Cobble Callaire Bluetooth by Eric Wu is a highly esteemed winner of the very prestigious 2025 Duais Iarainn A' Design Award in Dealbhadh Innealan Didseatach agus Dealanach Competition Category.

IarannDealanais Luchd-cleachdaidh· 2025

Cobble Callaire Bluetooth

by Eric Wu

Client: EW Design

Duais Iarainn A' Design Award Winner in Dealanais Luchd-cleachdaidh Category

40,651

Verified Award Winner

Verify Award Status for #167221

View at A' Design Award Press Release Award Badge

Colors

The Design

About Cobble Callaire Bluetooth

Is callaire seilf leabhar Bluetooth í Cobble le comhéadan idirghníomhach ar an dromchla uachtarach. Is féidir ceithre bhioráin mhaighnéadacha a shocrú i bpatrúin éagsúla ar eangach. Nuair a chríochnaítear patrún réamhshocraithe, seinneann an callaire próifíl fuaime sábháilte, mar shampla lúb torainn dúlra nó bán-torainn. Oibríonn Cobble freisin mar ghnáthchallaire Bluetooth le haghaidh fuaime ó ghléas ceangailte. Cuireann socrú na mbioráin an cluiche cláir Go i gcuimhne duit agus tugann sé cuireadh do mhóiminéad gairid de dhíriú ciúin. Úsáideann an fréamhshamhail cásáil adhmaid, painéil aicrileacha gaineamh-shéidte agus stráicí solais LED.

The Recognition

About the Duais Iarainn A' Design Award

Tha Cobble Callaire Bluetooth air Duais Iarainn A' Design Award a bhuannachadh, aithneachadh urramach a bheirear do dhealbhaidhean math a choinnicheas ris na riatanasan proifeiseanta is gnìomhachais a thathar a' sùileachadh bho chruthachaidhean a chaidh an dealbhadh gu math. Tha buannaichean Iarainn a' nochdadh sgil mhòr, speisealachadh àrd, tuigse eòlaiche agus comas cruthachail an luchd-cruthachaidh. Thathar an dùil gum bi Cobble Callaire Bluetooth na chruthachadh air a bheil mòran meas, ion-mholta agus gràdhach a tha practaigeach agus ùr-ghnàthach. Tha an dealbhadh seo a bhuannaich Duais Iarainn A' Design Award a' cur nan cleachdaidhean as fheàrr sa ghnìomhachas còmhla agus tha feartan teignigeach comasach aige ceangailte ri eòlas-dèanamh agus tàlant. Tha meas air Cobble Callaire Bluetooth airson a dhùrachd agus chaidh a dhealbhadh gus leasachaidhean càileachd beatha a thoirt seachad a chuidicheas le bhith a' dèanamh an t-saoghail na àite nas fheàrr.

Behind the Design

Press Kit

Credits, team members and technical details provided by the designer.

Unique Properties: Cobble is a speaker with an interactive interface at the top. The user has access to 4 pegs that they can place in various patterns. When preset patterns connect, the speaker plays a saved tone. The speaker is made with the concept of "inadvertent mindfulness." Studies have found that the simple action of concentrating on one's actions offer moments of respite. By placing pegs, much like how one places stones in a Go game, the user enjoys a moment of peace.
Dimensions & Packaging: 7 1/2" (width) * 7 5/16" (depth) * 2" (height)
Tags: Speaker, Office, Mindfulness, Audio, Music
Production Technology: The prototype was constructed with a wooden casing with a four-panel construction. Sand-blasted acrylic panels are used to diffuse the lighting from LED light strips. The prototype control panel was made from an Arduino nano and will be replaced with more efficient chips in mass production. We experimented with various sensing methods and settled on magnetic sensing with Hall effect sensors as they appeared to be the most reliable.
Design Challenge: The hardest part was figuring out the sweet spot of a big enough surface area and a compact enough footprint, the product being a shelf speaker after all. People wanted to engage with the interface but too much of it offered diminishing returns and research participants had more complaints of space constraints.
Research: User research was conducted in collaboration with co-working spaces. We tested hypotheses like the following:
- How much spacing and how big do people prefer the pegs to be
- How many rows and columns work the best, offering novelty and comfort without overloading the user
- What footprint works the best without sacrificing too much room for interaction
Inspiration: The design originated in a desire to question the prevalence of active mindfulness practices today. We have meditation apps, mindfulness sessions offered by corporations, and many more. While mindfulness is great, there are alternative activities that humans go to for similar purposes, without bearing the label of "mindfulness." Go, the Asian board game using stones, was a primary inspiration. What if we could have something built in that stimulates a sense of mindfulness, just like Go?
Project Duration: Duration: 6 months
Location: Rhode Island, United States
Operation Flow: The product behaves like a normal bluetooth speaker, so the user can connect to it with an end device and play whatever they want.

The unique interaction is that it can save and activate various sound profiles, which can be activated via placement of the magnetic pegs. The user would have to download a mobile app to change the default profiles, which are nature and white noise sound loops.
Team Members: Eric Wu
Image Credits: Photos: Eric Wu