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ATRUM

An inspiring dark restaurant that prioritizes the experience of the blind community by amplifying all other senses.

Client

Future Institute

Industry

Fine Dining, Sensory Experience, Blind Community

Services

Spatial Design, Interaction Design, Experience Design, Branding

As a revolutionary dark restaurant that borders guests’ sensory experience, we advocate an immersive and highly interactive dining environment, where sightless is the new norm, and discover the potential of all other senses.

ATRUM's convenient spatial design, humanized interaction design, and supplemental navigation product create a unique linear dining experience flow with an unusual customized adventure theme that brings 4D movie sensory enjoyment.

Vision

Story Behind the Design :Due to the limitations of the vision, the current visually impaired group lack the targeted dining experiences. We designed a culinary journey through uncharted territory that amplified other senses. We invite you to rediscover the familiar - food, drink, and friends with a 4D theater adventure theme as they become a wonder of being explored in the darkness. Thus, ATRUM was born.

How It Works

Spatial Aspect/ Exterior

The guests can enter ATRUM from both directions. The illuminated sign shows the restaurant's name. From our facade, blind people can sense the presence of the restaurant because one side of the outer wall has sunken handrails that help the blind follow the touch to guide them into the restaurant door. On the other side of the border is a lounge area where guests can sit and rest.

Spatial Aspect/ Interior

As an immersive dark restaurant, ATRUM’s interior design style displays a sensorial, unrevealed, and poetic experience. Along with a range of neutral pigmented warmer tones, the darker shades build consistency throughout the whole experience. At the same time, the color contrast and light highlight are still enough to allow visually impaired guests to navigate by themselves.

Interacton/ Navigation Band

ATRUM's staff members will give each guest a navigation band from the cabinet in the reception area. Everyone has a unique one, so they can use it to find their table or restroom and call for help in a dark environment.

Interaction / Entertainment

The dining area's 4D movie theater experience is built through four pieces of furniture. Each party is surrounded by retractable LED strips that offer rich touch and light effects. The sensory light hangs on the ceiling, providing different scents, wind, and air effects. The surface of the intelligent table will change the temperature. The slight motion effect and audio will be provided from the innovative chair.

Food Design / 3 Courses

When the lights all shut off, our adventure is about to begin. Each dining session has a different storyline that matches our three food courses. The appetizer is served when the story begins, the main course fits the climax, and the dessert is for the end of the story. In each dish, the table wares will also be made with themed materials that enrich the sense of touch. The food is also designed based on the storyline, which implements the unique shape, tricky smell, and different tastes.

"Our company was looking for a unique and thoughtful approach to simplifying the world through the eyes of a child. We are throughly impressed with the Nuri concept and look forward to introducing this new product to the world." -Jini Zopf

About Our Target Community

In the US, a person with 20/200 in the BETTER eye is legally blind, but the Atrum is focused on design for the extreme so that it will work for everyone. Due to the limitations of vision, the current visually impaired people have limited mobility and limited accessible activities for them. Our humanely designed restaurant integrates the dining experience into an unusual adventure story, such as Jurassic Rainforest, Atlantis Legend, Pharaoh's Treasure, etc. We use the ideology of 4D theatre and implement the most advanced technology to mimic these scenes' sensory experiences so blind people can enjoy a rich adventure without travel, which amplifies the enjoyment of other senses through themed dishes and similar 4D movies experience.

Expirence Design

To ensure that all guest enjoys the comfortable service and safe environment, we advocate for guests to make a reservation through calling, website, or apps. We hold two sessions and 16 guests max for each session. To make our sensory experience work smoothly, we promote a theater-like experience, which requires guests to come at the same time so everyone can enjoy the preset theme at the same time.

Product Desgin/ Band

When guests enter the ATRUM, they get a navigation band on their wrist. There are two parts on the surface. The shape and the touch of concaved bell icon suggest the guest press down to call for help. The slide key service is a navigation system. When the guest slides the key up or down, the icon underneath it will help the guest know whether it is navigating to the assigned dining table or restroom by vibration.

Spatial Highlight/ Accessibility

Inside the restaurant, our pathway is wide enough for people to walk side by side. Four types of tactile texture will guide the guests to change direction or walk straight. The slender curtains are on both sides of the track, which separate the path between guests and staff members. It will always keep guests using the same linear way in the middle.

Theme 4D Dining

The support of our innovative furniture, such as motion chairs, brilliant table, and sensory light, makes the 4D Theater dining experience possible. They all deliver a fully immersive cinematic experience in perfect synchronicity and instantaneously place special sensory effects in a target area. In this environment, simulated realities create an unforgettable fourth-dimensional experience.

Theme 4D Dining

As society increasingly pays attention to the needs of minority groups and the accessibility of all, ATRUM has a great chance to become popular and enhance the guest's capacity. From there, it can open new chain restaurants in other areas and bring this unique dining enjoyment to other blind communities.

Theme 4D Dining

The Team

Xiyu Chen

Valerie Peng

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