Kinetic Light Emitting Wallpaper and Wall Panels

Dutch designer Jonas Samson is lighting the way for vertical surfaces.  He recently announced his newest addition to his product collection: a customizable, animated Light Emitting Wallpaper. (See product stills, below.  All images courtesy of Jonas Samson v.o.f.)

When I saw this product I had a million questions.  Gad Bros, business partner of Jonas Sampson v.o.f.,  was kind enough to answer all of them.  (Thanks Gad!)

Light Emitting Wallpaper is still in the prototype phase. The wall paper is not sold commercially and they expect it to take about 10-15years before there will be a material which will make it possibly to make an wall paper in this size for everybody. 

But don't be sad! Samson already produces a similar product Ecco Luce, a wall panel with integrated LED lights, that is currently on the market. Ecco Lucce is manufactured in The Netherlands, but available all over the world.  (See image, below) 

Ecco Luce is a single panel (120mm x 300 mm) and can be be combined with other Ecco Luce panels. Ecco Luce panels are about 5-6cm and studies are currently underway to reduce the panel thickness.

Panels are available in different finishes (glass, wallpaper, wood veneer), can be built with fire rated components, and can be placed attached to an existing wall or free standing.

Ecco Luce has an on/off switch.  When it is off, it appears to be a normal wall. But when turned on, patterns of light project through the wall.  Panels do not require an additional L.E.D. driver, they include a specially made computer based interface. There is currently a "regular" option but design possibilities include static, dimmable or motion activated images, RGB colors, and remote controlled operation.

Samson believes in products should work without having to hire a technician to install it. Installation is a snap since panels (free standing or wall mounted) are delivered complete.  Wall mounted units only need to be attached to the existing wall and connected to an electrical source. Free standing panel systems come complete with feet and and when they arrive at the job site, you only have to attach it to an electrical contact and assemble it if it is a multiple panel unit.

There are no standard designs. Panels are designed on a custom, project by project basis.  Price will vary based on size, complexity of the animations, finishing materials etc.  Once the design is finalized, lead time from contract to delivery is about 3 months.

Ecco Luce has been successfully installed at an exhibition in Milan.  The next installation is set to debut April 15th at Amsterdam's Schipol Airport train station on April 15th.   If, like me, you won't be able to see the installation in person, check out this animation to see an example Ecco Luce in action.

Speak Easy: Speech Privacy in Open Offices

Today, open office and panel based furniture systems can be seen everywhere because it has many great advantages: The smaller footprint afforded by systems based planning reduces lease costs. Using system furniture instead of building walls also lowers construction costs. Panels and components of systems based furniture can be moved; reused and reconfigured. Open offices also encourages communication and teamwork.

But the last advantage is also a disadvantage.  Not only does the greater interaction increase the exchange of ideas, it also increases the number of distractions and is responsible for a loss of concentration and limits personal and company privacy.  Who hasn’t wished they could block out co-worker’s chatter, been distracted by loud idle banter while on a business call or had to step outside to take or make a personal call. And how do you protect confidential information in an open office?

Maintaining acoustical privacy is a huge challenge in open office design.  The use of soft surfaces such as carpeting, acoustical systems panels, acoustical ceiling tiles and white noise can help absorb some of the noise- but you will probably still hear your neighbor’s conversations and vice versa. Here are a few cool solutions that help solve the need for acoustical privacy.

Airflake partition, Abstracta; Atlas XL easy chair , Lammhults;, Millibar Lounge table, Lammhults.

The Abstracta’s Airflake is a stylish way to dampen sound transfer.  The 15” sound absorbing hexagon felt panels can be mounted to ceilings or walls with an aluminum rail or can be attached directly to walls. Panels come in four patterns and are available in brown, red, green, black, and white.  The panels can be mounted to ceilings or walls with an aluminum rail. Also available is Airflake News, which has magazine pockets. There are endless configuration possibilities. Design your own Airflake screen with their easy to use online configuration tool. 

 Babble Voice Privacy System. Images courtesy of Herman Miller, Inc.

Herman Miller’s Babble Voice Privacy System addresses the need for speech privacy during phone conversations. Babble is small desktop system comprised of a main unit that plug into a phone and two small speakers. When you push the “on” button, Babble captures your conversation and plays an amplified, multiplied and scrambled version of it on the speakers. You can hear all sorts of conversations but you can’t really make out a single word.  The best way to understand how it works is to hear it for yourself.  Look for the video at this link to see Babble in action.