameras used to peer into the human body. Developed in Germany, the prototype camera could go on sale as early as next year. But first researchers must ensure it could be affordable enough to be marketed as a disposable camera.

They’ve thrown the rule book out of the window by the sounds of it, fusing the sensor and lens using a different method than normal. The megapixel count may be below one, but apparently that’s enough for surgeons to get the inside story on a patient’s organs.

Landscape in a cup

This cup from japanese designer Yukihiro Kaneuchi was created using the concept that as we grow and age relationships are formed over time through interactions with others. As you drink your coffee over time, a tiny landscape appears from the coffee stain, evoking the same idea that a relationship develops and emerges over time with this object.

Bottle opener

With this concept bottle opener, the bottle cap is caught and stored right when the bottle is opened, within the bottle opener itself. Rest and order are in the house.

Goodjoy

Goodjoy has a new product for the design-conscious bathroom: a hooking toothbrush. Making oral hygiene even more hygienic, this way, the bristles are worlds away from the gunk that is hanging out on your sink.

A breath of live

Scotland-based artist and designer Fraser Ross presented his project “A Breath of Life”, a study of artificial plant life. Fraser explains “When the viewer blows into the specimen jars, each flower begins a shape change. Blowing is the appropriate interaction as trees and plants grow on carbon dioxide. Every living thing needs a home, plants change themselves to survive in their habitat.” Watch the video /

Fibonacci sequence

By definition, the first two Fibonacci numbers are 0 and 1, and each subsequent number is the sum of the previous two. So: 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, etc. Le Corbusier was one of the persons using this sequence in his designs and system of architectural ratios.

And we find paterns in nature that follow this sequence, like a flowerleaf, the spirals of the milkyway and the ratio of human hand bones. But the Fibonacci sequence is used a lot as well in classical works, poetry, architecture, art and music. We find them in the sonatas of Mozart and the Fifth Symphony of Beethoven.

As said, Le Corbusier used the sequence to harmonise the most important human sizes in order to come to his Modulor. That is a classical system of architectural ratio’s and sizes that is use till the day of today by many architects and designers, as a tool for practical and harmonic designs.

The Fibonacci sequence is named after Leonardo of Pisa, who was known as Fibonacci. Fibonacci’s 1202 book Liber Abaci introduced the sequence to Western European mathematics. It is not clear who first invented the sequence. When Fibonacci was 20 years old, he went to Algeria where he studied Indian and Arabic math, maybe there he learned about the sequence.

Design Tips
The Fibonacci sequence is still one of the most influencial paterns in mathematic and design. You could use the sequence when developing interesting compositions, geometrical paterns and organic motives and contexts. Do not try to force the sequence in your design, but if you have a chance of using it without your design being compromised on other aspects, then use it.

February 2011 – Nuance, Gorenje, One liter limited

Nuance

RKS Design’s syringe is an innovative reinvention for the dental industry. Nuance is a product that makes creating aesthetic restorations rather simple by combining filler particles that mimics optical properties of tooth structure. The product offers ease in handling, with a uniquely easy delivery system.

Gorenje

Gorenje launched a new touchscreen control panel for their built-in kitchen appliances. Very nice interaction, everyone can cook. Check out the video demo /

One Liter Limited

This conceptual faucet only gives the user a one liter-sized burst before forcing them to wait for the reservoir to refill. Time from full to empty is estimated at 30 seconds.

Haptica

It does not happen that often, that products which are designed for people with some sort of disability are so cool that they get a real desired object. Great done!

Waldok

HERNstudio created the Waldok. No cables, no dangers of electric shock, just plug and play.

iCan Play

Interesting approach from Fisher Price. The company introduces a plastic enclosure toy, which stores any generation of iPhone or iPod Touch and has a screen cover to protect your precious gadget. More over, Fisher Price is adding a few new Laugh & Learn apps to the App Store as well!

Loewe Invisio

Michael Friebe opens up the future for us, presenting this almost invisible TV screen, for those who are tired of having a reproduction of Malevich’s Black Square in their interior.

THIS

Leen Sadder, a design student, had to redesign the first thing she threw away after class. She ended up throwing away a toothbrush. Some people in the Middle East, Pakistan and India use a Miswak twig to brush their teeth. Leen Sadder after some ethnographical research came up with THIS. Finaly a totally natural and biodegradable toothbrush.

Jarnbombing

When Magda Sayeg began Knitta Please in 2005, it was her response to the dehumanizing qualities of an urban environment. By inserting handmade art in a landscape of concrete and steel, she adds human quality to products that otherwise rarely exists.

Signs

These reflective bicycle components are made from reused road signs, collected from several sources in Australia. They do not only provides character but tell the life-story of the road sign, serving its public duty on the freeway.

About us


Bluelarix Designworks’ specialism in the fields of interaction and user friendly design, our speed of product development and the possibility to develop both the product as the electronics is highly valued by our clients.

