oobject » design

design

Below are the most recent charts on oobject that deal primarily with design

Neutrinos are extremely small and fast, so much so that to detect them you have to build really amazing experiments, such as the ones shown here. Japans Super-K is a 50,000 ton tank of water, half a mile underground, so clear that divers get vertigo. The latest South Pole neutrino telescopes, which point into the earths core rather than at the sky, have arrays of detectors which are much larger than the Empire State building and are frozen deep in the Antarctic ice core.

Ghost Particle Detectors. more...

Thanks to an intrepid group of urban explorers, some of the most magnificent hidden engineering triumphs that lie, hidden, beneath the streets of the worlds cities are being recorded and posted on underground (no pun intended) websites.<p /><p />Here are some of our favorite sewers and drains, from Paris tourist attraction sewers to Londons Escher-like, arched, Victorian Gothic drains, to still working ancient Roman systems and the infamous giant storm drains beneath Tokyo. Vote for your faves.

Spectacular Sewers. more...

There is something inherently fascinating about survival kits. Here are some of our favorites, including those below ejector seats, some nicely designed kits from Japan and at Target, and those that we thought had interesting components. We will add to this list over time, send us suggestions of genuinely interesting or unusual, non-gimmick kits.

Survival Kits. more...

Machines designed to smash large tough items into small bits, including a machine that eats trees whole, and yes, a real bone crusher, that makes fertilizer from animal bones.

Industrial crushing machines. more...

This is a list of the worlds most beautiful airport terminals, based upon architectural merit rather than crude size, high tech bravado or structural gymnastics. For that reason the beautifully simple Dalaman terminal in Turkey makes the list, for example, but the design compromised Heathrow Terminal Five, does not. Vote for your faves.

most beautiful airport terminals. more...

In this kind of space, no one can hear you scream. Anechoic chambers use spiked walls to eliminate echoes, the end result might literally sound dull but the visual effect can be stunning, such as at the enormous anechoic hangar. Vote for your faves.

Anechoic Chamber Architecture. more...

Climbing walls are both functionally and aesthetically fascinating. They often have beautiful abstract shapes reminiscent of Kurt Schwitters Merzbau or are just plain intricate and impressive.<p /><p />Included in our collection here are interactive musical climbing walls, enormous artificial ice towers, surreal climbing forms and a huge climbing wall inside a disused Texan grain silo. Vote for your faves.

Great Climbing Walls. more...

Want to see some more impressive glass stairs than those at the Apple Stores? Despite the fact that Apple actually has a patent on the glass stairs at some of its stores, their glass staircases are actually not all that innovative. The glass stair at the Carre D art in Nimes is more adventurous and was designed 20 years ago, and Ove Arup have engineered a purely glass stair with no steel fixings.

Transparent Glass Stairs. more...

The interior and exterior of wind tunnels have unusual design requirements that often make them accidental architectural masterpieces.<p /><p />Wind tunnels range from the miniature wooden box that the Wright brothers used, to the gigantic full scale tunnel at NASA Ames in Silicon Valley which drains the power supply for the entire Bay Area, and tests actual planes and space craft. Air speeds within them can reach tens of times the speed of sound, requiring super heated air.<p /><p />All in all, they are definitely object to go ooh about.

Spectacular Wind Tunnels. more...

Just when people are talking about banning the incandescent light bulb, designers are noticing how beautiful they are and making lamps which show of rather than hide bulbs. Here is an eclectic list of items in honor of the humble light bulb, including a couple of takes on other types of lamp, for good measure

Homage to the Light Bulb. more...

And you thought the matrix was fiction? Robots designed to access hostile areas such as radioactive areas are also used beneath the streets to clean or repair sewers or to lay cables. They were among the first things on the scene after 911 or Katrina and have a particular rugged beauty. Vote for your faves.

12 super sewer robots. more...

