The chapters of life keep repeating through “regret, change, and habit”
Hi~ I’m Reads / Lin Chin-Sheng, Design Director of Bone. I love drawing and design. New ideas are always running through my mind, and the people, things, and moments around me are all sources of inspiration. I draw out the “it” born from inspiration and use my expertise in industrial design to create products that are “beautiful and convenient.”
It has been over ten years since Reads founded the Bone brand.
Repetitive routines can easily leave people feeling drained
In fact, designers are not the only ones who need inspiration and creativity. Everyone will, to some extent, face moments when they need to think, be creative, and solve problems. However, day after day, life can easily pull us into a repetitive loop.
No matter which stage we are in, life and work are built from different fragments. Yet scenes that keep replaying over and over can trap us in a familiar and comfortable routine.
Especially as we grow, adapt to society, and become familiar with the people, things, and matters in life and work, everything may seem easy and effortless. Still, a subtle sense of loneliness can arise within us, along with regret toward a life that feels unchanged day after day.
Bold changes can still lead us back to another repetitive routine
Those who take more dramatic action may boldly step forward because they refuse to live the same day over and over again: traveling abroad, changing jobs, moving, switching career paths, and so on, trying to reignite their passion for life.
After switching to a new track and beginning a new chapter in life, we eventually become used to the changed lifestyle again.
Then comes the question: “How long does it take?” How long before we once again live the same life every day, feel that unwilling loneliness return, and begin to regret the repetition of each day?
Gradually, we become conditioned by repetitive routines, and the opportunities for our minds to practice “creative thinking” slowly decrease. A sense of fatigue toward life and work naturally follows.
Even people whose work requires creative output—designers, engineers, marketers...—can unconsciously fall into a “repetitive” pattern. If they do not activate the exploration radar in their minds in time and seek new knowledge, their pace forward will gradually slow down and fall behind.
Exploring unknown fields does not necessarily mean jumping into a completely unrelated area. You can also use your own professional abilities, search for new information, and find fresh inspiration within your own field of expertise.
Now comes the key part.
How do we find new information and trigger inspiration? Where does creativity come from?
What is inspiration? Where does inspiration come from? If you observe the things around you carefully, inspiration may come from a certain moment in everyday life.
During a business trip to New York in 2009, I wanted to stand my phone up in the hotel room to listen to music, so I placed the phone playing music into a cup. The moment the phone entered the cup, the sound reflected outward and became louder.
Capturing this strong and interesting moment of experience, I turned that deep impression into a product idea. That was how the mobile phone Horn Stand was born. This eco-friendly, electricity-free speaker also won four international awards, including IF and Red dot.
With a little more observation of everyday life, creativity can emerge.
Who would have thought this originally came from a cup?
Interests can also become sources of creative inspiration
Besides working in design, Reads is also a cycling enthusiast. He always keeps a bicycle in the trunk of his car and takes it out for a ride whenever he gets the chance after work.
He later extended the creative invention of the Horn Stand to bicycles, making it convenient to use phone navigation, listen to music, and record mileage while riding.
Reads is also a cycling enthusiast and rides whenever he gets the chance.
The design concept of the Horn Stand was extended to bicycles, making it convenient to use phone navigation, listen to music, and record mileage while riding.
Taiwan is a world-famous bicycle manufacturing hub. Surrounded by the sea on all sides, with mountains and coastlines reachable within 30 minutes, it is one of the best places in the world for cycling. Taiwan is also known as the “Bicycle Island.”
Taiwan’s environment is highly suitable for cycling. Have you ever cycled around the island?
Most cyclists bring their phones when they ride. Listening to music, navigation, trip recording, photography, posting on social media, and sharing riding experiences all make cycling richer. In emergencies, a phone can also be used to contact others, making riders feel more at ease when going out.
Mobile phones have already become inseparably connected to our lives. This reminded me of the universal phone strap design patent I proposed in 2010.
It is a “universal design” that can wrap around phones of different sizes. Combined with the rear strap, it became Bike Tie, suitable for different “phones” and “handlebars.” It also won the German IF Design Award.
A universal design that can wrap around different phones was definitely a major step forward for Bike Tie.
Creative inspiration sparked by a European road trip
In September 2019, during a 3,000 km road trip across Europe, we visited many bicycle shops and cycling friends. We began an interesting collaboration with Vodafone in Europe. The core business of a telecom company is providing telecommunications services, but as it continuously builds base stations and sends signals, it also becomes an energy consumer. That is why Vodafron has this carbon-reduction philosophy: “wherever possible, accelerate the transition toward low-carbon or zero-carbon energy.” This led to a phone contract plan that included a bicycle as part of a telecom project, and Bone’s Bike Tie also joined Vodefone’s campaign.
Bone’s Bike Tie also joined Vodefone’s bicycle giveaway campaign.
During this 3,000 km journey through Europe, I saw that only a few people rode with bike computers, but almost everyone brought a phone when cycling. A thought suddenly came to mind: since people already bring their phones out, why not make use of the bike computer mount to secure the phone as well?
