Tag Archives: design concept

Eco-Friendly Design Concepts at NeoCon 2024: Transforming Workspaces

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NeoCon 2024 is just around the corner, and this year’s event is set to significantly impact the world of commercial interior design. Taking place June 10-12 at The Mart in Chicago, this 55th edition is expected to attract around 50,000 attendees who will explore the latest trends and innovations in shared spaces. Let’s dive into what to expect, focusing on the themes of design, well-being and sustainability.

Design: Creating Spaces That Connect Us

Design is at the heart of NeoCon, and this year’s event is about creating environments that foster community and collaboration. Gone are the days of bland, cubicle-filled offices. Today, it’s all about spaces that spark spontaneous interactions and genuine connections. Imagine walking into an office that feels more like a dynamic, buzzing café than a traditional workspace.

For instance, products like GRVT by Ghent and KI’s Sonrisa Lounge Furniture offer mobile, flexible solutions that can transform any environment into a collaborative hub at a moment’s notice. These designs cater to the ever-changing needs of modern workspaces. Spacestor’s Portals Huddle, with its easy-to-relocate collaboration spaces, exemplifies how versatile and responsive workplace design has become.

The overall layout also plays a huge role. Gensler’s Design Forecast for 2024 highlights the importance of human-centric workplaces that inspire purpose and reflect organizational values. This means creating spaces where people can casually bump into each other, sparking creativity and camaraderie. These little moments can make a big difference in fostering a positive company culture.

Well-Being: The Science of Feeling Good

One of the most fascinating trends at NeoCon 2024 is the rise of neuroaesthetics—designing spaces that make you feel good based on how your brain reacts to certain elements. Think colors, sounds and even the art on the walls. It’s all about creating environments that boost your mood, productivity and overall well-being.

The Immersive Biophilic Garden by Garden on the Wall, for example, features indoor preserved gardens and moss walls that elevate moods and stimulate minds. Similarly, Egan Visual’s Sculpt Walls blend art with acoustics to create a sensory-rich experience, and CECOCECO’s ArtMorph panels use lighting and textures to soothe and captivate.

Colors play a significant part too. Studies show that natural patterns and shapes are easier for our brains to process, leading to a sense of calm and clarity. Shaw Contract’s Arctic Escape collection and Bernhardt’s Ice Collection of cobalt blue tables are designed to evoke specific emotional responses. Warm colors like Pantone’s color of the year, Peach Fuzz, and cool blues highlighted in ASID’s 2024 Trends Outlook also contribute to environments that make us feel good.

Unexpected pops of color, engaging textures and artful patterns can act as positive distractions in stressful environments. Designtex’s Joy Collection, with its vibrant colors and stimulating designs, brings a sense of clarity and delight, especially to healthcare settings. Collaborations like Stylex and Carole Baijings’ new color palette show how creative use of color can enrich our daily experiences.

Sustainability: Designing for the Future

Sustainability has shifted from a trend to a non-negotiable element of modern design. With the built environment contributing significantly to global CO2 emissions, there’s a pressing need for eco-friendly practices. NeoCon 2024 showcases the leaders in sustainable design, highlighting materials and solutions that reduce environmental impact without sacrificing style or functionality.

Haworth’s DesignLab emphasizes circular design—considering sustainability at every stage of a product’s life cycle. Andreu World’s Circular Design Challenge encourages industry professionals to embrace greener practices like eco-design, zero waste management and carbon neutrality.

Biophilic design, which integrates natural elements like plants and natural light into spaces, is also gaining traction. This approach reduces stress and fosters a deeper connection to nature. Scandinavian Spaces’ Tinnef, made from 100% recycled plastic, and Davis Furniture’s X50 collection, featuring components made of pre-consumer recycled content, are leading the charge in this space.

Noteworthy sustainable innovations include Ultrafabrics’ Volar Bio, which features a mix of recycled and bio-based content, and Turf’s Stone Textures, which emulate natural stone using eco-friendly materials. Slalom’s Bloom product emphasizes acoustic wellness using bio-based materials, while C.F. Stinson’s Sea Change textiles are crafted from post-consumer recycled polyester. Nienkamper’s Vox Tambour, using the eco-material Eelgrass, demonstrates how sustainable materials can offer excellent acoustic and thermal regulation properties.

NeoCon 2024 is set to showcase how thoughtful design can create environments that are functional, beautiful and supportive of human connections and environmental stewardship. As we look forward to the innovations on display, it’s clear that the future of design lies in creating spaces that are as good for people as they are for the planet. This holistic approach makes NeoCon 2024 an unmissable event for anyone interested in the future of our shared spaces.

