With lockdown eased and the promise of further freedoms tantalisingly close, we’re told keeping our distance on the newly busy streets is more important than ever. A host of designers, persuaded these are to be longer-term guidelines, have been working on a range of increasingly technical options to help us maintain social distancing at all times.
India-based architecture practice Architecture Discipline is the latest team to devise a wearable option. Their sChoker, crafted from carbon fibre, integrates thermal sensors which identify the infrared radiations emanating from the temperature of those passing by. It will then let the wearer know if they are at a safe or dangerous distance using either a visual or audio signal – perhaps also with the added benefit of ensuring everyone stays away.
‘It is a symbol of unity,’ says Akshat Bhatt, principal architect at Architecture Discipline. ‘The need was to make it easily available and simple, for it to uphold privacy and anonymity and allow people to be socially "normal" and not "distant".’
The ergonomic circular ring design was a deliberate move to ensure the sensors could be mounted to cover a 360 degree angle. The neck, the straightest part of the body while moving, was the obvious place to wear it.
The first carbon fibre prototype was made using 3D printing. In the future, there are plans to include more typically fashionable materials; they cite velvet, plastic, gold and leather as the versions we could all be sporting if social distancing becomes the new norm.
INFORMATION
-
The best Miami hotels to book for design-minded travellersIn town for Art Basel or Design Miami? These are the city’s most stylish stays, whether you’re looking to hit the beach or have a spa day
-
Enter a metallic, maximalist playground for pasta lovers in BarcelonaRelleno’s first flagship restaurant pushes casual dining into a chrome-lined future, wrapping guests in a sculptural grid that riffs on the geometry of filled pasta
-
This Alpine chalet rejects the ‘modern ski’ aesthetic to embrace art decoOriginally designed by architect Henry Jacques Le Même, a key figure in shaping the Alpine style, Le Sarto in Megève, France, has been captivatingly transformed by interior architecture studio Claves
-
All eyes on Greek jewellery brand Lito as it launches bold new amulets to mark its 25 yearsStriking amulets, seductive stones and secret messages characterise Lito's striking new anniversary collection, an extension of its ‘Tu es Partout’ series
-
The best layering necklaces for an elevated yet casual lookHow to mix, match and stack jewellery for the ultimate high-energy, low-effort style
-
Late summer jewels: what to wear at Golden HourLate summer signals a jewellery style-shift. These independent designers have got it covered
-
Jewellery designers share their most precious personal piecesA host of jewellers give us a peek at the jewellery which brings them joy and solace
-
Hair jewellery to covet and collectToday’s hair jewellery is both practical and pretty. We're pinning our hopes on these simple and elegant accessories
-
Andreas Kronthaler’s costume jewellery for Vivienne Westwood is fun, flirty and fabulousAndreas Kronthaler’s new jewellery draws on romantic and theatrical motifs
-
Fope’s flexible gold chains rethink a classic designElasticity meets elegance in Fope’s new jewellery collection, ‘Luna’
-
Get personal with Bea Bongiasca’s colourful initial necklaces in enamelBea Bongiasca’s ‘B Colour’ collection of initial necklaces brings a chic modernity to personalised jewellery
