In Part 2 of our Belkin visit, we interviewed VP of Design Oliver Seil on the developmental story of their TrueClear Pro, which seamlessly applies screen protectors to smartphones. Arriving at the final iterations of the product took a lot of prototyping! Here's how they went from crazy idea to market-ready solution.

Eden and CNC prototypes for Apple ScreenCare+ applicator on a desk in Belkin's design studio

Eden and CNC prototypes for Apple ScreenCare+ applicator on a desk in Belkin's design studio

Eden and CNC prototypes for Apple ScreenCare+ applicator on a desk in Belkin's design studio

System evolution from early Eden and CNC prototypes (left) to final prototypes (right, green colored). The leftmost two are early mechanical prototype concepts that were not taken further. The green one at right is the final first generation True Clear Pro machine. The one just to the left of the green is an early version (development prototype) of the final one

Same group as previous, different angle

EDEN print prototype of the TrueClear Pro second generation tray. Just to the right of the EDEN print tray is an EDEN print prototype cradle.

EDEN print prototype of the TrueClear Pro second generation tray. Just to the right of the EDEN print tray is an EDEN print prototype cradle.

EDEN print prototype of the TrueClear Pro second generation tray. Just to the right of the EDEN print tray is an EDEN print prototype cradle.

Development prototype for in-store test of second generation TrueClear Pro system

Development prototype opened to reveal integrated applicator and tools, making the system portable

"No Fixed Address System" is this year's Student Winner in the Service Design category of the 2018 Core77 Design Awards.

While different factors, including the housing crisis and advances in technology, has led to a dramatic rise of nomads in recent years—both by choice and by force—the way people work live love and relate to places and each other are being changed. Modern Nomads leverage technology in order to live an independent and nomadic lifestyle without being trapped in a fixed address. But they are facing unnecessary problems. From voting to ordering pizza,the society is not yet able to cater to the increasing needs of this growing group of people. Modern nomads are excluded from the society.

The NFA (No Fixed Address) system proposes a new system with a static postcode tied to a dynamic, impermanent address, allowing modern nomads to participate in a functional society that respects alternative ways of living.

Modern nomads can register as an NFA user, being assigned an NFA postcode and receive an NFA device. Once the user finds a place to settle down, they place the NFA device in a visible location then use a fingerprint to activate the GPS. The location will be linked to the NFA postcode. Services requiring an address can reach the user's current location via NFA postcode. The NFA system also creates an address history of the users to establish credits as proofs of their existence in the society allowing users to access services such as mortgage, visa, etc.

Modern nomads are not hiding, modern nomads are not trying to break any laws, modern nomads simply live a different way of life. Why do modern nomads have to tolerate pressing issues brought by the obsolete mindset of having a fixed address?

NFA system seeks to normalize and formalize the nomadic way of living through the proliferation of the No Fixed Address system. By becoming part of the norm, modern nomads will be able to become more intermeshed into our static, rigid society. Diversity should be respected in our great democracy.

Starting from the keyword "parasitism", I looked into the evolution from parasitism to mutualism. Through the evolution, the parasite and the host start to cooperate and live on each other. I created a hypothesis: if it’s a relationship of mutualism, the host can be the parasite, the parasite can be the host. This hypothesis will be applied to a context to push the project forward.

“They (beggars) are a race apart--outcasts, like criminals and prostitutes. Working men 'work', beggars do not ‘work'; they are parasites, worthless in their very nature.”
Down and Out in Paris and London by George Orwell

George Orwell describes an opinion which is held by a certain amount of people in their mind. This point of view is incorrect but it reveals the existence of the stereotype of beggars and even homeless people. Homelessness has existed in the world for a long history and seems difficult to end. I assume there is a relationship of mutualism between homeless people and society, therefore the issue of homelessness never comes to an end. Then with the hypothesis, homeless people are hosts too. What’s their value to society?

To better understand the lifestyle of the homeless, I spend a night outside Victoria station with two “cardboardmates” - Phil and Lee - who asked me for spare changes earlier that night. My approach was different from a typical interview. I observed things happening around quietly. They were very comfortable with it:“We are very happy, no one has ever done this before. You just sit down and stay with us, not many questions. We are happy.”

Before the stay, I had my own prediction about the problem I might face on the street, but it turned out that the reality was different from my imagination.

I documented my experience during my stay on the street. The insight is that homeless people in central London have access to different assistances provided by charities and councils including foods, clothes, shelters and job training etc. The short-term assistance they can get are more than they need. Meanwhile, there is a lack of a long-term solution. People provide short-term help because of empathy and willingness to help, but sometimes it doesn't help.