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Plug & Play wearable injector concept simplifies biological drug delivery

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Plug & Play Cambridge Consultants Concept

Chronic diseases are those that may not be cured but can be managed. They may last a lifetime but you should not worry when you are diagnosed with one. With the advances in health and medical technology, such bad news can become more bearable.

We’re not here to downplay chronic diseases but rather to introduce possible solutions and improvements to enhance and lengthen life. Treatments vary but one thing is certain, the field of medicine will only get better. But as it improves, some people may still not catch up because of forgetfulness, fear, and other issues. Plug & Play aims to solve that as the first wearable injector.

Designers: Cambridge Consultants, David Robinson

Plug & Play Cambridge Consultants Design

This personal injector is a small device that can be worn or stuck onto a body part. It helps fulfill a patient’s needs for injections. It’s not for every illness, syndrome, or health condition but only for those who need injections. It boasts a one-step plug-in mechanism so a patient can insert a vial easily. No need for another person to assist you. The Plug & Play will inject the contents of the vial itself into the patient after a single press of the play button.

The name Plug & Play perfectly describes what this concept device does. You simply “plug” a vial and then press ‘play’ and it’s done. The simple process lessens the agony and waiting time for those who may be afraid of injections. This device is more than helpful as patients can know the injection status with color-coded feedback.

Plug & Play Wearable Injector

Vials can vary in size but this Plug & Play can transform them into a primary container with a customizable insert. This is important as biological drug volumes really vary depending on the prescription. The small device allows orientation independent delivery as made possible by a method (patent-pending ) of extraction from a vial.

Plug & Play Cambridge Consultants 3

Plug & Play was designed by Cambridge Consultants. The group is known for its breakthrough products. It offers business technology consultancy and licenses for intellectual property. This project won a Red Dot Design Award for Design Concept years ago.

The Plug & Play wearable pump injector concept still remains a significant idea especially now when access to medical professionals and hospitals may be limited, no thanks to the pandemic. Since injection of biological drugs may take time or require a hospital visit, an independent solution like this revolutionary Plug & Play may be preferred. It’s making things less complicated not only for the patient but also for his caregiver, family, and doctor.

Plug & Play Cambridge Consultants 2

Plug n Play Designing

Plug n Play Design Production

Plug & Play Cambridge Consultants Red Dot Award

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LG Sound View speaker concept gives gamers an audiovisual treat

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The home entertainment industry seems to fluctuate between putting emphasis on video and then audio, depending on the trends. Of course, the two are different sides of the same coin, especially when it comes to video games. A lot of focus has been put on monitors and TVs that make game visuals pop, but this soundbar concept prompted by LG Electronics and the Korea Design Membership Plus is a reminder that sound and light both play a critical role in creating an immersive experience.

Designers: Jinseon Lee, Seungchan Ahn, Subin Park

Soundbars have become trendy these days, designed to complement extremely thin TVs that need to offload their audio to external speakers. Most of these are also designed with minimalist aesthetics that blend into the background, making their presence heard but rarely seen. The Sound View throws most of these conventions out the window to give people’s eyes something new to feast on while playing a game or watching a video.

The Sound View basically includes a visualizer that matches its lighting to the beat of the audio being played through the speakers. Unlike a conventional visualizer, however, the Sound View can adapt its colors to the video that’s being played on a connected TV or monitor. In other words, the colors that you’ll see on Sound View’s face will be in sync with the visuals of the game or video while also taking into account the usual acoustic metrics like volume or pitch.

This creates a new and unique experience that conveys audio in a visual way. It also does so in a way that doesn’t distract from the main visual focus of the experience by matching its colors to that of the TV. That said, the concept also leaves room for the user to customize the visuals to their liking, even if it will clash with the game’s colors.

At the same time, the LG Sound View is also like your typical soundbar, utilizing a mix of steel and fabric materials to give it both structural integrity and an organic appeal. It also has large embossed buttons at the top to make it easy to operate the speaker using only your sense of touch to differentiate each control. Of course, you can presumably also control it from a smartphone app, which is also where you get to pick the color scheme you want to use.

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This minimalist furniture set can keep your stuff germ-free and charge your phones, too

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Minimalist-looking furniture doesn’t always mean they serve a single purpose only, especially if they can hide their other functions in plain sight.

