Reknowned car designer Frank Stephenson is famous for penning vehicles such as the new Mini (2000), Ferrari F430 (2004) and McLaren P1 (2013). But his latest creation is a baby seat for child safety tech company "babyark" designed to be the safest and most advanced product in its segment.
“After my time within the automotive industry, I have always wanted to go beyond simply designing vehicle shapes," says Stephenson, founder of Frank Stephenson Design. "Safety standards and designs within the industry have evolved significantly, and yet we easily neglect the technology required for child safety; babyark’s disruptive business approach and its exposed design, which takes inspiration from protective shapes in nature around us, aims to embrace the occupant and provide safety and luxury for users.
The company says the seat uses "unique impact absorbing technology, advanced materials including carbon fibres and a comprehensive connected sensor system".
The design is inspired by the "structural integrity and simplicity of an egg and is shaped like a pod that has been curated to retain structural integrity and blend ergonomics with organic design. It is a product created to disrupt the market, offering an utterly new digital experience to users and ensuring the absolute highest standards of safety".
READ MORE
The seat’s SafeCoil steel-based shock absorption system gently slows the seat forward momentum at a safe and controlled rate in a crash. The seat is also geared with a BioArk side impact protection, biomimicking the woodpecker’s unique plate-like bone natural protection system. Accelerometers and gyroscopes within the seat can record the force of any crash and notify users whether the seat can be reused.
An integrated 14 sensors in the seat’s base monitor a wide range of parameters. It signals to the caregiver if the seat is properly installed, and in addition via smartphone app it signals to the caregiver if the child passenger is properly buckled.
Frank Stephenson Design was founded in 2018, and is based in London, UK. The babyark seat won the Innovation Award at the global Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas this year.