Sunday, September 25, 2016

What are some awesome examples of simple yet innovative designs

What are some awesome examples of simple yet innovative designs?

Liter of Light is a global open source movement with the aim to provide an ecologically and economically sustainable source of light.The aim is to provide light to underprivileged households that do not have access to electricity or are unable to afford it. The invention is relatively simple. It involves filling up a 1.5L PET bottle with purified water and bleach and installing it onto the roof of a house. The water inside the bottle refracts the sunlight during the daytime and creates the same intensity as a 55 watt light bulb. With the correct installation and materials a solar bottle can last up to 5 years. As the light relies on the sun it cannot be used at night and is only meant to provide light to buildings and homes during daylight hours.

I have been part of one of the installations and the result is pretty amazing! A liter of light indeed - lit not just the houses but also many many hearts.

Flexibler: An umbrella that stands
Designers: Liang-Hock Poh & Ming-Hung Lin

The umbrella handle bends and can be used in different positions, it retains its original form when needed.

Flexibler is a 2013 Red dot award:Design concept winner

Kick stopper:
Designer:Yootaek Jung

The Kick Stopper takes the humble door stopper into a new functional form and movement. It moves very much like a door handle and can be easily kicked into position thanks to its centered pivotal positioning. One kick and the door is in-place…another and you can move it freely.

Snapper:
Designers: Per Skovholt & Claus Molgaard

Can you see what’s missing from this modern clothespin? No metal spring! It’s called the Snapper and its genius lies in the POM nylon-related material and its unique die cast assembly method. Unlike primitive clothespins with two pins and a metal spring, the Snapper’s tensile rebound structure is created during the moulding process. This means manufacturing is completely automated with no need for human assembly.

The card car:
Designers:Fowler custom works

Biff Mobile started out as a simplistic wood toy car for children, but with a few modifications it’s become fun for all ages. Whether you’re a car buff or an avid toy collector, you’ll find that it’s a whimsical way to showcase your business or even hold your phone.

(The initial introduction is for those who would not want to relate directly by looking at the pictures. Others, you may feel free to jump to the posters from here.)

India.

It is that time of the year, when we would find practically everybody talking about politics, or if I may put it in better terms, the political parties that are running this marathon to get to power in the world's largest democracy. From a paan-wala to a major corporate honcho, almost everyone tries to keep themselves acquainted with the latest trends and turnarounds revolving around this battle. Not every time one would easily find Indian Politics trending over the net, especially with the Indian Premiere League (IPL) going on at the same time - something that has become an integral part of every Indian now (if nothing else, people definitely prefer as a good past-time.)

Anyways, this did not happen 5 years before. This time it's different. This is General Elections 2014.

April 24, 2014. 3:27 am.

One of the biggest polling phases is to happen today, consisting of a frigging 117 of the 543 constituencies. A lot of emphasis in the concerned areas was given to the youth vote banks. This was the time, the tech-savvy youth was coming up with social media campaigns, YouTube video shares, petitions and what not.

But this particular campaign is something that caught some online fire. Launched just the night before polling day, it was appreciated on a wide scale on social media. What has all of this got to do with this question?

The creativity. This was a small campaign by Mood Indigo, IIT Bombay students. They launched an album of merely 9 pictures, each being a minimalist poster on a particular political party and their election symbols. This was it. People started changing their Facebook profile pictures to their party pic and came out in full support. They started sharing the pics and encouraged their friends as well. The campaign took no time to go viral. And that is what made me write this answer at nearly 4 in the morning. :)

Disclaimer: The images of the parties are just in alphabetical order. No political prejudices exist in the answer.

Those of you who would like to visit the album and many other interesting designs, here is the link: Mumbai will Vote

1. Their campaign picture: Lok Sabha Elections, 2014