There are quite a few trends in the past few years that have sent ripples through different industries, changing the ways things are traditionally made or how things usually function. For example, there has been an increase in devices that claim to sanitize your belongings at home with UVC light. The ubiquity of smartphones inside the house has also pushed even the likes of IKEA to adopt new features to accommodate these electronic devices. Another example is this furniture set that, at first glance, is both minimalist and minimal, but actually hide their smart features in an ingenious way.

Designers: Martin Poon and One Object Design Studio

We have gotten used to seeing a lot of minimalist products, especially as furniture or even appliances for the home. There is an undeniable appeal in the cleanliness and purity of these objects, and their simple or singular use also almost has this liberating feeling that frees the mind from having to think twice about what something does. That said, there’s always the possibility of incorporating more features in what looks like a simple design, like what this WITS collection on home furniture demonstrates.

ROLL, for example, looks like a simple fabric-covered stool, though the seam at the top clearly indicates that it can be opened. Rather than being a hidden container, however, it can accommodate a detachable UV light module that can clean larger objects like toys, books, or even bags. It’s something handy to have around the house, especially during these days when people tend to worry alot about indoor sanitation.

FLOAT definitely has a simple cabinet feel to it, one that’s designed to stand by your bed for easy access to your things. However, a portion of its top surface actually acts as a wireless charging area for your phone so you won’t have to worry about forgetting to plug your phone in every night. Pull the top drawer, however, and you’ll be greeted by a soft LED light that could save you a lot of pain at night.

BOX is like a smaller version of ROLL, though clearly not to be sat on. Its body is wrapped in the same soft fabric as the stool, conveying feelings of comfort and warmth for the home. The wooden cover, however, comes off to reveal plenty of room inside for keys, wallets, and even your phone. It is also compatible with the same UV light module to disinfect your things while they lie in wait for their next use.

Last but not least is the LAYER sofa table, admittedly the most complex among these minimalist pieces of furniture. Its wooden top can swivel to any position to maximize or minimize the area the side table occupies, while its foot can stand inside a basket that serves as additional storage. And like its wooden sibling, the FLOAT, the LAYER also has a wireless charging area for your phone while you take your dinner and binge on your favorite show.

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This killer whale-inspired mouse concept wants to kill the friction of work

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A few things in nature evoke a feeling of smoothness and flow, and, ironically as it might at first sound, the large orca is one of them.

Many people depend heavily on computers, which means also depending heavily on keyboards and mice. These critical input devices, however, are also often the biggest sources of frustration for many people, particularly when it comes to ergonomics, comfort, and usability. Fortunately, people have started to become more discerning about the designs of the products they buy, and designers have also become more critical about well-crafted objects. Some are even daring to think outside the box, using Mother Nature as the source of inspiration and direction for some of these unnatural things.

Designer: Arjun Vallabheshwar

Flowing water has always been a metaphor for smoothness and frictionless movement, even back in ancient times. Most of the creatures that live in it have naturally developed the ability to also swim smoothly through the water and have likewise become associated with ideas such as fluidity and even grace. That applies not just to small fishes but even to massive whales.

Next to dolphins, orcas are probably one of the most familiar mammals of the sea. They’re objects of fascination and even love, despite their more common name of “killer whale.” As designer Arjun Vallabheshwar notes, the orca combines both grace and power when it dashes to catch its prey, and the water has no choice but to make way for it.

Therefore, the orca felt like an almost natural source of inspiration for a mouse, especially considering how they share a similar basic shape and color scheme. An orca’s body evolved to be perfectly hydrodynamic, and this mouse concept adopts a similar form, with a pointed “snout” and a wider and higher back. The concept also includes what can be described as the whale’s fins, providing a structure where the thumb and the pinky can rest comfortably.

The design does make one wonder if the sloping top of the mouse is actually ergonomic since it could cause the user to raise their wrist higher than normal. Nonetheless, the mere form of the mouse already makes it look like it’s ready to glide through your day and, perhaps, even inspire a stress-free outlook to your work.

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iPhone 16 Pro concept has so many changes it’s almost unrecognizable

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What makes an iPhone an iPhone? Of course, only Apple can really tell, but there are a number of design cues that easily identify a phone as an iPhone, few of which remain in this concept.

We’ve seen our fair share of design concepts for future phones. Some base their ideas too closely on what is plausible, while others dare to go beyond what is possible. Concepts like these mix dreams and observations with a pinch of wishful thinking on top. Very few have actually hit the mark completely in predicting what will come to pass in a year or two, but one particular design looks both enamoring and alien that it leaves you wondering if Apple will even dare walk down this path.

