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Press Release

DesignNewswire · COMO, Italy ·

Hans Augustenborg Is Honored with the A' Design Award for Canairi Indoor Air Quality Monitor in Home Appliances Design

Hans Augustenborg acknowledged for home appliances design by the international grand jury of the 2021 - 2022 A' Design Award & Competition

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

COMO, Italy, April 22, 2022 /DesignNewswire/ A' Design Award & Competition has confirmed the A' Design Award in the Home Appliances Design category for Canairi Indoor Air Quality Monitor by Hans Augustenborg, designed for Canairi. The recognition forms part of the 2021 - 2022 A' Design Award & Competition and was determined through blind peer review by an international grand jury panel of established academics, design professionals and press members, who assessed anonymized entries against predetermined criteria.

The A' Design Award Explained

The Iron A' Design Award is awarded to good designs that meet the rigorous professional and industrial standards set by the A' Design Awards. This recognition is reserved for works that demonstrate a solid understanding of design principles and show creativity within their execution. Recipients of the Iron A' Design Award are acknowledged for their practical innovations and contributions to their respective fields, providing solutions that improve quality of life and foster positive change. These designs are a testament to the skill and dedication of their creators, showcasing their ability to address real-world challenges through thoughtful design.

More About Canairi Indoor Air Quality Monitor

Canairi is an indoor air quality monitor shaped as a simple canary bird. Canairi measures carbon dioxide levels and reminds people to ventilate their homes. The concept refers to the old practice of keeping canaries in coal mines to warn miners about poor air. When indoor air quality becomes poor, the bird drops down. When the windows are opened and the air improves, the bird rises again. No light, sound or phone notification is used. Canairi is made of recycled plastics and comes with a rechargeable battery and a wall mount.

About Hans Augustenborg

Hans Augustenborg is a Danish creative and entrepreneur with a drive for communicating ideas through entrepreneurship and product innovation. His work ranges from social projects such Cold Bali and Promote Your Local to technology innovation for Volvo and his own start-up, Canairi. His work has received shortlists and awards at D&AD, D&AD Next, D&AD New Blood, Cannes Lions, AKQA Future Lions, Creative Conscience and The Webby Awards.

Award Record

This recognition makes Hans Augustenborg a winner of 1 A' Design Award.

About the A' Home Appliances Design Award

The A' Home Appliance Design Award is an international competition recognizing good home appliance designs by best appliance designers and brands worldwide. It is organized within the A' Design Award & Competition and is open to home appliance designers, industrial designers, product engineers and appliance brands from all countries. Typical entries include refrigerators, dishwashers, microwaves, washing machines, dryers and ovens. The awarded home appliance designs are published at https://dezigners.org/design-category/home-appliance

About A' Design Award & Competition

Organized annually since 2008, A' Design Award & Competition is an international, juried design accolade. The competition is open to entries from all countries. The philanthropic mission of the A' Design Award is to advance society through good design, by recognizing and promoting superior products, projects and services that benefit society, and by creating a global awareness and appreciation for good design practices and principles. Nominations are peer reviewed and evaluated anonymously by an international grand jury panel of established academics, design professionals and press members against predetermined criteria such as functionality, ergonomics, engineering, presentation, innovation, usability, sustainability and technology, with score normalization applied to remove biases. Awards are conferred at Platinum, Gold, Silver, Bronze and Iron levels. Eligible laureates receive the A' Design Prize, which includes the award trophy, the certificate of design excellence, the hardcover yearbook, a lifetime license to use the A' Design Award winner logo, exhibition of awarded works, an invitation to the gala night and award ceremony in Italy, inclusion in the World Design Rankings and Designer Rankings, and public relations and publicity services. Registration, uploading a work and receiving a preliminary score are free of charge, and Professional and Digital Edition laureates are not contractually obliged to pay further fees to claim the A' Design Prize. More information is available at https://competition.adesignaward.com

Press Resources

Media Contact

Giulia Ferrari, Press Office
Designers.Org
Via Leone Leoni 32, 22100 Como, Italy
press@designers.org
+39 031 4491953

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Fact Sheet

The Work

Project
Canairi Indoor Air Quality Monitor
Function
Indoor Air Quality Monitor
Category
Home Appliances Design
Discipline
Industrial Design
Industry
Electronics & Appliances and Furniture & Home
Colors
Khaki, Linen, Light Gray, Gainsboro and Silver
Images
5
Client
Canairi

The Recognition

Laureate
Hans Augustenborg
Recognition
A' Design Award
Edition
2021 - 2022
Design ID
#133553

Credits

Team
Andreas Kofoed Sørensen
Image Credits
Photos: Albert Sommerlund Video: Hans Augustenborg

Design Details

Unique Properties
Canairi is a CO2 monitor that measures indoor air quality and encourages the user to ventilate their home, through nudging and storytelling. The idea for Canairi stems from the old practice of using canaries in coal mines to warn miners of poor air. When the air quality becomes poor, Canairi will drop down, warning you about poor indoor air quality. The moment you open your windows and reestablishes a good air quality, Canairi raises back up. Simple as that. The democratic design language makes it simple for children to understand, but also invites the minimalist adult to play along.
Inspiration
We spend 90% of our time indoors in developed countries and 80 million european families live in homes with a poor indoor climate, which can increase the risk of asthma, fatigue, headache and sleep disorders. This is a huge but invisible problem, calling for a visible solution. — So we looked for one and came to think of 'the canary in the coal mine'.
Research
During the research phase we studied nudging mechanisms and talked to behavioural design experts (e.g. Sille Krukow.). We also made a series of surveys (500+ participants) exploring the general knowledge about indoor air quality and the willingness to improve it. 5 Students from the Danish Technical Institute (DTU) helped us using different management tools to map out tasks and challenges to avoid unforeseen circumstances during the design proces. 2 students from the Danish School of Media and Journalism wrote a Bachelor thesis about Canairi and the power of behavioural design.
Challenge
We like to think of Canairi as an intuitive solution to a complex problem. The main challenge as been to strip the product down to the very essentials and not get carried away by multi-functionality and IoT-integration.
Realization and Technology
On the outside, Canairi is a minimalistic interpretation of a canary bird. The wings of the birds is attached to the body with loose joints making them swing when falling down. Canairi is equipped with a CO2-sensor connected to an algorithm correlating to levels recommended by Health Authorities worldwide. It’s made of recycled plastics and comes with a rechargeable battery and a wall-mount. Canairi is powered by a 5000 mAh battery, with a mini-usb-port for charging or power supply-connection.
Operation and Interaction
Canairi operates really simple: When the bird is standing up, it means that the indoor air quality is good. When the bird falls down, it means that the indoor air quality is poor and you need to ventilate your home in order to ''bring it back to life.'' Unlike other air quality monitors, Canairi will let you know when to ventilate your home without the use of light, sound or phone notifications. Canairi stands out by using Storytelling and Gamification as nudging mechanisms to encourage the user to take action an intuitive way.
Project Duration and Location
The first prototype was 3D-printed in Copenhagen in 2020 and has now reached a final stage with a production-ready prototype ready for market launch in 2022 Q2.
Specifications
Box: 95mm x 95 mm x 28 mm Bird: 100mm x 50mm x 21mm Packaging: 180 mm x 80 mm x 110 mm
Keywords
Conceptual, Fresh, Fun, Storytelling, Innovative, Intuitive

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