This emergency flashlight doubles as a desk lamp and has built-in sensors to indicate the safest evacuation routes!

Strix is an emergency flashlight that uses integrated sensors to provide building occupants with the safest and most efficient evacuation route during emergency situations.

Emergency situations have a way of testing our fight or flight responses. But then, some of us freeze. No matter the disaster, evacuations require quick thinking that panic tends to stifle and it’s no secret that emergencies bring out the panic.

High-rise offices and public buildings are especially vulnerable to emergency situations, requiring mass evacuations in the worst cases. Providing a means for building occupants to evacuate safely, Hanyoung Lee designed Strix, a desk lamp that transforms into an emergency flashlight that reveals the most efficient evacuation routes during disaster situations.

Given a modular build, the original form of Strix is a nondescript desk lamp with an attached light diffuser that offers a moody counterpart to Strix’s primary function.

Once disaster hits and an evacuation is required, Strix transforms into an emergency flashlight that reveals the quickest, safest way out of the building. Guiding users to safety, Lee linked Strix with the building’s programmed evacuation route systems that come alight via LED light indicators.

As opposed to following LED light strips, similar to those found in airplane aisles, Strix is handheld and portable, allowing users to bring it anywhere. While light strips are helpful in their own light, the portability feature of Strix might come in handy in the case that various evacuation routes are blocked.

During these situations, Strix adjusts the evacuation route the same way your GPS might when you take a wrong turn.

Describing the programmed evacuation light indicator, Lee notes, “The Strix sensor operates based on the beacon system to provide the user with the optimal evacuation route. It consists of a sensor that functions as a real-time location tracking [device,] as well as a sensor that shows an induction road on the floor.”

Designer: Hanyoung Lee

When there’s no emergency, Strix functions as a casual desk lamp with an attached light diffuser. 

The internal workings of Strix link up with each building’s programmed evacuation route systems. 

A charging station allows users to keep Strix full of battery for when disaster hits. 

Available in an array of different colors, Strix can match the tone of your office for use as a desk lamp. 

The light diffuser readily detaches from the flashlight for use during emergencies. 

The post This emergency flashlight doubles as a desk lamp and has built-in sensors to indicate the safest evacuation routes! first appeared on Yanko Design.

This pet home and carrier is an emergency kit designed to safely evacuate your pets during disasters!

Pets are our best friends and they are also known to be incredibly crucial in reducing stress, anxiety, depression, and boost overall wellbeing. Given the times, the number of people adopting and relying on emotional support animals is only increasing. They are family and that means that they have to be protected like a member of the family – no one gets left behind. This clever animal carrier was designed to prepare you and your furry companion for disasters by equipping you with emergency kits that work for your needs and the needs of your emotional service pet.

While we love and care for them as we do for our own children, there is not enough being done in terms of disaster preparedness for them. Evacuating with animals needs a lot of advance preparation and most people are unprepared due to a lack of information or kits that are made for this specific situation. As emotional support/companion animals are increasingly becoming a new norm, we need a kit like Base which ensures their safety while doubling up as an everyday pet furniture item in the house. In the event of a disaster, you can rely on the built-in emergency kit by using Base as a carrier for your pet. The shape is inspired by a friendly cave that makes animals feel protected keeping it aligned with their natural instincts of hiding when they are scared. The product consists of two parts- the left side of the kit provides basic products and the right side can be selected by the user according to the companion animal species making it usable for a wide variety of people and pets. It also comes with rescue request stickers that help neighbors to identify the pet and help to rescue them in the case of any unfortunate events.

“The emergency kit with disaster necessaries for companion animals is built-in the bottom of the carrier, so it can be safely handled during the evacuation period by simply carrying Base carrier with the companion animal. It provides disaster preparedness manuals and emergency kits while also functioning as a carrier, allowing users to protect their companion animals from disasters. It has Disaster Preparedness manuals in the form of brochures so users are prepared for disasters in advance. It has information about what users need to know and a checklist to identify items needed in the event of a disaster, making it easy to be prepared” says the design team. In normal times, the Base can be used as an aesthetically pleasing modern pet house. Base is basically (see what I did there?) the Clark Kent of pet essentials – a sweet pet house every day that turns into a heroic product in times of crisis.