“The beggar’s existence allows even the poor to make donations……he/she functions as an agent of virtuous social bonding.” 

—Sympathy and the State in the Romantic Era: Systems, State Finance, and the Future of Futurity by Robert Mitchell

To efficiently help homeless people is to give them a sense of human dignity rather than taking pity on them. Housing first is a practical principle to address the homelessness issue. Recent research also shows that the key solution to homelessness is housing, the principle is called “housing first”. Whatever problem a homeless individual has once having a house the individual will start to be responsive to the house and him/herself then the situation will get better. Even more, it costs only one-third housing a homeless people than keeping than on the street since it takes more money to maintain shelters, health-care services and so on. Making use of vacant buildings sounds simple, Jeremy Corbyn and Margaret Thatcher had talked about homelessness and making using of empty properties in 1990. But the number of people sleeping rough on the streets is still increasing every year while many properties are left empty. The housing crisis is complicated because of the complexity of economics, politics and human nature. The housing problem seems unfixable.

Apart from not having a roof on top of their head, is there any consequence caused by not having a house? Yes, and many homeless people are complaining about this. It’s an address: a main obstacle of homeless people in finding jobs, claiming benefits and so on is the lack of a residential address.

Are homeless people the only victims of not having a fixed address? No, they are not. Because of the technology development and the remain high housing price, A growing cross-generation tribe of educated, influential and affluent professionals are striving to lead a nomadic life. For them, concepts like borders, time-zones and office-spaces can be ignored in lieu of a connected ecosystem of tools and services that help them to live, work and play in a way that may seem extreme to many of us today, but will become the norm for a much larger group of professionals in the next few years. Will this change the value of the society? What is society's attitude toward people who have no permeant place to live? Will the attitude remain the same in the future with a more serious housing crisis?

People without a fixed address are losing their voice. The design brief is to design a system to help no fixed abode better intermesh into society.

Modern nomads can register as an NFA user, being assigned an NFA postcode and receive an NFA device. Once the user find a place to settle down, place NFA device in a visible location then use fingerprint to activate the GPS. The location will be linked to the NFA postcode. Services requiring address can reach the user’s current location via NFA postcode. NFA system also creates address history of the users to establish credits as proofs of their existence in the society allowing users to access services such as mortgage, visa, etc.

From conversions with potential users, investors and the public, NFA chooses people who live on canal boats as target users to ground the proposal. There are over 10,000 people live on canal boats in London, over 32,000 boats in the UK. Canal & River Trust is the organisation responsive to license, management, etc. It would be easier to realise the proposal with C&RT rather than with the government.

Canal & River Trust is an ideal partner to collaborate with, they are well-managed and managing rivers and canals. There are many other associations related to people live afloat. During my research, I discovered that not everyone agrees with C&RT’s management. People question the legal effect of rules set by C&RT, especially on the rule “boats have to move 25miles every 2 weeks”. Before I clearly understand boaters’ opinion, the project is paused.

Visit the Core77 Design Awards website to view the 2018 Service Design honorees

Do you have a passion for innovation? As a Senior Graphic Designer, you can help define the future for a brand in tune with women’s ever-changing definition of beauty. As part of the brand team, we’re seeking a Senior Designer to not only ideate and develop strategies but a creative

Yeti, manufacturer of high-end coolers, has applied their fastidious design skills to outdoor furniture. "With a reputation to uphold for durability," the company writes, "we looked to wilderness-tested gear – from climbing harness fabric to downhill mountain bike frames – to create a nearly-indestructible, incredibly comfortable place to park yourself." The result is their folding Hondo Base Camp Chair, which weighs in at 16.5 pounds but will support up to 500.

The aluminum frame is "double-barreled" (i.e. a pipe within a pipe) for strength. The edges of the mesh fabric are captured within the overmolding of the seat to prevent tears. The joints are welded--no crappy rivets here--and the hinged portions are solid castings, "like the ones used on your truck's door hinges," according to the copy. The front of the seat has been waterfalled for comfort and a cupholder can be slotted into an insert on the right side.

The chair rings in at a pricey $300. Is it worth it? Here's a review, judge for yourself:

The James Brand is a Portland, Oregon-based group of designers who create modern, minimalist knives and tools.

They also make this dual-compartment carabiner called the Mehlville that caught my eye. It's machined from a single piece of aluminum and uses stainless steel for the hardware. Look at the amount of thought and attention to detail that went into this thing:

It looks to be a lifetime product, and it better be--the darn thing is sixty bucks! #covet

This vaguely insectoid plastic contraption from Japan was created to wash dishes, bowls and even utensils.

