The Playa Crawler: A Kinetic Walking Chair for Burning Man
In 2017, engineer Mark Ellis designed an innovative kinetic chair called The Playa Crawler to navigate the vast expanse of Burning Man. Inspired by the Strandbeest sculptures of Dutch artist Theo Jansen, this unique chair is specifically crafted to withstand the alkaline terrain of the Black Rock Desert.
Mark Ellis wanted a personal vehicle that was both functional and original for getting around Burning Man. This led him to create a chair that walks using a system of articulated legs. This mechanism, invented by Theo Jansen, allows the chair to move similarly to Jansen's giant sculptures, which are propelled by the wind along the beaches.
Built from laser-cut aluminum and steel, The Playa Crawler is equipped with two electric wheelchair motors, batteries, and is controlled via a wheelchair joystick.
Concept art from a pitched Batman Beyond animated feature film — From Writer/Director Patrick Harpin (My Dad the Bounty Hunter) & Production Designer/Producer Yuhki Demers (Into the Spider-Verse, Across the Spider-Verse)
Also picking up new books you’ve never heard of before because the premise sounds neat or the cover is pretty or it’s on a themed library display or you’re just trying to read your library’s entire catalogue of 90s cyberpunk is just fun. Sometimes it’s not your thing but you get to mull over new ideas or the diversity of people and opinions and thoughts in the world. Sometimes you discover your new favorite book of all time