BBDO asked Tomorrow Lab to build a custom-designed glass bottle with an integrated bluetooth speaker for its client, Bacardi. We said yes! There was one other requirement: that you can’t really hear the music until the bottle is on the bar!
This device combines a bluetooth-connected speaker hidden inside the bottom of a bottle, powered by a rechargeable battery. The bottle also contains sound-activated LEDs that pulse to the beat of the song.
The audio component is a surface transducer, which is a coil attached to a pad that conducts the vibration into whatever you press it against. It gives the awesome power to turn almost any surface into a speaker. We evaluated different surface speaker components to identify the best component(s) for producing a quality sound from the bottle, especially when placed on a surface like a table or bar.
For the Standard Bottle, the speaker and its electronics needed to fit in their own splash-proof enclosure designed to fit in or near the base/punt of the bottle.
For the Premium bottle, we will design a unique custom bottle form that adheres tightly to the classic Bacardi bottle shape, but provides space to house & seal electronics. In future phases, we plan to work with a skilled glass blower who can produce a limited quantity of hand-blown bottles that meet our design specifications.
