Dr Paolo Bombelli, along with his collaborators Alex Driver and Dr Carlos Peralta at the University of Brighton, has won an international Beyond Bauhaus Award.
The 'Beyond Bauhaus: Prototyping the Future' Award recognises ground-breaking designs and concepts that address a socially-relevant topic and which provide creative answers to the pressing questions of our time.
Nearly 1,500 applications from 50 countries were assessed by an international panel of inventors, designers, artists and educators, who selected 20 winning projects that offered solutions to global challenges.
Paolo, from Professor Chris Howe's group, and his collaborators who were part of the Institute for Manufacturing (IfM) won their award for their 'Moss Table' concept, which is part of a project that combines renewable energy generation with domestic objects. This conceptual design illustrates the potential of biophotovoltaic (BPV) technology and how it might be applied in the future. BPV devices generate renewable energy and other useful by-products via photosynthesis occurring in living organisms like algae and moss. The 'Moss Table' houses moss in small pots underneath the tabletop for electricity generation to power devices such as electronic clocks. Ongoing development of the technology will enable BPV systems to power lighting, computers and household appliances, suggesting a future in which hybrid, natural-artificial furniture is utilised in the home.
The 'Beyond Bauhaus: Prototyping the Future' Award commemorates the centenary of the foundation of the Bauhaus, the world-famous German art and design school. The competition was open to designers and creatives from across the world, and sought prototypes in the development stage as well as pioneering projects already implemented, from all design disciplines, from basic research and materials science to product design, fashion, architecture, urban development, mobility and future technologies. Awards were presented at the official Bauhaus celebrations in Berlin.