High-tech “mu” table by Billycan November 20
What do you get when you combine imagination, technology, and hard work? If you’re someone like Simon Giles, you might just come up with something like what he calls the “mu,” a lighTable sculpture that shimmers and shines, illuminating your drinks and food with bright, flashing lights. This most high-tech table surely ranks among other bar and bistro tables UK establishment owners would find interesting. I certainly think it wouldn’t look out of place in a trendy nightclub or a vibrant bar.
According to information from Giles’ website, billycan.org, the lighTable has 12V 0.24W white light-emitting diodes (LED)-driven fiber optics embedded in the table top. These spread out radially between the layers of the table’s clear acrylic top. The 12V 3.5W (RGB) LED in the base is from Lighthouse Electronics; it is remote-controlled. A quartz sphere measuring 55 mm lies in the middle of the support while a crystal glass sphere measuring 110 mm crowns the top. It’s but one example of Giles’ penchant for modern furniture and lighting, a most intriguing blend between the two.
A demonstration of the lighTable in action can be viewed in this video clip. The table’s light, which sometimes pulsate and throb, or cast a steady glow, makes it look like something from a futuristic movie. Dots of light speckling the table top can strike one’s fancy, maybe making one imagine that he or she is gazing at stars in some distant galaxy.
The uses for LED and fiber optic technology have grown by leaps and bounds, both in the home and out, for personal use and for commercial. They’re not only functional and energy- and cost-efficient; they sure can be so pretty to look at sometimes as well. And if it’s something like the lighTable, then you can happily add points for its hip and cool factor.
