Aside from being just a bio-reactor and a local renewable energy source, the Eco-Pod will also be a good research incubator where scientists can examine algae species and ways of fuel extraction, including innovative methods of using low energy consuming LED lighting for modifying the algae growth cycles. This module can easily be placed to various places around Boston, infilling empty sites, examining new proposals, and creating initiatives with other communities in order to meet the growing energy requirements.

Designer : Howeler + Yoon and Squared Design Lab

Here’s short description about Grätzel panel :

“There’s a revolution going on in solar energy, which is about to become part of our daily lives in unexpected ways – appearing with multiple forms, richly coloured and with multiple functions. A new generation of solar cells has been born : thin, coloured, translucent and even flexible. The source of this revolution is EPFL (Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne), where Professor Michael Graetzel, inspired by plant photosynthesis, began to use molecules from colorants to transform the sun’s light into electricity. His work drew heavy praise from the scientific community, resulting in a World Technology Award. While many other technological developments have followed, designers need to take advantage of the extraordinary potential of these “dye-sensitized” solar cells. It will ultimately be up to them to fully explore the possibilities of this form of solar energy – to render us conscious of the significance of this major change.”

Designer : Léa Longis, Photographic credits to Véronique Huyghe.

The minimalist interior features control steering pod, a mimicking game like control where brake and gas paddles embedded close to the steering wheel, offering next generation driving environment. The wheels are fully immersed with rubberized tire with independent spoke arrangement that allows the wheels to absorb the road bumps without having used the suspensions. Moreover, the out of the body wheel base has added few extra with the innovative look that the car already has with its clear body shell and green house like design.

The technology aspect of Pholeum includes a composition of memory plastic body work, allowing the material to be deformed back to its original shape under application of heat from scratches and dents. These plastic can be recycled further and remolded again into the same component if the damage is irreparable. The chassis is made of durable aluminum alloy, making the vehicle strong and lightweight. Comprehensive safety for the driver has been ensured with three external airbags, designed to deploy by sensing a fast automobile within a few meters of its radius through motion sensors. Each wheel contains quad electric motors empowered with efficient next generation hydrogen fuel cell technology.

Designer : Alexei Mikhailov

Adam explanations about A.R.C :

The ‘A.R.C’ (Amphibious Rescue Craft) is a rugged all terrain vehicle that can be used to deliver vital aid and supplies anywhere required including flooded areas which are inaccessible to most other vehicles. Variable height ground clearance combined with large wheels and all terrain tyres provide excellent off road capabilities, whilst a boat hull and retractable wheels enable the A.R.C to plane at high speeds across water with minimal friction and uncompromised performance.

The high output diesel engine powers the wheels when on land and the water jet propulsion system when waterborne which can deliver up to one tonne of thrust. Once landed at its destination, the A.R.C uses an on-board crane (known as a ‘Multilift’ system) to rapidly deploy a supply unit containing anything from medicine or food to a water purification system. The water filtration units can be deployed at the site of a mass flood and used to purify contaminated flood water, returning it to life-saving drinking water which is otherwise scarce in flooded third world environments.

Supply units can also be opened to form mobile shelters for distribution of supplies or temporary living quarters/command centres etc. An unfoldable canopy marked with an ID symbol and number (e.g. Red Cross, Supply Unit number etc.) provides shelter from the rain and can be easily identified by passing rescue helicopters. The name A.R.C not only stands for Amphibious Rescue Craft but also identifies with Noah’s Arc which was believed to have been used as rescue / refuge craft during a mass flood.

Designer : Adam Schacter

[Press Release]
Thousand Oaks, California, June 23, 2009 – World-recognized strategy, innovation, and design consultancy RKS and Water Advocacy KOR Water teamed together again to create a strategy that empowers consumers to make a difference. The result of this collaboration is the introduction of KOR’s Thirst for Giving™ program.

News of the original KOR ONE’s release was met by an immediate and overwhelming positive response. The viral PR campaign driven by RKS resulted in countless blog pickups, with the KOR ONE landing on Oprah’s “O List,” winning awards for both design and environmental preservation, and driving sales beyond all projections.