When you see something familiar that looks unfamiliar it creates an impression. Armor is so iconic that everyone has an image of what it looks like, from Roman to Samurai. Here are some examples that are a little bit different. Vote for your faves.<p />

extraordinary armor. more...

Vote for your favorite Lego stop motion animation or time lapse construction video. Included are a 5 week 250,000 piece project and some great video recreations including a bizarre recreation of Bohemian Rhapsody.

11 best Lego stop motion videos. more...

Balloons formed the origins of what became the USAF, have been used for stratospheric parachute jumps, bungee jumps and even to test nuclear bombs. Vote for your faves.

12 interesting balloons. more...

A bunch of swimming pools have been doing the rounds on blogs lately. Here is the Oobject alternative list of cool pools. Including pools over fake pools, pools hanging off the edge of buildings, 1000 year old pools and spectacular underground pools. Vote for your faves.

13 really cool pools. more...

iCandy - the best Apple concept mockups. Despite the huge number of 3d rendered mockups of Apple products on the web, few even come close to genuine Apple design. The exceptions seem to be Isamu Sanada and Yann Le Coroller, who between them account for the majority of well executed 3rd party concepts. Here are our favorites, and why we chose them. Vote for yours.

15 best apple concept mockups. more...

Although folding bicycles have seen somewhat of a renaissance, there has not been as much innovation compared to mountain bikes, because the market is smaller. <p /><p />This is a shame since although there are some great products such as Bromptons or the Birdy, there is, in our opinion, no ideal foldup. <p /><p />An ideal foldup would be one that folds so small and is so light, that you could take it in a backpack, just in case, like carrying an umbrella in case it rains. <p /><p />A couple of the concept designs here come close - vote for your fave.

10 concept folding bikes. more...

Tensegrity structures are visually stunning and their combination with computer enhanced structures is creating renewed interest for architectural applications.<p /><p />Buckminster Fuller coined the term tensegrity when he saw sculptures by Kenneth Snelson and realized that rigid component geodesics were a special case of perfectly balanced compression and tension. Tensegrity refers to structures where compression members (rods) are only connected to each other by tension members (cables). The end result is that the structures appear to float in air.<p /><p />Despite the fact that tensegrity structures are fantastically efficient, few have been built since they tend to have a single point of failure and need adjustment. Recently however, schemes which combine the intelligence of computing and tensegrity structures have lead to proposals of very large scale structures including sky scrapers.<p /><p />Here are our favorite tensegrity links from around the web. Vote for yours

13 wonderful tensegrity structures. more...

This is the real business end of $100 oil. An object that allowed Howard Hughes to become the richest man in the world by inheriting the patent. <p /><p />They are the world’s most highly engineered pieces of metal. Steel, tungsten carbide or increasingly Polycrystalline Diamond Compact (PDC) toothed drill bits that, in their tri-cone, rotating head form, look like the monster spice eating Sandworms from Dune. Vote for your faves.

13 ferocious oil drill bits. more...

Atomic clocks are accurate to within one second since the period in time when humans and apes diverged. <p /><p />These clocks are literally what makes modern civilization tick, but few people ever see one. Their accuracy is necessary to overcome potential errors caused by relativistic effects in GPS satellites, for example. <p /><p />Here is a gallery of some of the more interesting atomic clocks. Vote for your faves.

12 amazing atomic clocks. more...

From 3 megawatt offshore monsters to zero energy windmill skyscrapers, kite flown turbines and giant seabed anchored super-turbines, held aloft by blimps. Here is our list of the most futuristic and quixotic designs for wind turbines. By far the most beautiful way to harness energy. <p />

16 beautiful wind turbines. more...

Fingerprint scanners are a dime a dozen these days. But how about devices which can literally grant access by the way you walk, the way you talk, the way you type or write, bite or grip. Here is a chart of state of the art biometric applications, including futuristic devices like portable Game Boys which are ominously called HIIDE (handheld interagency identity detection).

18 futuristic biometric devices. more...