Designer: Petar Trlajic

To be fair, this future iPhone concept is beautiful if you take it in isolation. It is almost all screen, without the notch that has been a stubborn presence on iPhones since the iPhone X in 2017. It still shows Apple’s typical materials, at least before it added wireless charging, like a metal finish on the iPhone’s back. Flat sides are also present, though with a bit more curve rather than the hard chamfered edges of current iPhones.

Things get a bit strange from there, though. One of the biggest and most striking differences is the camera design and location. Once upon a time, Apple did arrange cameras in a single row, but that was limited to just two sensors in a corner. This concept puts three cameras smack in the middle of the iPhone’s rear, something uncharacteristic for Apple, which will undoubtedly draw parallels to the Pixel 6’s “visor” design.

Even small details have changed as well, like the circular buttons that are more reminiscent of the older iPhones. There is also a reflective strip running around the edges that seem to be made of a different material than the rest of the iPhone’s body. It’s unlikely to be plastic, which rules it out as antenna lines. The punch-hole camera is also new, but there are already rumors that Apple will actually switch to this design this year or in 2023.

If not for the iconic Apple logo, few will probably identify this as an iPhone at first glance. That’s not to say Apple will never adopt this design, just that it probably won’t within the next two or three years. That’s probably why AppleDesign christened this concept as the iPhone 16 Pro, suggesting it is probably far into the future, if it even happens at all.

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Apple AirCam concept sounds logical but is unlikely to happen

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A concept for a standalone camera tries to think the way Apple does but might still come up short of providing a convincing USP to become an actual product.

There is no shortage of dreams and wishes that people have when it comes to Apple products. On the mobile front alone, the list spans from simpler requests of a larger battery to wishful thinking about foldable iPhones. There is also no shortage of creative designers coming up with concepts that seemingly reflect Apple’s language and principles, like this AirCam idea that almost checks all the right boxes.

Designer: Andrea Copellino

This wouldn’t be the first time someone came up with the idea of a standalone camera that would make GoPro shake in fear. An earlier “ActionCam” concept was actually closer to the popular action camera than to any of Apple’s accessories, though it did have some design cues similar to an AirPods case. The complexity of the device, however, easily marked it as a pipe dream, something that this newer concept is trying to avoid.

In coming up with the design concept for an Apple camera, designer Andrea Copellino tried to stick to known Apple design principles like simplicity and compactness. The squarish camera definitely hits those marks almost to an extreme degree. It has no display of its own, for example, requiring the use of an iPhone or an iPad as a separate viewfinder. Such a design isn’t exactly unheard of, though more often employed on 360-degree cameras than action cams.

The designer’s justification for the existence of something like an AirCam would be to offer a higher-quality camera not just for content creators but for future users of Apple’s future AR glasses. In theory, this would allow Apple to address a very specific market segment, one that requires dedicated camera hardware, without adversely affecting its other products.

That said, Apple is unlikely to create its own standalone camera for the very same reason of simplicity. An Apple AirCam wouldn’t exactly be simpler to use and would be difficult to handle without another paired device, something that would also go against Apple’s philosophy. The company is also more likely to improve its iPhone’s camera as much as it can and market that extensively rather than come out with a first-party accessory that basically admits that it isn’t up to snuff.

Photos also courtesy of AppleDesign.

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This modular wall storage concept is perfect for tiny homes

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Thanks to the power of magnets, a blank wall can become a safe haven for all your things if you’ve already run out of places to store them.

The price of housing and living spaces has gone up considerably in the past decades, resulting in people trying to make do with more cramped accommodations. Conversely, the surge of interest in tiny homes has also spurred some creative thinking in new storage solutions with minimal footprints. In both these cases, traditional products like containers and cabinets just don’t cut it. Fortunately, a few new designs have started appearing lately, including one that lets you use the wall for something more functional and less decorative but still aesthetic.

Designer: Francesco Brunetti

Typical containers store items in a messy way that potentially damages these objects, while cabinets don’t provide quick access or visibility to the things they hide inside. More importantly, these solutions often take up floor space which is already in short supply in small living quarters, even one to two-room apartments. That’s why some have considered unconventional spaces like stairs and walls as the next frontier in storage solutions, but few offer the same flexibility as shelves and drawers.

That’s where Brunetti’s Wall-it concept comes in, a storage solution that is can also be a decorative wall piece. Rather than limiting what you can hang on your wall to the manufacturer’s specifications, Wall-it lets owners decide where and how to hold different kinds of objects. This modular capability is thanks to the power of strong magnets that not only let you decide which containers to attach but also which boards to use.