To build on this success, KOR Water enlisted RKS to create a Brand Trajectory and Product Proliferation Plan that would amplify the authenticity of the KOR brand. The first result of this effort is KOR’s new Thirst for Giving program to raise funds for water-related charities and help increase understanding of the vital role clean water plays in all our lives. Announced in conjunction of the introduction of three new KOR ONE colors, this innovative program empowers consumers to improve their health as they improve the health of the planet. “KOR’s mission is to celebrate and protect water,” said KOR founder and CEO Eric Barnes. “The Thirst for Giving program is our way of bringing more awareness to issues that deeply impact the future of water on our planet.”

The RKS strategy team first used Psycho-Aesthetics to enable KOR to identify organizations whose passions and goals aligned with KOR’s mission. Next, RKS created a strategy to create meaning… increasing the consumer’s ability to make a difference. Through this program, KOR has aligned with non-profits who are doing exceptional work related to causes KOR supports: ocean and watershed protection, the global water crisis and container recycling.

With each KOR ONE color tied to a specific cause, KOR will donate 1% of all sales to this select group. The original Ocean Blue KOR ONE supports Ocean Protection through the Agalita Marine Research Foundation. Sunrise Orange is for the Container Recycling Institute, while Sawgrass Green sales support Watershed Protection through The Wetlands Initiative. Orchid Pink is for the Global Water Crisis, with purchases supporting Blue Planet Run, a non-profit dedicated to bringing the global community together to provide safe drinking water to the more than one billion people who suffer for lack of access to clean water. “Blue Planet Run is thrilled that KOR Water recognizes how important safe drinking water is to every aspect of human life and is taking the lead in making change happen, said Lisa Nash, CEO of Blue Planet Run. “Our partnership will fund safe drinking water projects around the world, where as little as $30 can give someone a lifetime of safe drinking water.” KOR Water’s Thirst for Giving™ program is administered by 1% for the Planet, a non-profit dedicated to building and supporting an alliance of businesses that are financially committed to creating a healthy planet.

All four lustrous colors are made of BPA-free Eastman Tritan™ copolyester and include the original KOR ONE’s see-through design (eliminating worries of what might be hidden inside a metal bottle), innovative one-handed opening, a cap you can’t lose, inspirational KOR Stone inside lid, and a “just right” spout big enough for ice cubes and easy on the lips.

The Thirst for Giving program and the release of the new colors are just the beginning. “We’re excited about the new product lines we’re developing with KOR,” said Tom White, Executive Vice President of RKS. “RKS is thrilled to focus our strategy, design, and innovation teams on building the KOR Water brand and enabling them to achieve their goals.”
Designer : RKS for KOR Water

From Eduardo:
Autonomous Living Units is a somewhat satirical project that stands at the intersection of the current housing crisis, the tendency of people in developed countries to live on their own and the trend of turning architecture into a consumer product. The project poses a scenario in which living units (homes) have evolved into the most minimal yet visually alluring objects that can still provide for the basic needs of the 21st century human being.

Because of the morphing of architecture into furniture, the Living Units could be inserted in derelict areas and ruined housing projects. This project was exhibited among others at the d3 Gallery in New York for the “Future Cities: Past, Present” exhibition in April 2009.

Designer : Eduardo McIntosh via [Dezeen]

Designer : Jeongche Yoon

[Press Release]

MIT unveils EyeStop: an iPhone‐like interactive bus stop for the City of Florence

May 14, 2009. MIT architects and engineers have unveiled EyeStop, an interactive bus stop designed for the city of Florence. On Saturday 16 May the project will be presented officially at the Genio Fiorentino by the President of the Province of Florence Matteo Renzi (dubbed ‘The Italian Obama’ by TIME Magazine).

EyeStop, developed by MIT’s SENSEable City Lab, is an exploration into the next generation of smart urban furniture; it aims to enrich the city with state of the art sensing technologies, interactive services, community information and entertainment. The project is partially covered with touch sensitive e‐INK and screens, so that it can deliver information to people seamlessly. Users can plan a bus trip on an interactive map, exchange community‐relevant information on a digital message board, surf the web, monitor their real time exposure to pollutants and use their mobile devices as an interface with the bus shelter. “Interacting with EyeStop could change the access to urban information in a similar way to how the iPhone has changed our mobile life” commented Carlo Ratti, Head of the SENSEable City Lab at MIT.

