Interview about Ossh Multifunctional Handle, winner of the A' Furniture Accessories, Hardware and Materials Design Award 2021
Ossh is a multifunctional handle and an intuitive lighting interface on the door. Ossh indicates escape routes in critical conditions; communicates management information; performs a a 24/7 disinfecting action through the emission of silver and other metallic ions. Sanitation is due to Esi anti microbial system, a technology that kills corona virus, tested and certified by the laboratory of virology at the University of Modena e Reggio. Ossh is available in kits to be fitted in different environments: Stand Alone for privacy; Wired for fire doors; Wi-fi to be integrated in domotic systems.
View detailed images, specifications, and award details on A' Design Award & Competition website.
View Design DetailsI have always had a functional approach to my designs, and have always seen in multi-functionality an important plus moreover door handles are usually only meant to open doors.I see the journey which led me to combine such functionalities and technologies into a single and simple object as research of balance between adding and removing, painting and sculpting, the opposites that attract each other’s.Adding extra safety and management functions to a handle through the color of light responds to the positive pole, while the mitigation of pathogenic spread on a high utilization grade object by sanitizing the same, represents the negative pole.
Traffic lights are worldwide used to indicate free access or not...Fire doors are the most useful tools when it comes to compartmentalize fire zones and avoid fire and smoke invade the rest of the environment.Green equals go; Red equals stop, Easy?No! Researches have demonstrated that the human brain does not work this way; in case of fire/ panic and in front of a decision to be taken (one door or another) your brain will tell you: go back! No matter the color of the traffic light, and 99 times on 100 you will die…The same way cruise ship passengers will not follow the color suggestion (green or red) and will go back to the fire zones ... The good news is: human brain recognizes authority in case of panic. An even untrained person in a uniform will be definitely trusted and help passengers save their lives during a fire by indicating a green door handle as a safe way out or a red one as a bad one.As we learnt, the uniform would be the key to let people remark the color of light, no matter who wears it.
The engineering of the power and data transfer system took a lot of efforts and tests due to the need to ensure strong connections in critical conditions. We divided the design process in different steps-Engineering of the power and data transfer system from the frame to the door throughout the lock.Each system , fire door or cabin door , needed different isolating materials according to the performance over all as far as the fire door was concerned. -Engineering of the power and data transfer throughout the spindle. In this case the study of the isolating part et the edges of the spindle for the fire door lock was crucial in order to guarantee no gas, smoke or fire could be transferred to the other side of the door. -Engineering of the door handles and the technical capsules containing the electronics and LED’s, taking in account that all contacts , isolation materials and electronics could resist to vibrations, heat and all hazard variables. We have tested all components with cyclic tests and cyclic tests of the whole system assembled .As far as the fire door was concerned we have performed fire tests in house and at Rina , Registro Navale italiano.Tests were positive and the the system was certificated. The antimicrobial system was found with laboratory tests at the Universities of Genova, Siena and Modena e Reggio; and was certified at Rina.
I have always been thinking of doorhandles as the perfect vehicles for bacteria, for example on public transports, and in 2008 have designed an illuminated door handle using UV B rays. The system was perfectly working and was tested at the Microbiology Labs of University of Genova. But UV rays were released in the environment and caused risks to skin and retina… For this reason, we decided to quit the project…In December 19, I was just back from Shanghai and have been invited by my ebonist friends in Umbria to check their new technology designed to kill bacteria and keep the smell of new to their furniture.We decided to join forces and I was allowed to use this technology on door handles in order to offer the anti-bacterial ones. Few months later the world was locked down…It’s been like being the right person in the right place in the right moment, what I call luck in a very sad moment.So, we started investigating the antiviral properties of Esi.But all laboratories were over loaded of work and no one could help.I had connections at the Modena and Reggio University, Dipartimento di Ingegneria della Materia e dell’Ambiente, as I had been involved in an old project related to recycled glass materials. I have contacted the team leader which was so smart to understand the great opportunity of the (at that time called) “esi anti-bacterial system “ and has carried on the research in the months to come to discover the antiviral and anti-fungal properties of Esi which became “Esi anti-microbial system”.This of course have generated new studies and tests.
I designed the double lever handle on a stylistic idea of my wife Alessia (she’s the first person I talk with when I start a new project). The idea to grab the handle while crawling on the ground, where oxygen is during a fire- smoke eventuality, was superb.We made the first samples (and all the marketing) to discover that such lever was not working at all, keeping the door closed instead of opening it a disaster. We were lucky enough to find it out in time and change the shape from a sort of reverse C to a half reverse C, led’s strategically placed to be seen from any angles.But our main industry is the Maritime industry and decision makers are quite conservative, they did not like such innovative shape and have “suggested” to change it into a more “traditional” L shaped design. At the end of the day, I have to admit it was a good idea; the new L shaped design is even more functional and now can house many more RGB Led’s on the front of each handle and the light now may be seen from any angles in the smoke.
Different variants come from different applications. As said, our main industries are the maritime - marine ones and cruise ships, work boats, yachts and super yachts are our favorite play grounds.The stand-alone one is the most cost effective and has applications on cruise ships’ cabin doors (or hotels’ room doors). It just needs a cable to the technical room (close to the door). It can give management information, alarm information or be used during power failure.The wired one is the most useful and is designed with special consideration to fire doors. All doors are connected and take information from the fire detection system to address passengers to safe escape routes… Low Location Lights, rarely address to safe escape routes and even directional LLL’s illuminate all the path but the door. Our illuminated handles fill this technical gap.The wi-fi ones were born to simulate the above-mentioned situations, we were using a special application during trade shows to explain the system. Once we had the technology we decided to offer this version, to the superyacht industry in order to have our system be integrated with demotic systems. We have finally found out that onboard vessels the preferred solution remains the cabled system which is still seen as more reliable.
I see great opportunities when it comes to large masses of people (in the so called “luoghi non luoghi”), such as airports, common spaces, or any modern building where large communities are closed together (i.e. cruise ships – resorts) and where the spread of pathogens is to be avoided and safety is to be the priority in the event of a hazard.This technology can certainly help and grow with new technologies; A.I. may be used to add lots of extra applications i.e. to signal the presence of people in certain areas during a fire.Currently many fire men lose their lives looking for someone in the smoke -fire who is probably not even there.
As mentioned, I have always embraced a functional approach to my design; innovation lurks in function. The innovative form of the first releases of the OSSH design have demonstrated to be 2 failures and brought me to design a new handle which was more likely to look like a common door handle. The new design is more linear and more functional.These experiences deeply transformed my future product development, my designs now tend to be less shocking and more practical. Aging helped as well .
Multiple technologies yes, but we learnt to spread them around .The main brain of each door is housed in a junction box (JB), hidden in the ceiling, over the door. All junction boxes are wired together with our proprietary Ossh Bus and interact with all the systems on board through our proprietary OSSH software.From the JB we bring power to each frame of the door with a wire, and thanks to our cable free system to the lock and to the handles where technical capsules and LED’s are housed .This cable free power and data transfer is object of 3 different patents.
My advice is, see how things should be done, then forget it and do it your way.Always discuss your ideas with common people, the simpler the better, and make a treasure of their advice. A lot of mistakes will arise even if you will be sure the system is perfect, take them as a blessing.
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