flexiblefullpage -
billboard - default
interstitial1 - interstitial
catfish1 - bottom
Currently Reading

MIT researchers create 'home in a box' transformable wall system for micro apartments

MIT researchers create 'home in a box' transformable wall system for micro apartments

Dubbed CityHome, the system integrates furniture, storage, exercise equipment, lighting, office equipment, and entertainment systems into a compact wall unit. 


By BD+C Staff | May 30, 2014
CityHome's office configuration
CityHome's office configuration

How can you make a 200-sf micro apartment feel and function like a typical studio unit?

That was the objective a team of MIT Media Lab researchers set out to achieve when they invented CityHome, the Swiss Army knife, so to speak, of home appliances and furniture.

As the video below demonstrates, the transformable wall system integrates furniture, storage, exercise equipment, lighting, office equipment, and entertainment systems into a movable, compact unit.  

Built-in sensors, motors, and lights allows users to pull out the bed or dining table, or turn on the lights, with a hand motion or voice command.   

One potential scenario for the CityHome, according to MIT's Kent Larson and Hasier Larrea, is where the bedroom transforms to a home gym, the living room to a dinner party space for 14 people, a suite for four guests, two separate office spaces plus a meeting space, or an a open loft space for a large party. Finally, the kitchen can either be open to the living space, or closed off to be used as a catering kitchen.

 

 


Pull-out bed


Pull-out dining room table


Living room


Office

Related Stories

Construction Costs | May 31, 2024

Despite challenges, 2024 construction material prices continue to stabilize

Gordian’s Q2 2024 Quarterly Construction Cost Insights Report indicates that supply chain issues notwithstanding, many commodities are exhibiting price normalization.

University Buildings | May 30, 2024

Washington University School of Medicine opens one of the world’s largest neuroscience research buildings

In St. Louis’ Cortex Innovation District, Washington University School of Medicine recently opened its new Jeffrey T. Fort Neuroscience Research Building. Designed by CannonDesign and Perkins&Will, the 11-story, 609,000-sf facility is one of the largest neuroscience buildings in the world.

Architects | May 30, 2024

AE firm Goodwyn Mills Cawood merges with Southland Engineering

Architecture and engineering firm Goodwyn Mills Cawood (GMC) is further expanding its services through a strategic merger with engineering firm Southland Engineering in Cartersville, Ga.

K-12 Schools | May 30, 2024

Inclusive design strategies to transform learning spaces

Students with disabilities and those experiencing mental health and behavioral conditions represent a group of the most vulnerable students at risk for failing to connect educationally and socially. Educators and school districts are struggling to accommodate all of these nuanced and, at times, overlapping conditions.

MFPRO+ New Projects | May 29, 2024

Two San Francisco multifamily high rises install onsite water recycling systems

Two high-rise apartment buildings in San Francisco have installed onsite water recycling systems that will reuse a total of 3.9 million gallons of wastewater annually. The recycled water will be used for toilet flushing, cooling towers, and landscape irrigation to significantly reduce water usage in both buildings.

Healthcare Facilities | May 28, 2024

Healthcare design: How to improve the parking experience for patients and families

Parking is likely a patient’s—and their families—first and last touch with a healthcare facility. As such, the arrival and departure parking experience can have a profound impact on their experience with the healthcare facility, writes Beth Bryan, PE, PTOE, PTP, STP2, Principal, Project Manager, Walter P Moore.

Urban Planning | May 28, 2024

‘Flowing’ design emphasizes interaction at Bellevue, Wash., development

The three-tower 1,030,000-sf office and retail development designed by Graphite Design Group in collaboration with Compton Design Office for Vulcan Real Estate is attracting some of the world’s largest names in tech and hospitality. 

MFPRO+ News | May 28, 2024

ENERGY STAR NextGen Certification for New Homes and Apartments launched

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recently launched ENERGY STAR NextGen Certified Homes and Apartments, a voluntary certification program for new residential buildings. The program will increase national energy and emissions savings by accelerating the building industry’s adoption of advanced, energy-efficient technologies, according to an EPA news release. 

Women in Design+Construction | May 28, 2024

Commerce Department launches Million Women in Construction Community Pledge

The U.S. Department of Commerce launched its Million Women in Construction Community Pledge this month to boost the ranks of women in construction companies. Federal investments are creating a construction boom that is increasing job opportunities for construction and trade workers.

Laboratories | May 24, 2024

The Department of Energy breaks ground on the Princeton Plasma Innovation Center

In Princeton, N.J., the U.S. Department of Energy’s Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL) has broken ground on the Princeton Plasma Innovation Center (PPIC), a state-of-the-art office and laboratory building. Designed and constructed by SmithGroup, the $109.7 million facility will provide space for research supporting PPPL’s expanded mission into microelectronics, quantum sensors and devices, and sustainability sciences. 

boombox1 - default
boombox2 -
native1 -

More In Category




K-12 Schools

Inclusive design strategies to transform learning spaces

Students with disabilities and those experiencing mental health and behavioral conditions represent a group of the most vulnerable students at risk for failing to connect educationally and socially. Educators and school districts are struggling to accommodate all of these nuanced and, at times, overlapping conditions.

halfpage1 -

Most Popular Content

  1. 2021 Giants 400 Report
  2. Top 150 Architecture Firms for 2019
  3. 13 projects that represent the future of affordable housing
  4. Sagrada Familia completion date pushed back due to coronavirus
  5. Top 160 Architecture Firms 2021