On May 20, Fujitsu finally announced the names of winners of Fujitsu Design Award 2011: A Life with Future Computing, an international design contest that aims to put IT-technology to work in the aspects of everyday human lives where it has never been employed before.
Out of +1,000 design submissions, the jury of the contest has selected the best of the best. See the winner list below.
The Grand Prize (EUR 30,000) went to ‘The Aid’, an ICT-enabled cane from the Life-Design category allowing the mobility-challenged people to better integrate into the urban environment of the future. Not only does this device provide support, but also features mobile navigation and may display information related to user’s health (such as pulse).
Image: www.designaward2011.jp.fujitsu.com
The first runner-up prize (EUR 10,000) was awarded to ‘Crowd’ by Philipp Schaake, a notebook that features multiple applications and serves for a variety of purposes. This futuristic device offers 3 configurations: slate configuration, notebook configuration, and a configuration in which the screen and keyboard are separate.
Image: www.designaward2011.jp.fujitsu.com
Image: www.designaward2011.jp.fujitsu.com
The second runner-up prize (EUR 10,000) is the device from Lifestyle category entitled ‘The Integral Cord’ and designed by Raphael Lang, Yu-Lin Hou, Chan Wing Tak. This innovation offers an enhanced functionality of a laptop as multiple users may operate the computer screen enclosed in the cord due to its configuration.
Image: www.designaward2011.jp.fujitsu.com
Image: www.designaward2011.jp.fujitsu.com
Apart from the winners mentioned, there are many innovative designs that deserve attention. One of them, an architectural design innovation entitled ‘River Runs Through City’ received Judge’s Special Award (EUR 1,000). This entry pays homage to the times where big cities were built along the river banks. It aims to shape the urban culture by spreading visualized information across a geographic region that spreads like a flowing river.
Image: www.designaward2011.jp.fujitsu.com
Another notable design innovation, ‘Smile Cup’ by Nikita Mokhirev, captures, analyzes and displays the mood of the user as they are enjoying tea from this ICT cup. The device features emoticon designs.
Image: www.designaward2011.jp.fujitsu.com