In the last entry, you saw those cool, circular tunnels that will house Manhattan's new 7 Train extension, lined with pre-fab concrete sections. Above is a photo of a similar tunnel in Delhi. Question is, how did they dig and line these things?

They use what are called TBMs, or Tunnel Boring Machines. These massive machines are essentially moving factories that cut through the rock, excavate the waste out of the back, and install the concrete shielding, all while pushing itself along like an inchworm. You'll understand the process better after viewing the video at the bottom of this entry, but first, here's some examples of what TBMs look like from the front:

Size matters.

Lubrication matters.

I think this one has no motor and is powered by the really strong guys in the red and
orange shirts. (The guys in green and yellow shirts are there to yell encouragement.)

Japan has a bad-ass triple tunnel boring machine.
In a manner of speaking, it's three times as boring.

I realize that picking a pen up off of a tabletop, or plucking it from your desktop organizer are not ergonomically-challenging tasks; but I'm still digging this pen that stands up by itself, making it easy to grab.

The Slanda pen is manufactured by Sweden-based Gustav Innovation. (Slanda means "dragonfly" in Swedish, cluing you in as to where the shape's inspiration came from.) The pen doesn't have a cap; you just pick it up and start writing. And while the product copy's a bit over-philosophized (hit the jump to read it), I won't let it detract from the coolness of the product.

Just a reminder that you have THREE WEEKS left to enter your product design concepts for the 2012 BraunPrize. As we mentioned in our previous announcement post, this year's competition is not only open to students, but they've widened the call for entries to "design professionals and enthusiasts" with prize packages for each category coming in at $100,000 in total!

All entries will be judged by three fundamental tenets that are true to the Braun brand—design, technology and sustainability. In addition, the judges note, "The product concept should be designed with the benefit it provides for the user and society as the focal point."

The new BraunPrize 2012 is embracing the increased relevance of well-designed products that help improve all aspects of everyday life. With most people's daily challenges becoming increasingly complex and demanding, we are relying on ubiquitous technology, highly connected social structures and our ability to cope with a fast, 24/7 lifestyle. Our everyday has become an artificial environment of architecture and technology and while it seems that the quantity of products around us is consistently increasing, their level of quality is not. We have surrounded ourselves by many things we don't really value, instead of focusing on fewer but better solutions to help us live our lives. With this in mind, the BraunPrize 2012 is looking for ingenious solutions and product ideas to make our everyday a better place.

Don't miss this opportunity to enter in this global competition honoring genius design in everyday products. And for inspiration, check out the Braun & Core77 Design in the Wild photo galleries!

BraunPrize 2012
Submit your entries by March 31, 2012!

Design Lead
RKS
Thousand Oaks, California

RKS is a Research, Strategy and Design firm based in Southern California. They are currently seeking a Design Lead whose exceptional creativity will allow him or her flourish in a team environment that thrives on meeting significant challenges and breaking with tradition. The ideal candidate has a deep passion for creating new, innovative, and breakthrough designs that meet the evolving needs of RKS's clients.

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The best design jobs and portfolios hang out at Coroflot.

Solofill reusable filter cup slips into the Keurig machine

Last year, over 3 billion K-Cups were sold for Green Mountain Coffee's Keurig system and it's pretty reasonable to assume that the majority of these plastic and tinfoil single-use coffee pods have ended up in a landfill. It's clear that the ease of use and convenience of these single-use systems has created a booming industry—in fact, at this week's International Home + Housewares Show we counted at least four systems that were dishing up single-serving caffinated treats for bleary-eyed attendees. So what's a single-serve, coffee-loving person to do?

Although Keurig has created a similar product for their brewers called the My K-Cup, two new solutions for this coffee conundrum were presented by independent companies at this year's Home + Housewares Show. These reusable filters for the Keurig brewers both function in a similar way—fill your choice of coffee into the self-tamping pods, insert them into your Keurig machine and throw them into the dishwasher when you're done. Users are estimated to save over 50% on their coffee pod costs by filling their own pods.

Ekobrew, was recognized as part of the Going Green Display, and the founders proudly shared that their current batch of pods are made in the USA. The cone-shaped water disperser in the cap allows for a more even water flow throughout the pod. Ekobrew claims that the deep chamber provides 17% more volume for your coffee grounds. An innovation that the company introduced is the flat-bottom design for easy fill.

Images courtesy of Dyson

Believe it or not, 2012 marks Dyson's very first IHHS... and Chicago is the home of their US headquarters. In addition to exhibiting their impressive lineup of air multipliers, Dyson Hot and their existing vacuum offerings, Dyson is pleased to unveil the DC39, their first canister vacuum with Ball technology.

Canister cleaners are often awkward to steer and can topple. They lurch into furniture, veer off at tangents and may be difficult to pull. Like an errant shopping cart, their crude casters drift across hard floors and get buried in carpets—more force is needed to keep them on track. And reliant on bags—they can lose suction, too.