Designers: HeeSu Choi, HyoWon Son, and JiSeung Lee.

This futuristic vehicle design facilitates irrigation, agriculture and education

Well, 2020 is getting really annoying by the day so I am going to look towards the future. Since I am always told to focus the bright side and be hopeful about the future when the present isn’t great, let’s do it through the design lens. Project Outreach is a modular transport vehicle that was designed to support and develop rural infrastructure in 2045 (of course, this is a concept design so don’t send me an email after 25 years). The conceptual vehicle has a very Tesla-esque aesthetic, it is futuristic without being aggressive like the Cybertruck.

Developing nations need a tech boost to uplift themselves. If the land is mostly flat, the infrastructure is not that hard to create but there are many nations like Africa that have a variety of massive landscapes that will need powerful machines like Project Outreach to do it efficiently. The vehicle’s main aim is reaching out as the name suggests. The goal is to reach the communities in need and provide supplies to facilitate rural development by being a one-stop-shop through its multifunctional modules – Water Mod, Plant Mod, Work Mod are just a few examples. This is meant for micro-communities and the staff will deliver the module to them and change it out when needed.

The Water Mod is equipped with irrigation and sanitation technology to help areas where there is a draught or generally improve water crisis. The Plant Mod comes with agricultural tools to help seed crops in a controlled environment and provide relief for food shortage. The Work Mod is more for research, study, educational needs, and providing a small living quarter. The concept design is something that will be a blessing to refugee communities. Imagine how one vehicle can be a school for a small group of children who have nothing else to hold on to, provide food and water in a crisis with capabilities to expand into a medical space if needed.

Project Outreach makes me hopeful about a future where can empower those who communities who were hard to reach out to. It may be a design but it radiates values and morals that are rooted deeply in kindness and making a positive change – after all, isn’t that what humanity is all about? We don’t have a wand but we have imagination, design thinking and equipment to make it happen so I’ll say that is close enough.

Designer: Alexander Edgington

Alphabet’s balloons broadcast LTE two days after Peruvian quake

When a magnitude 8.0 earthquake hit Peru Sunday, the Alphabet spinoff Loon was quick to respond. Within 48 hours, Loon delivered its internet-relaying balloons and began providing LTE coverage to users below. While more balloons are on the way, Loon...

This Clock is also a life-saving emergency kit

A clock serves as an indication of whether you’re on time, early, or running late. The clock practically guides you through your day, directing your life, but the Life Clock by Gyeonggido Company & SWNA design studio does much more. Designed as a disaster survival kit, this clock can practically save lives by allowing you to be prepared during a disaster. The clock comes with a hollow internal compartment that houses its own kit of emergency products. It comes with two potent glow sticks that can each shine for 12 hours, wrapped in a metallic foil that you can fashion a reflector cone out of and use as a makeshift flashlight. A foil blanket allows you to maintain core body temperatures by trapping body heat through thermal reflection, while an emergency two-tone whistle allows you to signal for help. If you have access to a window or opening you can’t reach, the helpline can be used to guide people to you by simply tying one end to yourself and throwing the other end outside. Lastly, a gauze bandage allows you to cover any cuts or wounds, compressing the injury to stop the bleeding.

The Life Clock also comes with extra space that you can use to store a pair of glasses, medicine, batteries, or even a nutrition bar to help you stay alive and safe until help is on its way.

Designers: Gyeonggido Company & SWNA design studio.

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A home that restores faith in humanity

Most design schools make it mandatory for a student to do at least one project that revolves around disaster aversion and management. There are a lot of projects out there that explore the concept of a temporary disaster-relief shelter for victims and refugees. The temporary housing project by Maja Jandrić however arrives at the same end result (of providing a place to stay), but offers a different and more beautiful process.

