Graduate designer Johanna Schoemaker last month won the Braun Prize 2009 for Family of OLED lamps, a range of remote-controlled lamps that open and close like flowers.

The range utilises OLED (organic LED) technology, which produce diffuse light akin to daylight from a thin surface rather than a pinpoint source.

Schoemaker created the range for her final thesis at the University of Wuppertal in Germany.

The annual Braun Prize is awarded to product concepts that "represent real innovations in design and technology which have been developed with users' needs in mind".

Here's some text from Schoemaker:

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Future Lighting, Family of Oled lamps

The OLED lamps create a very diffuse pleasant light, which is akin to daylight. Different dynamic light programs as well as a lot of manual controlling possibilities for static light allow for many lighting situations that adapt to the needs of the user.

The use of the OLED technology enables besides dynamic light color and intensity changes also smoothly changing light directions and wandering shadows, which turn the indoor artificial lighting even more into natural outdoor light conditions. In addition to that different opening angles enable different light directions.

All lighting options of the ceiling lamp are controlled via a remote control with an easy to understand touch screen interface. The floor lamp is controlled in an analogue way.

Unfolding it like an umbrella combines the beautiful motion of opening the lamp with its on/off switch, which creates a unique sensitive experience that reminds of a flower that opens during daylight. The OLED technology that is used is very energy efficient and environmentally friendly.

The design of the lamps emphasizes the characteristics of the new lighting technology: Thinness, Lightness and Transparency

Project name: Future Lighting / family of OLED Lamps

Credit: Johanna Schoemaker, final thesis project at the University of Wuppertal.

www.johannaschoemaker.com