Sitting on a ball, DC39 has a lower center of gravity and is easier to pull without snagging on corners or the carpet pile. Coupled with a unique central steering system, it uses an articulating chassis and central pivot point for negotiating tight turns and circumnavigating sofas. And equipped with Dyson's Radial Root Cyclone™ technology, it captures more microscopic dust than any other.

Design Engineer Robert Green obliged us with a rundown of the specs and a quick demo of the DC39 in action:

Photos via urban velo

The confines of designing a bicycle seem pretty tight, but custom bike builder Shinichi Konno breaks out of them admirably. Shown here is his Silver Flyer track bike, which recently won both Best in Show and the President's Choice award at the North American Handmade Bicycle Show.

Photos by John Watson

At last year's NAHBS, Konno pulled the sheet off of the equally-striking Air Line Bike, a very different take on fluidity that still manages to break new aesthetic ground while fulfilling its mechanical duties.

Noma Bar's exemplary vector design work is invariably on point, whether he's working on posters, portraiture or book covers. The London-based Israeli designer was recently commissioned to create eight limited-edition covers for Wallpaper's latest issue, which was released last week. In keeping with the editorial theme of Global Design, each one takes on a different country or region.

Ever the innovator, Bar took the opportunity to make his first foray into the third dimension: each illustration is actually a carefully-staged interior, "painted in a three-dimensional studio and enhanced with actual products from each of the territories":

To capture a 'cultural moment in time,' Bar has turned Jean Nouvel's chairs into eyes for the French cover, while an ink box by Babaghuri becomes the lips for Japan, and Andreas Engesvik's candleholder gives bite to Scandinavia's polar bear.

"My images should not be immediately obvious to my readers," says Bar. "Most of them will require a second reading, or take a minute to interpret."

This is precisely the beauty of his work: by flattening the space into an image, the artist preserves his signature style even as he incorporates sculpture, photography and interior design into the illustration.

See the rest in full after the jump...

While neither member has a formal background in art or design, Drzach & Suchy collaborate on projects that lie at the intersection of both fields. The message of their latest project, "Nature Calling," is even more shamelessly optimistic than that of, say, the Holstee Manifesto, but it's worth a closer look (literally and figuratively).

Similarly, I felt that the soundtrack to the video was a bit cheesy at first, but it's since grown on me. If the title of the post didn't give it away, check it out:

Senior Visual Designer - UX/UI
Phunware
Austin, Texas

Phunware is seeking a talented Senior Visual Designer to join their creative team in Austin, TX. Candidates are self-motivated and eager to learn and produce inside a super fast-paced environment. Our ideal candidate has a stunning portfolio of varied work, with an emphasis on graphic, web, and UI/UX design. You'll be able to show a passion for attention to detail, versatility and beautiful user experiences.

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The best design jobs and portfolios hang out at Coroflot.

It's the moment you've all been waiting for: our next 5 Jury Teams are in for the Core77 Design Awards! We are proud to count these design superstars as part of our jury constellation in the most inclusive and celebratory design awards program of the digital age. These illustrious Jury Teams represent five more categories: Equipment (Changsha City), Speculative (TBD), Packaging (Paris), Interiors & Exhibitions (Brasilia) and Strategy & Research (Rochester). So prepare your projects; today is our EARLYBIRD DEADLINE (at 11.59pm Pacific Time)!

Our Earlybird deadline ends tonight, March 13 at 11:59pm Pacific Time. But don't fret. You still have until our regular deadline on April 10. Register now and we will send you one of our Limited Edition Design Awards posters. Stay tuned for the announcement of our Transportation Jury Team, led by John B. Rogers of Local Motors.

Core77 2012 Design Awards Jury Announcements:
» Jury team announcement #1: Consumer Products, Visual Communication, Food Design, Writing & Commentary, Educational Initiatives and DIY
» Jury team announcement #2: Interaction, Service, Social Impact, Soft Goods and Furniture & Lighting
» Jury team announcement #3: Equipment, Speculative, Packaging, Interiors & Exhibitions and Strategy & Research

Visit Core77 2012 Design Awards for full details.

For designers, more than any other profession, a website isn't just an online portfolio, it's a distillation of who you are creatively, professionally and even personally. Are you serious, academic or more laid back? Are you more digital or handmade DIY? The stakes are high, but rightfully so. Color, text, typeface—these are the tools of the trade as well as the means of conveying what a designer can do with them.

So what does French designer Fanette Mellier's website say about her? She has one of those user friendly/unfriendly sites, the kind that seem intuitive but make you work a little harder to access the information therein, because first you have to figure out the site itself. There are no instructions, no "my name is Fanette, I'm a designer and here is my work." It's more like a friendly game of cat and mouse. Click on a link and you're rewarded with a pop-up window. Click on the image in the window and you get a new image (no arrows to guide you forward and backwards) as well as text (in French) detailing each project.