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This is also where the aesthetic and decorative aspect of Wall-it comes in. The concept has room for over a dozen different accessories that can be used for different kinds of objects, like a hook for headphones and a box for smartphones. Users can mix and match not only the types of containers themselves but also the colors of the board and the accessories. You can choose to match their colors with the rest of the room or make them stand out visually with different hues.

There’s also a sustainable element to Wall-it, thanks to the materials that have been chosen for this concept. Bio-based PLA thermoplastic is significantly more recyclable than regular plastic, and the epoxy used to join the magnets with PLA can be dissolved by acidic solutions. Wall-it, therefore, presents a family of storage solutions that not only saves space but also saves the environment in the long run.

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This gamepad concept ditches conventions to bring comfort to your A-game

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Many gamers complain about the inconsistent button layouts of game controllers, but one thing that has remained the same is the basic design players have learned to live with even if they don’t like it.

Gamepads have been around since the earliest days of video game home consoles, and they have changed little, but at the same time, have evolved significantly over the decades. For the past years, however, the basic shape of game controllers has changed little, even with all the research into ergonomics and professional gaming. Designers, however, are always coming up with ways to push the envelope, and one idea, in particular, pretty much changes almost everything about gamepads.

Designer: TongZheng

As controllers have evolved, gamers’ habits have grown along with them. Some games have started to require more interaction, requiring the addition of more buttons. More buttons, however, means changing the way you efficiently and comfortably hold a gamepad, leading to the birth of what is now called the “C-Hand” grip.

This C-Hand allows gamers to utilize almost all their fingers to push all available buttons and joysticks on a gamepad. Unfortunately, the current designs used by almost all controllers aren’t exactly conducive to this kind of grip. The “wingtips” of the controller that make it easier to hold the controller “normally” get in the way, and the constant switching between buttons and joysticks is a recipe for disaster for thumbs.

The C-Gamepad concept was born from the need for a controller that’s designed from the ground up specifically for this popular hand position, especially with its spherical shape and small protrusions for stability. This design, however, also moves some of the buttons around in order to reduce the number of thumb-switching gamers have to do. The biggest change, however, is the joysticks which are transformed into balls and lose the “stick” part.

Unlike regular joysticks, however, only the right side is able to move in four directions to adjust the view, while the left “joystick” is locked to moving characters forward or backward only. While this covers most actions within a game, it might leave other common movements out, like strafing to the sides. The biggest drawback to this new controller design, however, is the lack of familiarity with existing gamepads, but it might be a learning process gamers would be willing to go through if it means getting an edge over the competition.

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This WFH desk concept bucks the trend to offer some peace of mind

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Sometimes, the traditional and the familiar can offer a calming refuge against a stressful storm of changes.

The past two years have forced many changes in the world, not all of them warmly welcomed. Work, in particular, has taken on a new form, one that finally proved that some work could actually be done at home. But as the world changed rapidly, so did the need for resources and tools that adapted to that new world order. This sea of changes gave way to a flood of new products in dizzying variety and numbers. One idea, however, tries to swim against the current to offer something with a familiar face that inspires confidence and offers a bit of tranquility.

Designer: Can Türker

As more and more people worked and studied at home, the venerable home desk was no longer enough to support the added demands. This gave birth to a new breed of desks and office equipment that boasted creative ways to improve productivity or maximize space, some of them bordering on the gimmicky. While a lot did lean more towards minimalist aesthetics, more offer advanced features that ironically complicated life and added to the mental burden of already stressed-out people.

The Bold Desk concept is bold in two ways. The designer’s expressed intent is to make the desk inspire boldness in facing the unknown of new work from home arrangements. Intentionally or not, the desk is also bold for eschewing complex features and gimmicks to present something immediately familiar and comfortable.

Nothing says familiar better than a wooden desk, and the Bold Desk’s choice of material scores points for both sustainability and design. It offers an immediate connection between the desk and the user, and its organic origin evokes feelings of warmth and life compared even to wood that’s been painted over with unnatural hues. The drawer and the bottom side also have a soothing effect, thanks to their curved edges. Rather than cram everything into a space-efficient area, the wide surface of the desk also gives some space to breathe.

That’s not to say that the Bold Desk is plain and unremarkable. It puts an emphasis on storage space to help hide away the clutter, even if temporarily. The inconspicuous gap on its back also offers a way for cables and power cords to snake out of sight and out of mind. The Bold Desk, despite its name, focuses on being subtle and unobtrusive, putting an equal value on people’s mental health as much as their productivity.

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