Considering that super thin, flexible, touch-screens and large capacity solid-state storage are just around the corner we expected to find many more examples of interesting concept designs for laptops. Here are the best that we found, however this is one case where we think the realized products will outstrip the concept designs.<p />

17 best concept laptops. more...

Although Apple has recently released a beautifully designed keyboard which hints at what an Apple mini laptop may look like, it is the combination of tactile feedback and screen based keyboards which promises to make significant developments in keyboards in the near future. Here is our list of our favorite keyboards, vote for your faves.

22 best keyboards. more...

More lists...

10 abandoned subway stations | 10 anti-masturbation devices | 10 antique phonographs | 10 best power strip designs | 10 classic jacob jensen gadgets | 10 classic reel-to-reel recorders | 10 classic tim burton movies | 10 console light guns | 10 dry land submarines | 10 enormous floating cranes | 10 failed automobile manufacturers | 10 flea circus contraptions | 10 gas guzzlers | 10 incredibly tacky cars | 10 james dyson inventions | 10 luxury trains | 10 massive steam hammers | 10 money making machines | 10 mud huts yurts tents and an igloo with satellite | 10 neat camera hacks | 10 notable olympic flame cauldron designs | 10 obsolete web browsers | 10 reasons not to switch | 10 rocket launch pads | 10 ski jumps | 10 strange snow vehicles | 10 transparent watches | 10 unboring ferris wheels | 10 unoperational operating theaters | 10 videos of ejection seat tests | 10 voting machines | 12 advertainment video games | 12 awful GUIs | 12 banned music videos | 12 batman vehicles | 12 box guitars | 12 cardboard creations | 12 centrifuge gforce test videos | 12 Classic Raymond Loewy Designs | 12 classic sony designs | 12 claustrophobic space capsules | 12 claustrophobic torpedo rooms | 12 clay car mockups | 12 concealed guns | 12 countries 12 condom commercials (videos) | 12 different food rations | 12 disposable gadgets | 12 DIY bicycles | 12 dry land swimming machines | 12 ejector seats | 12 elegantly deconstructed machines | 12 enormous propellers | 12 failed apple products | 12 failed gaming consoles | 12 famous daredevils | 12 great modern fountains | 12 haptic interfaces | 12 hazmat suits | 12 health lies cigarette ads | 12 hyperbaric chambers | 12 inhabited bridges | 12 insane highways | 12 Knife Bikes | 12 luxury airlines | 12 Magic Lanterns | 12 Mars Mission Failures | 12 mesmerizing kinetic sculptures (videos) | 12 movie industry camera cars | 12 moving building facades (videos) | 12 object covered cars | 12 of the worlds most fascinating tunnel networks | 12 pink tanks | 12 pleasure piers | 12 Pocket Sundials | 12 primitive b movie style robots | 12 real life cutaway cars | 12 real life glove boxes | 12 real life jenga buildings | 12 rockin guitar hero mods | 12 seized weapons caches | 12 sexist vintage ads | 12 ships with impossibly large cargo | 12 smoke hoods | 12 Space Rocket Launch Videos | 12 spectacular erections | 12 steampunk stirling engines (videos) | 12 stunning card creations | 12 stunning rooftop gardens | 12 tiny Indian school buses | 12 Types of Crash Test Dummy | 12 ultra complex surface analysis systems | 12 very disturbing paintball teams | 12 videos of ships being launched | 12 videos of spiderman climbing real skyscrapers | 12 videos of welding machines | 12 vintage printing presses | 12 vintage walkmans | 12 wild west ghost towns | 12 worst iPhone case designs | 13 disgusting pepsi flavors | 14 cameras that look just like guns | 15 abandoned theaters | 15 architects 15 chairs | 15 Blade Runner Buildings | 15 Founding Father Invention Myths | 15 giant transporters | 15 high speed trains | 15 housing projects from hell | 15 images of not so secret secret service buildings | 15 knockoff gadgets | 15 monstrous harvesters | 15 odd pods | 15 of the worst american foods | 15 payphones from around the world | 15 pneumatic message networks | 15 radical beach buggies | 15 scifi movies 15 famous architectural locations | 15 