Remember the big deal over the statistic that half of the world's population now lives in cities? That's nothing compared to projections for the year 2050, which say two-thirds of Earthlings will live in urban areas. Our planet is practically going to start looking like the entirely urban Star Wars planet of Coruscant.

That being the case, traffic is going to be bad, making the current Los Angeles rush hour look like frickin' Nurburgring. Cars are not going to cut it. To address this, forward-thinking, global transportation company Bombardier is sponsoring the YouCity Innovation Competition, seeking design concepts for "the future of urban mobility."

The competition will be divided into two tasks:

Task 1: The candidates will start by drawing an overview of the current and upcoming issues and bottlenecks of their target city's urban mobility, and provide a more detailed analysis of the most important one(s). They will then have to come up with a solution to the challenge(s) analyzed earlier. The candidates will present a concept that will solve or significantly improve the current situation, or that will prevent a future issue. The most important is to be concrete and specific!

Task 2: The second task is about a fully comprehensive and holistic approach. How does the proposal fit in the global picture for that city? This final proposal should combine all of the 3 aspects: Engineering, Business and Urban planning. Therefore, the candidates are strongly invited to collaborate and enrich their concept with ideas from other work streams than their own!

Registration's open now, and the competition officially beings on April 16th. Click here for more info.

Today—Tuesday, March 13—is the last day for you to submit and pay for your Core77 2012 Design Awards entries to get the Earlybird pricing. That's 20% off the regular price. Register here if you haven't already (we'll send you a limited-edition poster designed by Studio Lin) and if you have registered then login here to complete your entry and payment. The Earlybird discount is available until 11:59PM Pacific Time tonight so check what that means in your timezone!

Head over to core77designawards.com for more info.(more...)

Sparkling or tap? Gas or no gas? Fizzy or flat? It's one of those broadly European trends that ’muricans might regard as a bit too, well, posh for their tastes: the option of sparkling water at just about every Trattoria and Rathskeller on a certain side of the Chunnel. (Which is not to say that it hasn't caught on here in New York City; all else equal, a friend once picked a restaurant because they had free sparkling water.)

Meanwhile, sugary-sweet sodas are a uniquely American phenomenon, and if I come from the last generation of kids whose parents condoned the occasional jolt of HFCS —even my most health-conscious friends admit to craving a can of Coke every now and then—there's no denying that the magic of carbonation works wonders for otherwise unremarkable beverages.

Whatever your taste, those of you who can't get enough of that tingly sensation have several new options to choose from.

SodaStream's household carbonators date back to the turn of the century, but they've experienced a recent resurgence as of the late aughts with their tap-like, non-electrical countertop appliance that carbonates run-of-the-mill tap water with the push of a button (or three). It's another take on the Gillette model: the CO2 cartridges can be refilled at various locations, but the money is in their flavor offerings.

Indeed, the past few years have seen strong growth in the home carbonation market: the company had one of the more elaborate booths in the show, featuring a 3D in a custom viewing station, as well as a 're-cyclist' circling McCormick place in a pedicab retrofitted with a cage full of recycled bottles, a smaller scale version of the one at their booth. SodaStream's latest offering is their first fully automated (electric) soda machine, boasting three levels of carbonation.

OBH Nordica has entered the carbonation game with a pair of curvier home soda makers, boasting "elegant Scandinavian design." For now, the devices are expressly meant to make soda water—no flavor syrup to speak of—but given its European appeal, the lack of extraneous offerings is entirely in keeping with OBH Nordica's roots.

The SodaMaster Freestyle (above right) joins the Gazelle (above left) in their 2012 product lineup.

If the tap-like form factor of Sodastream and OBH Nordica's offerings doesn't float your boat (or root beer), ISI's wand-like carbonator is a worthy new contendor in the home soda category. Don't be fooled by its potentially cringeworthy (albeit accurate) name: the "Twist 'n Sparkle" uses an entirely different carbonation mechanism, where the handheld device is attached ('twist') to the top of a special bottle; once it forms an airtight seal, the wand carbonate ('sparkle') to the liquid within. In addition to its versatility in terms of size and storage, the "Twist 'n Sparkle" can be used with any liquid—not just plain ol' H₂O—from orange juice and coffee (yes, it's a real thing) in the morning to wine and spirits at night, transforming a mundane potable into a fizzy potion.

As ever, 3D printing is at the threshold of cultural consciousness, almost-but-not-quite the next major innovation in consumer technology. While hardware remains a bit too niche for the average user, plenty of brilliant DIYers and hackers have been developing new tools and applications for 3D printing technology, typically with the goal of making bigger, more colorful tchotchkes.