No, it's not a gag. It's real and can be purchased for just 8,800 yen! (That's about eighty bucks.) Of course, there's no telling as to whether it actually works on dirty dishes.

A Wellington, New-Zealand-based hunter named Matt Bircham captured the astonishing footage you see below. Upon encountering a sheep farm in Marlborough, Bircham sent his drone up to a distance of 180 meters to capture the sheep dogs doing their herding work, then sped the footage up:

"They were moving 3500 ewes into the yard," Bircham told NZ Farmer, "so we thought we would film it and see what it looked like, sped it up and it looks like schooling fish to me."

Aircis a beautiful and smart air solution / A 360-degree air cleaning device and smart system.An air cleaning device is indispensable for purifying the air in your living space. Many air purifiers are bulky and noisy. We are designing a new air cleaning product that is more more efficient and quietly blends into any environment. The work of the air product is invisible yet significant and unremitting. The clean air it freshens enhances the vibe, the smell of the place, and provides people with a higher quality of breathing.

Airc is talented at its functions yet humble, and it is designed to be discerned as aesthetic furniture or sculpture blended into its surroundings. Inspired by vortex and air circulation, we found the relationship between airflow and the form of the product. We designed a 360-degree purification air cleaner with the shape which increases air circulation in the place.

Say goodbye to putting baking soda and air freshness in your smelly sneakers because Panasonic recently announced, "There's a machine for that." The Japanese electronics company's new MS-DS100 is a shoe deodorizer device that works overnight for up to 7 hours to freshen those smelly, nasty, gross, dank sneakers you've been wearing everyday for the past year. 

Below is a closer look at the device's design. It's bulky, but its body rests vertically in the shoe, taking up less space than expected. MS-DS100 isn't wireless, which is slightly strange. The targeted outlets at the bottom release "nanoe X" into the shoe, which we'll get to unpacking in a moment.

To use MS-DS100, simply place the device in your shoes, press the power switch and let that baby run overnight for 5-7 hours.

Panasonic states that the device is successful due to the use of "nanoe X". The mysterious "nanoe X" term refers to an electrostatic atomized water particle Panasonic developed back in 2016, which purifies air and eliminates odor better than typical "nanoe" inclusive products on the market. You can learn more about nanoe X here, but the diagram below explains what happens when the MS-DS100 releases nanoe X ions into shoes:

The MSD100 is definitely not something I'd store on a shelf, but at least it's easy to clean.

In true Japanese fashion, the level of detail put into this single-use item is unbelievable. It's unclear whether MS-DS100 is making fun of sneaker culture or completely serious, but given the immense detail included in Panasonic's online announcement, it's safe to assume this is as serious as it gets. If you want to see for yourself, the MS-DS10 is launching next month in Japan only.

To us, nothing can beat the elegant complexity of cabinetmaker David Roentgen's ingenious pieces from the 18th Century. But that doesn't stop people from trying. Here, San-Diego-based furnituremaker Craig Thibodeau tries to out-Roentgen Roentgen, with this incredibly complex Wisteria Puzzle Cabinet, created in collaboration with puzzle designer Robert Yarger:

Work & Co (work.co) defines and launches the world's most successful digital products and services. In just five years, we’ve become the go-to partner for Apple, Target, Marriott, Lyft, Etsy, American Express, LVMH, Planned Parenthood and more. As Fast Company noted, our engineering and design teams are “routinely entrusted with

This morning, the Reebok Future team launched the NPC UK Cotton sneakers, the first product from their "Cotton + Corn" sustainable products initiative, which was announced last year. The Cotton + Corn program aims to produce footwear with "things that grow"instead of materials like petroleum and synthetic rubber. The NPC UK Cotton sneakers feature an upper made of 100% cotton, a corn-based sole, insoles that are derived from castor bean oil and 100% recycled packaging.

"Most athletic footwear is made using petroleum to create synthetic rubber and foam cushioning systems. With 20 billion pairs of shoes made every year, this is not a sustainable way of making footwear. At Reebok, we thought 'what if we start with materials that grow, and use plants rather than oil-based materials?' By using sustainable resources as our foundation, and then through ongoing testing and development, we were able to create a plant-based sneaker that performs and feels like any other shoe.

The NPC UK Cotton + Corn is the only footwear product on the market that has been certified as containing 75% USDA certified biobased content, and this is just the start for us. We are on an ongoing path to create a different type of footwear–so that you can feel good about what you're wearing and where it came from." —Bill McInnis, Head of Reebok Future

Compared to the preliminary images of the shoe Reebok released last year, it's nice to see the design team chose to focus more on the natural textures of cotton and corn, especially with the woven cotton upper.

