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Ralf Jacobs is a Netherlands-based artist who works "at the intersection of art, design, science, and signal." He invented this incredible Harmonograph, a piece of furniture that can draw patterns:He's designed the "hinge" mechanism to be frictionless, which gives the drawing utensil a lot of momentum:"Underl

These Wrench furniture pieces were made by Japanese artist Iyo Hasegawa.

While the '70s was about flowing plastic forms, the '80s jolted towards hard edges and an industrial aesthetic. A good example is this Architect's Lamp, designed in the '80s by German lighting designer Oliver Michl. It borrowed heavily from equal space dividers:

The ShadeSock is an alternative to beach umbrellas or sail shades. Intended for beaches that get a steady breeze, it's essentially a giant windsock. Unlike an umbrella, it works with the wind (and indeed, requires it in order to stay aloft) rather than fighting it. And unlike a sail shade, it's completely silent.Of course, you'll look like a fool if you bring this to a beach that doesn't have steady wind—there's no structure to it, so it will collapse without a breeze. And yes, like a windsock it rotates, so the

This innovative PT-200 is a remote-controlled, battery-powered LED light that can pan and tilt, with 360-degree rotation. It features a magnetic base, giving you the freedom of a quick, wire-free installation. Multiple units can be connect

Typically, upholstery is fastened to furniture by adhesives, tacks or staples. London-based industrial designers Yael Mer and Shay Alkalay, a/k/a Raw-Edges Design Studio, took a different approach with this experimental chair design.

In the early 1900s, Prague city officials commissioned a masonry embankment alongside the Vltava River. This was to protect against flooding and provide the structure for a quay. This massive wall was built with vaulted chambers within the wall, to be used as storage space.In the 2010s, these historic vaults were turned into contemporary businesses under a design by architect Petr Janda. The vaulted spaces were given massive acrylic portholes on a pivot, to serve as their entrances. Of these businesses, perhaps the best known today is the (A)Void Café. Its striking entranceway has become a social media destination:

Toulouse-based Compagnie La Machine is, strangely, a street-theatre company with an internal design-build firm. They create kinetic machines in their workshop, and incorporate them into their performances.As one example, in the café of their Halle de la Machine exhibition space, they serve a Lunch of Small Mechanicals on the weekends. Diners are served by performers using steampunk-like contraptions to serve the food: Bread is fired by catapults, serving carts are replaced by giant wheels, the fresh pepper is delivered Tom-Cruise-Mission: Impossible-style, and the dessert descends on chandeliers.

In pre-industrial Japan, the predecessor to storm windows were these hinged panels.Image: Ktmchi, CC BY-SA 4.0 Called shitomi or hajitomi, these wooden lattices were supported by hooks hanging from the eaves.Image: Ktmchi, CC BY-SA 4.0

This two-compartment waste bin is by veteran British industrial designer Daniel Barnes, a/k/a Manufactured Design. It's intended for what Barnes' people call the loo:Store & Sort Recycler is an in-bathroom recycling solution designed to capture waste that is commonly missed by household recycling. Many recyclable items are either thrown into mixed bathroom waste or carried to the kitchen, creating friction that leads to landfill. Confusion around what can be recycled, combined with the lack of dedicated bathroom solutions, results in large volumes of recoverable material being lost.