studio yumakano's smile screw project supports polio charity

studio yumakano’s smile screw project supports polio charity
images © satoru ikegami
all images courtesy of studio yumakano

smile screws were born in 2014 from an idea thought up by designer yuma kano and the manufacturing enterprise of komuro industry in osaka. screws have not seen much innovation in the past or need for improvement, but seeing a screw with a smiley face rather than a cross or a slot on its head gives others a small thrill of discovery.

branding

‘it’s not just a simple screw, but a cheerful message to the world that can be understood the world over.’

exploring a sense of community, people can now take pictures of smile screws they have put in place, then upload them to a special site where their locations are marked on a map. the map displays the locations of smile screws around the world. in addition, one dose of polio vaccine will be delivered to children in developing nations by the japan committee of vaccines (JCV) for each smile screw sold. this project is aimed at bringing smiles to people who place screws, people who find screws, and beyond. it seeks to bring about small changes in everyday life, helping people share smiles.

read the previous screw project article here.

packaging and identity

website marking the location of the smile screws around the world

the product is simple but aims to bring a smile to people’s faces

take a picture of the smile screw and upload it onto the website to see others do the same all around the world

for every screw sold, one dose of polio vaccine will be delivered to children in developing nations

the design facilitates the sharing of joy and the discovering of surprises with others

the project sees daily objects transformed into more than just a functional tool and gives a sense of expression

search for smile screws around the world

the production of each screw

designer yuma kano and engineer yoneda hiroya in the screw factory

click on the picture about to see the smile screw on the designboom shop!

designboom has received this project from our ‘DIY submissions‘ feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication. see more project submissions from our readers here.