Photos: 10 mind-bending designs from the Autodesk Gallery in San Francisco
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Mercedes-Benz Biome car
Mercedes-Benz Biome car
Jumpstarting sustainability and social good, Autodesk, makers of Autocad software, have put some of the most innovative projects created with their software on display at their San Francisco gallery.
This concept car from Mercedes-Benz would be built from a biological material that’s grown from seeds, called BioFiber. The car would run on a liquid called BioNectar4534, use bioluminescence for headlights, and release oxygen into the air when it runs.
Bespoke Innovations' prosthetics
Bespoke Innovations' prosthetics
Bespoke Innovations makes prosthetics coverings using 3D software for scanning and printing. The designs are specific to the needs of the person. This one, for example, was made for a more fashion-conscious model who had lost her leg. She has multiple coverings she can swap out depending on what she’s wearing.
Power-generating soccer ball
Power-generating soccer ball
Soccket is a soccer ball designed by Unchartered Play. Kicking it around for half an hour generates enough power for illuminate an LED light attachment for several hours. That means that kids in underprivileged places where electricity isn’t guaranteed can create their own energy by doing something they’d do anyway, and then have enough light to be able to finish their homework in the evening, for example. Soccket is on its fourth iteration and is being tested in Mexico and South Africa.
Embrace Nest infant warmer
Embrace Nest infant warmer
This infant warmer is meant as a low-cost solution for premature babies who are so low in weight that they can’t regulate their own body temperatures. This could be an option in underprivileged areas where families may not be able to afford going to a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.
​SFMOMA panel
​SFMOMA panel
This is an example panel from the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art expansion project. Panels like these will cover the northeast side of the museum. There will be more than 700 unique panels made from fiber-reinforced plastic. They’re also designed to help the building’s thermal performance.
Fold and float
Fold and float
When architect Anton Willis had to choose between his kayak and floor space in his tiny San Francisco apartment, he didn’t. Instead, he created the Oru kayak that folds up like origami.
​The California Academy of Sciences
​The California Academy of Sciences
The California Academy of Sciences has one of the world’s largest green roofs. 3D modeling and visualisation played a big part of creating it.
Shanghai Tower
Shanghai Tower
During the design of the Shanghai Tower, 3D simulation helped in the creation of a building that uses less steel, collects rainwater, and reduces the force of monsoon winds on the structure by 24%.
Cathedral of Christ the Light Church
Cathedral of Christ the Light Church
This cathedral in Oakland, California was built after the original structure was damaged beyond repair in the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake. The new building, needs no artificial light during the day. Designers used 3D modeling to figure out how the lighting would work for the building.
Clean Team toilet
Clean Team toilet
Unilever, Water & Sanitation for Urban Poor, and Ideo.org came up with a protoype toilet with a removable waste cartridge that’s low-cost and lightweight. The idea is to fight the spread of cholera in places like West and Central Africa through better sanitation. The cartridges would be picked up and removed, and then used to make fertilizer or create energy to be used locally.