Good design often comes from a simple question.
If a bike computer and a phone could be used interchangeably, that would be a great idea. This thought kept circling in my mind. I hoped to find the simplest way—without glue or tools—to secure a phone on a bike computer mount, while using a strap-based universal design suitable for all phones.
This was how the first idea for the Tie Connect system began.
The design prototype of the Tie Connect system.
First version
The first version
For the first sample, our goal was to design a Tie Connect system that could strap onto phones of different sizes while also locking onto a bike computer mount. The connector used hard plastic material, allowing the phone to be secured to the bike computer mount through rotation. The strap used soft silicone, offering elasticity and the ability to hold phones of different sizes.
We chose not to glue the two components together, but this made it difficult to combine them tightly and effectively. Once stretched to hold a larger phone, the soft and hard parts could potentially come loose. The reason we did not use two-shot molding or adhesive bonding was to follow our eco-friendly concept of allowing the parts to be separated for recycling.
Second version
The second version
We created reverse-hook structures at the four corners, with protruding plastic parts that hooked onto the silicone body to prevent the soft and hard materials from separating. Based on this, the shape developed into a form made of four connected circles. It could stretch, deform, and securely hold the phone in use without fear of deformation from pulling.
Third version
The third version
We modified it into a circular form for a cleaner appearance, using an outward-protruding body shape to hide the reverse-hook structure inside.
But this created a problem:
because the body shape protruded, it could not enter the locking structure of the bike computer mount.
Fourth version
The fourth version
We lowered the height of the silicone so the plastic could be cut flat and exposed, allowing it to enter the bike computer mount. However, the contact area for securing the phone became smaller, causing the phone to shake back and forth more easily while cycling.
Fifth version
The fifth version
We enlarged the contact area with the phone to improve stability.
But another problem appeared. Although it became more stable, it blocked the cameras on many phones with center-positioned lenses, and the overall appearance also became much more complicated.
Sixth version
The sixth version
We used a racetrack-shaped design to enlarge the contact area with the phone.
At this point, we were very happy to find a good idea that balanced stability and form.
The round straps that held the four corners of the phone tended to slide, so we tested two other strap shapes. From round to triangular and then to racetrack-shaped, the final racetrack-shaped strap offered both strength and slip resistance. The straps around the four sides were changed to triangular forms to prevent the phone from slipping out.
In design, good looks alone are useless if the function is not well considered.
Thinking further, we extended this structure and created a base that could be quickly installed and removed to hold the phone Tie Connect sleeve. In addition to the phone Tie Connect sleeve, it could also be used with a bike computer.
After testing, one strap was enough to support the phone, making it faster and more convenient to use.
The bike Tie Connect mount continues the universal design concept and can be used on different handlebars and stems.
The soft silicone will not damage your phone or bicycle, and the quick-installation design makes it easier to switch between different bikes.
If you have two bicycles at home, the quick-installation design of Bike Tie allows for fast switching.
The tightening holes were changed into parallel slots, making the strap fit more closely to the frame after being fastened. It fits different tube diameters (2.2–4.7 cm) and can also disperse vibration from the road to protect the phone. In addition, we wanted to create a phone Tie Connect exchange system for people who both cycle and run.
By cleverly combining three materials—stainless steel, silicone, and plastic—the running Tie Connect mount was designed to be used with the phone Tie Connect sleeve. Paired with a high-tension, skin-friendly strap, it provides stability and comfort during exercise.
Conveniently switching between cycling and running, for sports or leisure, Tie Connect “running, cycling, phone, Tie Connect system” becomes a great companion for exercising with your phone.
The running Tie Connect mount was designed through the clever combination of stainless steel, silicone, and plastic.
The high-tension, skin-friendly strap provides stability and comfort during exercise.
The Tie Connect bike system took 15 months of repeated testing and modification to complete. It considers “eco-friendly recycling, universality, aesthetics, and function.” Through the efforts of everyone at Bone, this concept was finally realized as a product.
Looking back, the Horn Stand inspired in 2009 became the origin of more than ten years of creative extensions. We hope this story of transforming life experiences into creative inspiration can be helpful to product designers and people working in creativity, design, and product development.
Creative inspiration is hidden in the details of life
Pay attention to every detail of life and transform it into creativity. Everyone can find new inspiration in their work and life.
Everything around you—sports, walking, shopping, reading, television, the internet, FB, IG, LINE—every contact and experience can become an input of new information. When applied to problems in your own work and life, this information may offer a different perspective, help solve your problems, and improve your efficiency, as long as you observe carefully and use a little imagination.
What is creativity?
It is not only useful for people who work in creative fields. Finding inspiration in life applies to everyone.
Once inspiration is triggered, no matter how difficult the process may be, as long as you persist, it can eventually be completed.
This is how creativity comes about, and this is how difficult things are accomplished.