1 μm (micrometer) = 1,000 nm = 0.001 mm

A team at the Vienna University of Technology is taking the Wayne Szalinski approach, not in terms of scaling-down the hardware but the actual output, fine-tuning the motion of the lasers and mirrors for a process called 'Two-Photon Lithography.' The technical details escape me, but their breakthrough involves an innovation that is more about a 100,000-fold (!) improvement in speed as opposed to nanometric scale: their 3D printer can produce "100 layers, consisting of approximately 200 single lines each, in four minutes."

The 3D printer uses a liquid resin, which is hardened at precisely the correct spots by a focused laser beam. The focal point of the laser beam is guided through the resin by movable mirrors and leaves behind a polymerized line of solid polymer, just a few hundred nanometers wide. This high resolution enables the creation of intricately structured sculptures as tiny as a grain of sand. "Until now, this technique used to be quite slow", says Professor Jürgen Stampfl from the Institute of Materials Science and Technology at the TU Vienna. "The printing speed used to be measured in millimeters per second—our device can do five meters in one second." In two-photon lithography, this is a world record.

This amazing progress was made possible by combining several new ideas. "It was crucial to improve the control mechanism of the mirrors", says Jan Torgersen (TU Vienna). The mirrors are continuously in motion during the printing process. The acceleration and deceleration-periods have to be tuned very precisely to achieve high-resolution results at a record-breaking speed.

The range in NYC-based filmmaker Casey Neistat's body of work is awesome, since he shoots whatever he wants to and the man has broad, weird interests and skillsets. "YouTube is my favorite thing and if I had no responsibility I would spend all my time making YouTube videos," he writes.

For starters, he gets my vote for DIY-of-the-Week by using a jar of peanut butter to repair the cracked lens hood on his Canon:

On the more whimsical side, he and an accomplice smuggle a floating, remote-controlled shark into the Museum of Natural History and let it loose for a good amount of time before they're finally thrown out. (Sadly, the shark ultimately meets its demise in the NYC subway system.)

Hit the jump to see it in action...

Photography by Glen Jackson Taylor for Core77

I met the founders of The American Design Club a few hours before the opening of their benefit show Threat, an exhibition of objects designed to protect you in case of a break-in or some other 'threatening' situation. All of the 54 pieces were submitted as part of an open call, though most come from AmDC members, an expansive collective of some of the most talented young designers working today. Just being in the gallery space with core members Kiel Mead, Annie Lenon, Henry Julier and Steph Mantis as they put the finishing touches on the show—adjusting the lights, arranging handouts, stocking the bar with bottles of Brooklyn Beer—feels like the beginning of something that's going to be really big one day very soon.

AmDC held their first exhibition in 2008. "We were young then," says Kiel. To be fair, they're all still really young, but in the last four years they've gained considerable momentum, hosting a series of exhibitions each year in addition to representing at NYIGF, ICFF and the Architectural Digest Home Design Show. Of course, all that costs money, hence the fundraiser, which you can visit by appointment—a worthwhile endeavor if you're inclined. The interpretations of defense mechanisms run the gamut from funny to passive to quite beautiful. "Human Catcher," by Ladies and Gentlemen Studio, is riffs on a dog catching device, only it's made from a gorgeous mix of shining silver and copper metals.

Object Trust created a paper bag that comes with three simple instructions: 1) Open bag, 2) Place on head, 3) Enjoy your break in. The outside of the bag reads "Take What You Want," while the inside is lined with images of palm trees and white sand beaches meant to bring the wearer to a happier place. It's a great complement to Reed Wilson's "Defense Mat," a doormat printed with the message "The neighbors have better stuff." Mantis also took a humorous approach with her pizza ninja stars made from actual slices of pizza from her family's Greek pizzeria in Maine, cast in resin to make ninja throwing stars. It sounds funny and they look more like cool desk objects than weapons, but these hunks of preserved pie could do some serious damage.

Rounding out the show are ten, wooden baseball bats that ten designers were asked to treat like a blank canvas. A few went the aggressive route, turning their bats into medieval torture devices with spikes and rusty saw blades. Harry Allen, on the other hand, used Swarovski crystals to spell "Namaste" in cursive at the end of his bat. As you can tell, the range of objects is as diverse as the designers on the American Design Club's roster. Make an appointment by emailing info@americandesignclub.com.

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Italian architect and designer Denis Guidone recently sent us images of his latest furniture project, "Disfatto" for the brand D3CO, which will debut in his hometown of Milan next month, during the upcoming Salone.

Disfatto contains a primordial idea of comfort, has a changeable shape that naturally adapts to our needs; changes its colors over the time and seasons. What characterizes it, is an essential structure on which rests a shape with soft lines, warm and friendly, which unhinge the principles of ergonomics and creates the perfect imperfections.