Openaire is a hybrid of a laptop carrying case, work surface, and chair! It contains a semi-rigid protective sleeve designed as an ergonomic laptop work surface and a protective shell that also functions as a comfortable seat. Together, they offer the portability and comfort to support any working environment.

Openaire is a good example for a designed workplace solutions, much like “Quicksilver” carrying a business appeal and The Lazy Geek Cushion.

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TrendOriginal: Openaire is a collaboration between brothers, Nick and Beau Trincia

Trend Spotter: Taly Weiss

Wind powered car projects are definitely stepping ahead. Follow Dale (blog: Zero Carbonista) who is working on transforming the supercar into an electric vehicle capable of running on the wind alone.

Learn more about wind powered cars and technology and innovations:

Wind power potential:   A new study by scientists at the Carnegie Institution and California State University identifies prime locations for exploiting high-altitude winds, which globally contain enough energy to meet world demand 100 times over.

About wind powered car technology: The Wind Powered Car Project

First race for wind-powered vehicles.

Mercedes Benz develops Formula Zero Racer, incorporating elements from luge, yacht, and Formula One vehicles, the zero-emissions racer is propelled by a wind-catching sail.

Wind powered toy cars

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TrendOriginal: Dale Vince

Trend Spotter: inhabitat.com

Bare is a conductive ink that is applied directly onto the skin allowing the creation of custom electronic circuitry. This innovative material allows users to interact with electronics through gesture, movement, and touch. Bare can be applied with a brush, stamp or spray and is non-toxic and temporary. The ink conducts enough electricity to power small devices, including LEDs.

Potential applications: dance, music, computer interfaces, communication and medical devices.



Similar trends covered here: Sun Tattoo, Tattoo Street wear

Trend Original: Bare bodypaint was developed by Becky Pilditch, Matt Johnson, Isabel Lizardi and Bibi Nelson, from the department of industrial design engineering at the Royal College of Art.



Trend Spotter:  Wired

This easy-to-use micro-device can painlessly deliver influenza vaccines. At the press of a
button, a miniature fluidic pump distributes the vaccine to a set of
microneedles. These microneedles deliver the vaccine intradermally, or into the skin, but not through it and into the muscle, like the traditional needle and syringe do.

The micro-device holds the potential to significantly increase vaccine
effectiveness.

Trend Original: Flugen
Trend Spotter: designboom.com

Travel at Disneyland Paris resort via Google Earth 5.0 to find out how inspiring online traveling can be. The model includes every item found in the resort (bench, light post, tree, street sign, fence, etc).

Now its easy to imagine how will traveling promotions will look like in few years time. Good bye boring brochures. Say hi to Tinker Bell!

Le Whif is a revolutionary new way of eating chocolate - by breathing it! No calories attached! Try it to stimulate your appetite or  accompany Le Whif with your coffee.

It comes in four flavors: mint chocolate, raspberry chocolate, mango chocolate, and plain chocolate.

Harvard professor David Edwards, lead inventor of Le Whif, says:

“Over the centuries we’ve been eating smaller and smaller quantities at shorter and shorter intervals. It seemed to us that eating was tending toward breathing, so, with a mix of culinary art and aerosol science, we’ve helped move eating habits to their logical conclusion. We call it whiffing.”

More such culinary innovations are being developed by the Foodlab at Le Laboratoire, Edwards’ art and science innovation center in central Paris.

More inhaled food & drink innovations I spotted:

• Inhaled alcohol (as a product),
• Inhaled alcohol atmosphere (a bar: Alcoholic Architecture, UK)
• Inhaled caffeine

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Trend Original: David Edwards, Foodlab at Le Laboratoire

Trend Spotter: Lost at E Minor

I have seen many to innovate with toilet papers, one of the most common goods we daily use: there’s an elegant black toilet paper, fashion inspired toilet paper clothing,  iPod docking station based on the toilet rolls and now - a horror story printed on toilet paper.

A nine-chapter novel written by Koji Suzuki, the known Japanese author of the horror story “Ring,” is “rolling” on carrying  Suzuki’s latest horror story “Drop”. The manufacturer company Hayashi Paper plans to sell each roll  for 210 yen ($2.20).

Should we expect comics on toilet papers? what about the Manga Bible on toilet rolls? What other commodities are due to get into fashion?

The Manga Bible illustrates the whole Bible in 200 pages Manga - Superman version.

Targeted to the 15-25 age group, it attempts to make the “greatest story ever” more accessible to new generations.

While I was wondering whether the Japanese Manga trend will hit western countries - it turns out that the Manga Bible has already sold 30,000 copies in Britain, and by that becomes the best-selling manga novel in the country.

Interestingly, the novel has been criticized by manga fans for being too wordy..

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Trend Original: Siku, Ajin-bayo Akinsiku

Fiat Punto created a virtual online racing game in whichthe online player competes against a real racing driver on an actual circuit.

Using GPS tracking, on-board cameras and CGI modelling Fiat has managed to integrate the real car into the virtual racing game so that you can test your driving skills against the professional driver. Follow the online event at the T-racer website.

Fiat gets credits for a smart marketing promotion and an exciting simulation game!

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TrendOriginal: T-racer, Fiat Punto

Trend Spotter: ifonlyblog.wordpress.com

A wearable device with a projector that allows to augment reality with a pendant projector. The device (via the webcam and coded finger-gloves) recognizes users gestures while searching for information, taking photos, making a call (you name it!) and presents it back to the user projected at any display.

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Trend Original: Sixth Sense, Dr. Pattie Maes and the MIT Group.

Trend Spotter: TED conference.