Sofshell took our breath away when co-founder Dr. Elgin Yap dropped a whopping 12-pound bowling ball onto his iPhone – after placing his invention, the Sofshell padding, on top. After the impact, Dr. Yap assured the awed audience that his iPhone was working perfectly fine. The stunt was all part of the Demo Asia ‘emerging technology and trends’ segment.
The Singaporean startup Sofshell makes shock absorbent solutions, and aims to disrupt the industry with its invention. Dr. Yap, who has a PhD in neuroscience, demonstrated that the Sofshell material (pictured above) is malleable but hardens upon impact, which serves as an excellent solution to reduce and cushion impacts.
During a short chat with co-founder Dr Davy Cheong (who has a PhD in mechanical engineering and is the one who invented the Sofshell technology), he describes his invention as serendipitous. He also explains that the Sofshell material does not just absorb the shock, but also hardens and spreads the entire impact across the whole padding area. Keen for a personal ‘hands on’ with the material, I personally slammed my hand against the Sofshell-wrapped table edge of their booth, and felt minimal impact – and no pain – on my knuckles. It was genuinely amazing.
The material can be incorporated into items, says the startup team, to cushion shocks that elderly folk might suffer. According to statistics, falling is one of the most common problems faced by the elderly, especially at home, which poses a high death risk. Also, I think it would be an excellent material to include in various guards for athletes to protect themselves, especially when it gets rough during competition.
The team also walked away with the DEMOguru award (coupled with thunderous applause) during DEMO Asia.
Dr. Elgin Yap (left) and Dr Davy Cheong (right)