Hasta La Ideas

Regardless of our diet, we will always be producing food waste at home, whether they’re spoiled leftovers or inedible parts. Most of us probably just throw these out with the trash, adding to the growing pile in landfills and sewers. Some households install a food disposal unit in their homes to help decompose this waste, but maintaining such appliances are not only burdensome but also boring.

Part of the problem is in the uninspiring design of the food disposal machines, but the other part is in the equally soulless interaction with these products. This concept design introduces a new way of approaching this facet of life, turning the process into something that’s similar to raising pets, except the pets in this case are microbes represented by virtual blobs on a disc-shaped handheld device.

Designers: Jiho Kim, Seoha Lee, Yujin Jung, JaeJung Choi, Seoyeon Pyo (Life For Design)

The stereotypical garbage disposal unit is installed under the sink and shreds food waste for the purpose of passing it through plumbing. Modern versions of this household appliance also add microbes to speed up the biodegradation of food scraps, but maintaining those “companion microbes” feels even more like a chore. After all, you can’t exactly see these microorganisms, nor should you try to make contact with them for your own health.

FOVI, a combination of “form” and “vida” or life, makes this mechanical and rote activity into something like a game. The product concept is made of two parts: the large wall-mounted cycler that actually holds food scraps and microbes, and a handheld disc that displays the state of the microbes in a visual way, like blobs that move around, join, and break down just as the actual microbes interact with the waste inside the cycler.

The process is as simple as using a regular food disposal machine. With a simple touch of the underside of the drum, the cycle slides forward so you can easily dump your food waste inside. The drum spins around to shred and process the food while the microbes also do their work. The state of the microbes, including the kind of food they’re “digesting” as well as their activity, is conveyed to the FOVI handheld device magnetically attached to the front of the cycler.

This gives owners a virtual pet that they can interact with and take with them anywhere, though some might not feel at ease with the idea that they’re raising microbes. The concept also has some AI involved, analyzing your diet through your food waste and making suggestions on how to improve your health. The design doesn’t exactly upgrade the biodegradation process but it improves the overall experience to make it more fun and habit-forming.

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