The ninth edition of the annual Electrolux Design Lab challenged industrial design students to consider Intelligent Mobility within home appliances. Eight young designers, chosen from a field of 1,300 entrants, will now present their concept to a jury of expert designers in London on September 7, 2011.
Electrolux will present the eight finalists, representing Australia; Canada; Finland; Hungary; New Zealand; Slovakia and the USA, in a programme that also features insights from Electrolux product specialists and leading designers, including Electrolux global head of Design, Henrik Otto.
"The Eight finalists have shown insight and innovation to make it this far in the 2011 Electrolux Design Lab challenge" say's Henrik Otto, SVP of Global Design at Electrolux. "In what was a particularly challenging brief, the top eight are to be congratulated for their lateral thinking and creativity but they will now need to demonstrate why their concept should be crowned absolute winner."
Robo TAP Cleaner
Country: South Korea
Designer: Gyu Ha Choi
School: Handong Global University
The Robo TAP is a smart evolution of the robotic vacuum cleaner used to target an exact area for cleaning. An IPS system aligned with a simple remote control is attached to the shoe or slipper of the user. Two taps on a dirty spot directs the Robo TAP to the precise area for cleaning. Two more taps will cancel the order and three taps returns the vacuum cleaner to its automatic program me.
Mobile Induction Heat Plate
Country: Finland
Designer: Tommi Moilanen,
School: Aalto University School of Art and Design
This smart induction hot plate is a compact solution for those on the go. Place the heat plate wherever you want and pair it with your smart-phone to gain a child safe remote control. The smart-phone app is designed to be used with intelligent food packaging where NFC-tags provide instructions on how to heat the food properly. The smart-phone app also comes with a memory that intuitively remembers how you previously cooked. The induction plate is a glossy black and white design with a wooden handle that makes it easy to carry and store and can be hung on a wall when charging the battery.
Onda Portable Microwave
Country: USA
Designer: Matthew Schwartz
School: California State University Long Beach
The Onda portable microwave oven is a very clever twist on an appliance that was first introduced to homes in 1955. Pre-prepared meals are placed in compatible food packages and warmed with microwaves. Specifically, the Onda is slid on to the packaging and the aluminum contained within the interior of the handheld device creates a circuit connection when the seal of the packaging is broken. Paper batteries are used to produce energy, making the Onda both smart and eco-friendly. The Onda also comes in a range of different colors for personal preference.
Portable Spot Cleaner
Country: Slovakia
Designer: Adrian Mankovecky
School: Academy of Fine Arts and Design Bratislava
Whether you're a back packer or a business traveler you will love this small portable cleaner
Separate the two components, place on either side of the garment and choose the suitable cleaning program. Negative Ions and steam refresh clothing and remove stains. Powered with a sugar crystal battery, you can use it practically anywhere in the world.
Ribbon
Country: Australia
Designer: Enzo Kocak
School: Monash University
The Ribbon is a multi-purpose heater and cooler for portable use. Its unique shape and flexibility allows for wrapping around a vessel containing food or drink for heating or chilling. The black side provides heat, whereas the white cools. You can curl it up, take it with you, fold out and even puzzle together to use as a hotplate. Controls placed on the side facilitate easy use. The chargeable thermoelectric cell battery can also reverse the charging process - whilst not in use the cells convert excess heat back in to electricity.
Salve Bagel Toaster
Country: Canada
Designer: Kent Madden
School: Carleton University
This portable bagel toaster is especially convenient for those who can't find time to eat breakfast. Place a bagel in the toaster and it will automatically start rotating. When happy with the color of the freshly toasted bagel, simply remove and enjoy. The toaster is very energy efficient being run on sugar crystal batteries or recharged on a ceramic dock using induction.
Smoobo Blender
Country: New Zealand
Designer: Roseanne de Bruin
School: Massey University
The Smoobo blender is enjoyable and easy to use. Simply open the blender, put the ingredients inside and bounce. Each bounce activates the kinetic batteries, which in turn power the rotary blades to create a perfectly blended smoothie that can be enjoyed by opening the pouring cap.
Sous-vide Cell Cooker
Country: Hungary
Designer: Adam Miklosi
School: University of West Hungary - Institute of Applied Arts
The Sous-vide Cellcooker is inspired by the professional trend of slow food cooking. The Sous-vide helps you cook delicious healthy food at pre-indicated times. Personalised internet and smart-phone software helps you plan your food menu a week ahead (saving time) and aids you in buying the necessary ingredients. Ingredients are sealed in airtight plastic bags and held within a water bath (72 hours is not unusual as a cooking time)-at an accurately determined temperature and much lower than normally used for cooking, typically around 60 °C or 140 °F. The intention is to maintain the integrity of ingredients and achieve very precise control of cooking.
September Finals at Room Home Intelligence Conference, London
The Eight finalists will each present their concept at the Business Design Centre, London on September 7, 2011. The jury will consider entries based on intuitive design, innovation and consumer insight when awarding the first prize of a six-month paid internship at an Electrolux global design centre and 5,000 Euros. A second prize of 3,000 Euros and third prize of 2,000 Euros are also on offer.