To develop the NPC UK Cotton + Corn soles, Reebok partnered with DuPont Tate & Lyle Bio Products who have developed Susterra® propanediol, a petroleum-free, non-toxic product that contains 100% USDA certified bio-based content, derived from field corn.

The NPC UK Cotton + Corn are retailing for $95 here: Reebok.com/CottonandCorn. 

Designing something as complicated as a car can take years. Even though CAD and rendering technology have improved tremendously over the past two decades, there is one major time sink in the automotive design process that there's been no way to get around: The "review" step that occurs throughout the process, whereby the designers must evaluate whether the latest iteration meets their goals.

In order to conduct this review, designers—who are sometimes scattered across different continents—need a physical model that can show them, in a way a flat rendering or even a 3D CAD model cannot, how the contours and transitions of the car look and feel in 3D space. And if changes need to be made, as they so often do during the design process, creating another physical model can take weeks.

Fortunately for car designers, VR technology is finally advancing to the point where it can significantly reduce the design and development time. Unreal Engine is a robust, high-performance, real-time C++ engine that can deliver complex scenes with high frame rates. Coupled with NVIDIA's Holodeck, a you've-got-to-see-it-to-believe-it VR environment, designers from multiple locations can remotely convene in a virtual studio and collaborate on designs in real time.

Ken Pimentel, Senior Product Manager at Epic Games, says "Experiencing a design before the first surface is molded or the first wall goes up, has been the dream of many of our customers. With Unreal Engine and Unreal Studio, they've found it easier than ever to take complex designs and experience them directly through VR, AR and other immersive displays."

The power of Unreal Engine isn't only beneficial to auto designers, of course. Another example of the software's capabilities is in real-time editing of motion graphics. Combining actual film footage with CAD models results in a movie where the lighting and styling of objects can be edited on the fly, or combined with CG effects. Here's a short film demoing this, produced for the 2017 Game Developers Conference:

Of course, for designers to wield Unreal Engine's capabilities, they need to be able to port their existing files over into the system. That's where Unreal Studio comes in; it's a suite of tools used to import CAD data into Unreal Engine, helping designers across a variety of disciplines get the most out of their design workflows.

Unreal Engine 4 is a complete suite of development tools made for anyone working with real-time technology. From enterprise applications and cinematic experiences to high-quality games across PC, console, mobile, VR and AR, Unreal Engine 4 gives you everything you need to start, ship, grow and stand out from the crowd.

A world-class toolset and accessible workflows empower developers to quickly iterate on ideas and see immediate results without touching a line of code, while full source code access gives everyone in the Unreal Engine 4 community the freedom to modify and extend engine features.

Unreal Studio 4.20 was just released, with improvements to mesh editing, importing files, Datasmith support for SketchUp and a number of other improvements. 

For a limited time, Unreal Studio is being released as a free beta. Those who sign up can use it with a 100% royalty-free license. The Unreal Engine site has tons of examples and demos of how the technology works, and what you can do with it. 

Human Interface Jewellery's ethos is to design products in a more environmentally and socially responsible way. We make only what is needed by using the latest metal manufacturing technology—3D printing. Designs are user tested and voted on by an engaged community to ensure people get the products they want and love. The first range is dedicated to women in tech, with software inspired designs in titanium, silver and gold, giving a new spin to "wearable tech".

Take a trip to virtually any region of Japan and you'll see plenty of mamachari; translated as "mom's bike," mamachari are no-frills utility bicycles with a handy basket used as grocery getters, kiddie haulers and commuter vehicles.

The Cero One is a cargo bike that takes its inspiration from the mamachari. It doesn't look like a cargo bike; the only giveaway is the extra-large rear wheel. But kitted out with a series of modular baskets and rackets, the Cero One offers a 12-way modular cargo system--and an electric motor, giving you up to 93 miles of range.

"Our goal was to design and build a modern version of the Japanese 'Mamachari,' a practical utility bike that could be used by almost anyone as a replacement for a car in their daily lives," said Kiyoshi Iwai, founder of CERO.

"The CERO One allows urban dwellers to do almost anything they'd do in a car, but more quickly and efficiently. A powerful electric motor and wide range of accessories make the bike perfect for getting around town as well as carrying almost anything, whether that's groceries, pizza for delivery or precious cargo. I even take my surfboard to the beach near our office in Santa Monica with CERO One."

Check it out here.

I've lived in both Western and Eastern locales, and here's what's great about the former: No one knows how bad your feet smell. Sealed within your sneakers, your stinky secret is safe. But live in a place like eastern Asia, where you take your shoes off every time you enter someone's home, and your malodorous cover's blown.