The housing kit comes in segments that can be pieced together by the refugees themselves. Rather than opting for a design that requires heavy machinery, construction equipment, or experts, the housing system comes as a set of flat panels, furniture, and drapes. The houses are then assembled by the refugees together, allowing them to work together as a community and therefore instill a sense of harmony and a kindred spirit. Each housing unit is modular, allowing you to create grids, or neighborhoods of houses. The houses also provide curtains for walls, entitling you to your personal space when you need it, or allowing you to make your house a part of a mini, open community when you choose.

Designer: Maja Jandrić

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Making Cities Tsunami-Safe

Adapted specifically for tsunamis, Life Keeper imagines an entirely new infrastructure of street lamps that double as protection during disasters. Like deep-rooted trees, each lamp is reinforced and connected to form an underground scaffolding that’s steadfast against rushing water. Attached to each is a floating shield that 4-5 stranded persons can use as protection from floating debris. Inside they’ll also find life jackets, a medical kit and a emergency call system to give them the best chance of survival.

Designer: Ji Man Kim – Bob

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DARPA’s Captive Air Amphibious Transporter can drive on water, help during disaster relief (video)

DARPA's Captive Air Amphibious Transporter can drive on water, help during disaster relief video

A couple of months back, DARPA announced it'd been working on developing technologies to help during natural or "man-made" disasters, and this TEMP plan (Tactically Expandable Maritime Platform) included the addition of four key modular systems -- one of which was sea-delivery vehicles such as that monstrous one pictured above. Dubbed Captive Air Amphibious Transporters, or CAAT for short, the rugged wheeler gets its drive-on-agua powers from air-filled pontoons, with its main purpose being to carry "containers over water and directly onto shore." However, according to DARPA's program manager, Scott Littlefield, it is more about the big picture, saying, "To allow military ships and aircraft to focus on unique military missions they alone can fulfill, it makes sense to develop technologies to leverage standard commercial container ships." Thanks to a vid uploaded by DARPA itself, you can now get a feel for what CAAT's all about, so head over past the break -- where you'll find a quick preview of the ATV carrier in action.

Continue reading DARPA's Captive Air Amphibious Transporter can drive on water, help during disaster relief (video)

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DARPA's Captive Air Amphibious Transporter can drive on water, help during disaster relief (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 11 Aug 2012 13:42:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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WiFi-Extending Robot is built like a tank — we talk to the people behind the project (video)

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It's a fairly menacing sight, an aluminum robot sporting big tank treads -- that is, until you watch one of its creators do a handstand on top of the thing in a pair of cargo shorts. And really, while the 'bot wouldn't look too out of place with a small machine gun strapped to its front, its intentions are peaceful, seeking to extend the WiFi connections to hazardous places lacking in network infrastructure. We first heard about the project last week, when the team of computer and electrical engineers at Northeastern University that created it first revealed their work to the media. A visit this weekend to our favorite Somerville, Massachusetts-based hackerspace provided the opportunity to check out the beast in-person and discuss the project with a couple of its creators.

After the limited machining resources at Northeastern failed to meet their needs, the students found a home at Artisan's Asylum, where they learned the skills necessary to put together this ambitious project, utilizing classes and the metal shop provided by the space. The result is an impressive sight, a robot capable of climbing stairs and supporting the weight of two adult humans -- the latter of which they happily demonstrated for us in a yet-to-be-occupied new wing at Artisan's. The former, on the other hand, we were unable to see, sadly, as the internals were mostly gutted at the moment on the ever-evolving project. Team member Dan Landers, was more than happy to discuss the project, standing next to a pile of water jet-cut steel pieces that will form the first leg of giant hexapod Stompy, a project on which Landers is also a participant.

Continue reading WiFi-Extending Robot is built like a tank -- we talk to the people behind the project (video)

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WiFi-Extending Robot is built like a tank -- we talk to the people behind the project (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 06 Aug 2012 15:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  sourceGlench  | Email this | Comments