Competing with design 

The consumer and user are the startingpoint, we are a specialist in designing interaction and user friendly products. Our clients use design to compete with branding, styling, functionality and user friendliness.

Quick time to market

We form a flexible design team. Products are designed in a synchonized way, including design, interaction, engineering, electronics and software, turn key from plan to production. That means less headache for you and a quick lead time.

How kids experience old technology

Recently a grade school child came across an old corded telephone in a junk shop and exclaiming to her parent “look, this way you won’t loose your phone!” … not realizing it was a necessary part of the technology.

Design is all about context. When that contextual information is removed, products can be very confusing. As designers we often see this when people are introduced to a new technology that is manifested in a design that breaks so strongly with tradition that they don’t know how to use it. We often try to build in affordances that allow them to relate their current technology to their new technology. Think of how the play button from your Walkman went straight to you Discman, then to your iPod, and as a digtal button on interfaces.

A nice video shows kids and how products are taken out of their time context and are given to them, products from many years ago that seen so familair to most of us, but they have a hard time to understand what those products are all about…

January 2011 – Incubator, Steam Roaster

mBrace

A simple solution that helps you carry around your MacBook with ease.

Dressed-up furniture

The great success of knitted furniture does make some designers look further into combining furniture and clothes. Korean design studio Kamkam presents their vision: “It will make you feel fresh by mixing the familiar elements of normal actions like fastening a button and daily furniture like stool, storage and bench”.

Power of Paper: Katsumi HAYAKAWA

Beaker lamps with ferrowatt bulbs

Interesting, is this all due to the major European crussade against the glow lamp that such a things suddenly gets fashionable? Anyway, the ambiance of dusty laboratory from a century ago is quit a thing nowdays.

Akopo: sensual & economic

Why warm up all the place if you need to warm only yourself? That kind of ideas you can see spread across the continents and ages, from “kotatzu” in Japan to “stoof” in Holland. Dutch designer Julien Bergignat reconciles both ways of surviving the winter.

This radiator system doesn’t just radiate heat like any traditional radiator but also has warm detachable modules for a nice massage over your neck and back made from PVC elastomer and ceramics.

Bathroom products

Bluelarix Designworks designed this line of bathroom products, existing of 5 accessories and a new connection system. The line will see production soon.

Soap Flakes

Nathalie Stampfli’s brilliant Soap Flakes dispensers use bars of soap while taking cues from cheese graters and peppermills.

Steam Roaster from COMPEIXALAIGUA

This multifunctional bowl takes the advantage of silicone’s flexibility to change its shape. On a closed position it combines the advantages from steam cooking plus a crunchy finishing produced by the air circulation from its open ends. When opened it is merely a bowl, but you can prepare, weight and mix all the ingredients and even serve straight from the oven.

Design That Matters

NeoNurture presents an incubator created with salvaged parts from broken cars. Headlights, air filters, filaments, the guts of the car become the life of a fully functioning incubator. It’s an elegant approach that ties together smart design, recycling, and of course – saving babies.

December 2010 – end of the year

2011

We hope you enjoyed our blog this year and also next year, staring in january we will be sending you the latest news and interesting articles on design, interaction and product development.

2010

It has been a good year with many interesting projects we have done in our design studio and also for next year some very nice projects are planned, about which we can tell more as soon as they enter the market.

Design Thinking

Next year we will have some expansion of our team, not only in the field of industrial design, but we will also enlarge our electronics design capacity, because we believe that design, products, interaction, electronics, software and services are getting more and more connected, and design is not only used anymore on products, but also on concepts where products and services are connected. To make that possible for our clients, it is important to have knowledge in the fields of design, interaction and electronics, where Design Thinking is leading in the process of development.

If you have plans in your company for some new product design projects, then we are also in 2011 at your service.

For now we wish you all a great Christmas and a happy and creative 2011!

The Bluelarix Designteam

The physical-feedback effect

or how Wii and Kinect hack your emotions…

Nintendo’s Wii game console may owe some of its extraordinary success to emotions that are triggered by specific movements: It might essentially be using your body to hack into your brain. The Nintendo Wii introduced physical movements to gaming consoles and in just four years became the fastest-selling console of all time. Now Isbister and her colleagues are investigating how Wii games can make us feel by mapping the responses certain movements and gestures evoke.

Numerous studies have shown that movements or postures generate cues the mind can use to figure out how it feels, a phenomenon called “the physical-feedback effect”.

One of the very known one is en experiment with a pen squeezed either in between the teeth (a position which creates insentives to the “smiling” muscles) or in between the lips (a position supressing the “smiling” facial muscles) has proved the importance of muscular activity and it connection to the level of intensivity of emotional experience.

Nintendo’s Wii game console may theirfore owe some of its extraordinary success to emotions that are triggered by specific movements: it might essentially be using your body to hack into your brain.

Design tips
A better understanding of which motions trigger our emotions might not only lead to better games, but could one day help improve the iPhone, iPad and other gesture-based and multitouch interfaces as well. It seems that just organizing our daily movements could have an enormous positive boost to our emotions.