So perhaps it makes sense that this device comes from Japan. Panasonic's sexily-named MS-DS100 is an electronic shoe deodorizer that apparently uses science to de-funkify your kicks.

One of the common causes of unpleasant shoe odors is isovaleric acid, an odorous substance produced by foot sweat and bacteria. According to a survey(*3) Panasonic conducted with sneaker wearers, about 62% of those surveyed take some measures to remove shoe odors, but about half of them are not satisfied with the deodorizing methods they use.

The MS-DS100 utilizes Panasonic's original ion particles, "nanoe X," to dissolve and eliminate unpleasant shoe odors(*1). When the product is set in shoes and the switch turned on, "nanoe X" is generated and spreads from six outlets to every corner of the shoes to remove odors(*1) in the entire interior of the shoes from the heel to the toe.

The MS-DS100 can be plugged into the wall or run from a mobile battery. The little plastic vented caps that protrude into the sneakers can be removed and washed, in case your feet's disgusting isovaleric acid clings to them.

The device will be out in September of this year, and initially at least, will be Japanese-market only. Us Western-country dwellers will just have to continue wearing our sneakers inside the house.

In Part 2 of our Belkin visit, we interviewed VP of Design Oliver Seil on the developmental story of their TrueClear Pro, which seamlessly applies screen protectors to smartphones. Arriving at the final iterations of the product took a lot of prototyping! Here's how they went from crazy idea to market-ready solution.

Eden and CNC prototypes for Apple ScreenCare+ applicator on a desk in Belkin's design studio

Eden and CNC prototypes for Apple ScreenCare+ applicator on a desk in Belkin's design studio

Eden and CNC prototypes for Apple ScreenCare+ applicator on a desk in Belkin's design studio

System evolution from early Eden and CNC prototypes (left) to final prototypes (right, green colored). The leftmost two are early mechanical prototype concepts that were not taken further. The green one at right is the final first generation True Clear Pro machine. The one just to the left of the green is an early version (development prototype) of the final one

Same group as previous, different angle

EDEN print prototype of the TrueClear Pro second generation tray. Just to the right of the EDEN print tray is an EDEN print prototype cradle.

EDEN print prototype of the TrueClear Pro second generation tray. Just to the right of the EDEN print tray is an EDEN print prototype cradle.

EDEN print prototype of the TrueClear Pro second generation tray. Just to the right of the EDEN print tray is an EDEN print prototype cradle.

Development prototype for in-store test of second generation TrueClear Pro system

Development prototype opened to reveal integrated applicator and tools, making the system portable

While Core77's bosses typically spend their evenings wearing tuxedos, us lowly folk in editorial have the luxury of wearing whatever we want. Which is a good thing; when acquaintances of mine inconsiderately die or get married, forcing me to attend their funerals or weddings, I've found transporting a suit in a garment bag to be a big pain in the neck.

Kikkerland's effort to solve the unwieldiness of a garment bag is to do away with it altogether. Their Compact Suit Folder lets you minimize that monkey suit into a manageable rectangle of fabric.

So the next time one of my friends kicks the bucket or ties the knot, I'll fold the suit.

I'm a big fan of Klein Tools for their clever Katapult Wire Stripper, and I'm happy to see the company has applied their design talents to tool bags as well. Their Tradesman Pro Tool Master Backpack has a host of great features that show the designers have studied how tools are hauled and used in the field.

It's got a beefy handle supported by aircraft cable; a molded plastic compartment up top to protect breakable items like safety glasses and smartphones; a molded plastic base so that the bag remains upright when placed down, and keeps it up off of standing water; an integrated hook so the bag can be hung in place and used like a locker; a removable tool caddy that can also be hung; and tons more features.

- Backpack with 48 total pockets to easily keep everything organized
- Orange interior helps find tools easily and a large interior space for larger hand tools
- Removable tool caddy with carrying handles and a D-ring for hanging
- Aircraft cable heavily reinforces the handle as well as a heavy-duty zipper with lockable pulls (lock not included)
- Made of durable 1680d ballistic weave material and a molded bottom to help protect from the elements
- Hang the bag from the heavy-duty metal hook for easy access into the bag
- Well-padded shoulder straps have a buckled chest strap along with lower straps that adjust for a perfect fit
- Tool caddy has a zipper pocket and closed pouches for small tools and parts as well as open pockets and straps ideal for long drivers
- Adjustable front pouch for quick tool retrieval, a mid-sized front zipper pocket fits tablets in protective covers, and a front zipper pocket for smaller items
- Molded front pocket helps protect items like phones and safety glasses

So how does it stack up in the real world? Our friends over at Pro Tool Reviews had a working commercial electrician give the bag a thorough review that you can check out here.