Rhode Island design studio Pneuhaus has converted a series of outdoor inflatable benches into self-defence devices to "de-escalate" potentially dangerous situations for students taking part in protests at universities in the United States.
The design is an elaboration on Pneuhaus's Street Seats, inflatable tubes fabricated "to bring a sense of play" to public spaces, according to the studio.
However, the studio said that it was motivated by recent confrontations between police and pro-Palestinian protestors at campuses in the United States to modify the design.
Pneuhaus converted its inflatable public seating into self-defence devices
Last week, the studio shared a post on Instagram demonstrating the ability of the objects to blunt the force of oncoming objects, from rolls of tape to step ladders. "We felt compelled to find a way to help protect these students given the failure of their administration," said the studio
"We quickly realized that the techniques used in Street Seats could be adapted to a smaller modular unit that could serve as seating most of the time, but be used as a shield when things escalated."

 

View this post on Instagram

 
A post shared by Pneuhaus (@pneuhaus)

Pneuhaus demonstrated how the device functions
The benches are lightweight and built "like a Zodiac boat", designed to be durable enough to withstand being outdoors.
"The material is so durable i...