This Futuristic Prototype Headphones Is Grown Out Of Natural Materials

The electronic products we are using now lead to plastic and silicons that don’t really have anywhere else to go but a landfill. And with the rate we dispose of them, we would run out of space to bury all of our mess, eventually.

So why not turn to nature? After all, nature is the designer, engineer, and producer of some of the most capable materials that we know.

100% Natural

And that’s exactly what a group of designers from Finland had done. By designing a pair of headphones made mostly out of natural materials like fungus, bioplastics, and others. This could be the solution we were looking for to save our environment.

The final idea of Avian - the design house behind this project - is to show people that it is feasible to incorporate completely natural materials into products that we couldn’t even begin to think could be made with sustainable materials. Though they offered a wide variety of products, it may be difficult for you to get one of them.

For example, this headset is called ‘Korvaa,’ and all of the components in this picture are completely taken from nature. Though surely, they must have gone through some steps to transform them.

Bio-Materialistic Design

The structure of the headset is 3D printed from a type of bioplastic. This plastic is the byproduct of a type of yeast as it processes lactic acid. But don’t underestimate the strength of this material, as it is flexible and stern enough to be used as the stress and force bearing structure of the headset: Crown and cup shell.

The protein that made up the paddings are called Hydrophobin, produced by a type of fungus and reinforced by cellulose, not only are they firm and lasting, but also sustainable. To bring another degree of comfort, the paddings are covered with a layer of what’s called Mycelium - another type of substance derived from a fungus that’s leathery and flexible. 

The mesh covering the internal electronics of the headphones was proposed to be created out of spider silk.

Only A Prototype

Unfortunately, these headphones don’t actually work. For now, they’re just prototypes that, instead of proposing a functioning pair of headphones, is simply trying to show us that high-tech devices made out of naturally derived materials are feasible. The idea could show the industry where to take material science in the future.