skyscrapers on hold | 15 Solar Cookers | 15 spectacular eye testing gadgets | 15 splendid sidecars | 15 videos of amazing rolling ball machines | 15 wall climbing robots | 16 bat houses and bat caves | 16 concept watches | 16 Genuine Cyborg Technologies | 16 giant bucket excavators | 16 hilariously unimpressive computer ads | 16 impressive examples of bamboo scaffolding | 16 thanksgiving turkey fryer videos | 17 architectural light sculptures | 17 found object chandeliers | 18 hovercraft designs | 18 really tiny projectors | 20 cipher devices | 20 classic 8mm movie cameras | 20 interesting boring machines | 20 railroad snowplows | 20 unusual tractor designs | 2007 countdown clocks | 3d printed products | 8 Classic Nakamichi Cassette Decks | 8 extreme truck load videos | 8 inflatable military decoys | 8 inflatable shelters | 8 moving houses videos | 8 pointless uses of carbon fiber | 8 Sky Hooks | 9 reasons why the highline sucks | a dozen vintage spy radios | a visual history of video recorders | abandoned pools | abandoned space technology | abandoned technology | aerial refueling | aircraft factories | algorithmic architecture | all time worst apple products | amazing analog computers | amazing atomic clocks | anechoic chamber architecture | anniversary edition products | apple II commercials (videos) | Apple monocoque or not | arab drifts (videos) | arabian mega skyscrapers | armor for animals | bad design gull wing cars | bang and olufsen creations | bank vaults | beautiful lighthouse lights | beautiful wind turbines | best apple concept mockups | best concept cellphones | best concept laptops | best gadgets at ceatec 2007 | best halloweenerd costumes | best interactive clothes | Best iPod Speakers | best keyboards | best lego stop motion videos | best lighting designs | best of ebay oobjects jan 25 08 | best of oobject jan 09 | best pet poop gadgets | best remote controlled gadgets | best Rube Goldberg Machine videos | best steve jobs speech ever (videos) | best time machines | best travel gadgets | big fun alarm clocks | biggest apple design ripoffs | biggest gimmick bottle openers | biggest tech product failures | bizarre drawing contraption videos | bizarre pedal powered things | black rat bikes | blatant ipod iphoneys | boombox bikes | brick sized cellphone ads (videos) | bubble cars | buildings in converted silos | buildings in old planes | bus stops as architecture | bus stops as art | carbon fiber creations | cardboard robot costumes | cars from classic 80s movies | cars in space | ces video roundup | chinese factories | Chip Burka People | classic car user interfaces | classic gerry anderson scifi toys | classic microphones | classic pininfarina designs | collapsible gadgets | concept folding bikes | control rooms of all types | cool aircraft interiors | cool pocket sized gadgets | coolest vintage phones | craftsy weapons | crazy about tetris | crazy bicycles | crazy floating buildings | crazy japanese watches | crazy tesla coils | daredevil walls of death | dazzle ships | definitive list of subway architecture | dental chairs through history | different types of galvanometer | diving helmets | diy frankenstein lab items | drug smuggling submarines | earliest wrist watches | election broadcast technology through history | every postwar olympic stadium | examples of instant architecture | exoskeletons | extraordinary armor | extreme kitchen gadgets | extreme vietnamese street cabling | famous les paul guitars | fantastic vintage tvs | ferocious oil drill bits | flash flashlights | flying helmets | flying machines | flying saucers | formula 1 user interfaces | futuristic biometric devices | futuristic cellular structure architecture | futuristic german car factories (videos) | futuristic interfaces | futuristic megastructures | futuristic ross lovegrove design | geek hall of fame apple users | geeky papercraft | general store architecture | ghost particle detectors | giant airship hangars | giant cranes | giant molten steel handling equipment | giant screens | graffiti covered | great climbing walls | great diy lighting ideas | gun shaped non guns | handmade super mario bros | homage to the chrysler | homage to the light bulb | IKEA in Hell | impressive moving bridges | inappropriate rocket powered items | incredible listening devices | incredible planetarium projectors | incredibly embarrassing lip dubs | industrial crushing machines | innovative lights | interesting balloons | interesting false teeth | interesting soapbox derby racers | ironic gun advertising | items to build an apple store | jet engine test videos | jumping off notable architecture (and surviving) videos | laptop stands | lego like modular gadgets | life with a gas mask | light pipe architecture | linotypes from hell | lots of yellow submarines | macys parade ideas | massive record collections | mathematical lighting | mechanical animals | mechanical marvel calculators | mechanical planetary models | medical manikins | memento mori timepieces | mind reading devices | miscellany october 08 | mobile media devices | monster 80s boomboxes | most beautiful airport terminals | most beautiful land speed record vehicles | most beautiful spiral staircases | most blatant ipod copies | most complex watches | most extreme clothes | most extreme speakers | most extreme turntables | most wonderful telescopes | Movies of moving picture machines (videos) | moving walkways of note | musical instrument mashups | naked gadgets | nerds on segways | non Apple minimalist gadgets | nuclear powered transportation | odd spy cams | oil boom diamond kitsch | oil crisis car ads | only laptops to buy | Oobjects perfect gadget bag | Peoples choice CES 2008 day 1 | peoples choice gadget of 2007 | physical cutaway models | pictures of the lego house construction progress | pissoir designs | planetariums around the world | post modern cuckoo clocks | radar consoles | radioactive products | real gotham city | really cool pools | resqtec emergency devices | retro saturday morning cartoons | revolting gold gadgets | Rocket Sleds | sci-fi costume fails | sextants | Shanghai vs Beijing architectural bakeoff | ships out of water | sinister bbc spy vehicles | Sky Captain gadgets & vehicles | snowmobiles through history | soviet satellites | spaceship like hot tubs | spectacular sewers | spectacular wind tunnels | star wars fanatics | start up sequences | stereo cameras | Steve Jobs vs America since 97 (videos) | strange musical instruments | stunning ray guns | stunning streamlined trailers | submarine construction and decommissioning | super sewer robots | surreal underwater technology | survival kits | sword and gadget canes | tattoo machines | terrifying mining gear | The 10 most important examples of neon signage | the architect of detroit | the best designed toolboxes | the best of the hubble telescope | the escapades of steve ballmer | the genealogy of fixies | the golden age of american concept cars | The Great SMS Swindle | The Life of the Nintendo 64 | the perfect laptop stand | the pigeon net | the wildest sports fans | time lapse wii videos | tiniest gadgets | top 10 interesting tool chests | Top 10 Moon Rocket Models | top 10 oddball foosball tables | Top 10 Soviet Technology Ripoffs | top 10 unusual burglar alarms | top 12 harley earl designs | top 12 videos of creepy automata | top 15 classic calculator watches | Top 15 modernist gas stations | top circuit bent kids toys (videos) | top supercomputers | toy robot commercials through history (videos) | trading places | transparent glass stairs | tricked out gadget suitcases | tube testers | typology of milk floats | ultimate headphones | ultra zoom cameras | unreadable minimalist watches | unusual gas masks | unusual rubber duckies | unusual suitcase kits | video list of 3D printers in action | videos of self assembling machines | Vintage Analog Lie Detectors | vintage analog synthesizers | vintage erector sets to buy | vintage fans for sale | Vintage Massage Gadgets | watches worn in space | weird lights | weird outlaw radio transmitters | wonderful altoids hacks | wonderful tensegrity structures | wonderful welding masks | world changing gadgets | worlds greatest elevator rides (videos) | worst general lee | worst keytar (videos) | zoobject cryptozoology quiz |