Eluminance: Revolutionizing Barrier Tapes with Printed Lighting

Designer Duane Lye Dun Wei introduces a versatile, illuminated barrier tape for enhanced safety in low-light conditions.

The inspiration behind Eluminance stemmed from the limitations of traditional barrier tapes, which are often ineffective in poorly lit environments. These tapes, while crucial for police and civil defense operations, lacked the ability to communicate vital information such as directions during escalated situations. This gap in functionality led to the creation of Eluminance, a product designed to meet the demands and needs of on-site personnel.

Eluminance is not just a barrier tape; it is a versatile module that houses a retractable and animatable illuminated barrier tape. This design allows for demarcation of specific areas, no-entry zones, or traffic direction in poor visibility environments such as disaster rescue and relief, crime scenes, and police roadblock operations. The ability to animate directions gives operators greater crowd-control in escalated situations and helps in the cordoning of hazards clearly.

The realization of Eluminance was made possible through ASTAR's patented printed electronics technology, which allows lighting to be printed onto a thin film that illuminates when powered up. The module, designed with a new design language called “Refined Ruggedness,” embodies the essence of “tech advancement, precision & durability”. The housing is made of carbon fibre, making it robust yet lightweight, and built to withstand adverse weather conditions.

The Eluminance module measures 108mm x 108mm x 258mm, with the tape length ranging from 1500mm to 6000mm and a width of 86mm. The design is intuitive and versatile. The illuminated tape is pulled out from the module and attached to another module located a distance away via magnets located at the tape head. Multiple modules can be connected together to form a barricade, and the design includes two types of handles for hanging or attaching to objects.

Eluminance is a testament to the power of design and technology in enhancing operational readiness and safety. By integrating technology into the conventional barrier tape, its visibility and ability to communicate instructions are significantly boosted, reducing the need for additional manpower and preserving operator safety. This innovative design is a beacon of how technology can transform traditional methods, making it a deserving winner of the Silver A' Idea and Conceptual Design Award in 2019.