At the touch of a finger users can indicate their desired destination; the system will then display the shortest bus route from where they are and the position of all relevant buses real‐time. The EyeStop will glow at different levels of intensity to signal the distance of an approaching bus. Riders and passers‐by can also post ads and community announcements to an electronic bulletin board placed on the bus stop, enhancing its functionality as a public space ‐ a place to gather and exchange community relevant information.

In addition to displaying information, the bus stop also acts as an active environmental sensing node, powering itself through sunlight and collecting real time information about air quality and the urban environment. “EyeStop is an experiment into urban computing: it may be considered an “info‐tape” that snakes through the city, rising up like a pole or cropping out of the sidewalk like a shelter. It senses information about the environment and distributes it in a form accessible to all citizens” – commented project leader Giovanni de Niederhousern.

A generative parametric model produces a unique design for each bus stop, providing both optimal sheltering for users and maximum sunlight exposure for direct photovoltaic powering. Unlike the typical mass‐produced bus stop, EyeStop is designed to fit the physical characteristics of its surroundings, with each unit being slightly different from the others. Furthermore, simple materials like shiny steel, extra clear glass and gray local stone (pietra serena), together with its minimalist design, serve to optimize how it blends into the historic urban fabric of Florence.

“Since the Renaissance, there has been an interplay between the physical form of the city (urb) and its citizenship (civitas),” added Carlo Ratti. “Today’s technologies are adding new possibilities to that age‐long relationship, thanks to the addition of digital information to physical space. It is as if a new materiality were emerging in architecture, with the seamless blending of bits and atoms…”

EyeStop was developed at the SENSEable City Laboratory by Giovanni de Niederhousern, Shaocong Zhou, Assaf Biderman and Carlo Ratti, in collaboration with the Province of Florence and the local public transportation authority ATAF.

Designer : Giovanni de Niederhousern, Shaocong Zhou, Assaf Biderman and Carlo Ratti via Core77

Primavera Helmet, designed by Sebastian Hess, is a key product of the latest high quality helmet array for the recent scooter generation. This open face, easy and casual helmet provides 180° visor that meets classic elegance. The clearly defined design has reduced to the essential components only and the style combines the legendary past with latest appearance. Innovation and vision, tradition and future, engineering and design are the main factors of this sustainable product. The main goal of designing this product is to provide excellent safety to the new generation scooter riders with a brilliant outlook that will attract the attention of all range of bikers.

[Press Release]

The Primavera helmet revives a legendary past and represents the birth of the new brand NZI by Hess Design. In its design and performance the helmet plays with citations and references to the exceptional Vespa 50 Special, the style icon of the 70`s. The minimalistic aesthetics of the Primavera refers directly to the mystic Vespa-models of the 70`s. These style icons were the base for the new developed helmet with its innovative features and its easy and safe use. New standards in terms of urbanity and innovation are set by creating a complete Primavera edition containing helmet, gloves and scarves.

Quality is no longer enough. Today a product or a brand is perceived as new only if its functionality and its materials are innovative. Tradition and future, innovation and vision, engineering and design unify and peak in an “honest” and sustainable product without loosing the base of creating innovative, technical and protective apparel. The ambition of the cooperation between NZI and Hess Design is to develop and create new charming products. Essential elements therefor are the intensive investigation of user scenarios and the vision of creating sustainable and innovative products. NZI and Hess Design develop products for seekers of beauty, for people with consciousness looking for high quality products.

Sportiness, dynamic and elegance in all their plainness are the key features of the Primavera. Clearly defined lines that are reduced to the essence underline the character and style consciousness. Their forms and their flow give hints to some new key features. The front of the Primavera with its playful swinging lines and the decorative air-inlets refer to hairstyles and hat fashion of the 60`s. The rear section with its metallic air-outlets rather speaks an automotive language and makes sure the helmet in its appearance is well-balanced. The 180° rotatable visor marks the heart of the helmet. Different shaped and toned visors can be attached to the patented helmet fixation tool-free via magnetic system in just a second.

The fusion of traditional, classical elegance with young, fresh and easy streetwear effects an exciting and charming impression. Deep satisfaction and intimate gratification will be experienced by every Primavera user. Desire of spring, desire of style awakes in all seekers of beauty. Primavera represents the initial of a new lifestyle that can be lived. Primavera, the helmet for the high tech community of tomorrow.

Designer : Sebastian Hess
Photography: Jörg Baumann