Hug is a universal expression of love. Hugs can make people happy. Hugs can also bring you fresh cups of coffee and much more when you wear “hug buttons.”
Hug button is a button that can communicate with any gadgets and appliances plugged into electrical outlets in your home. When two people wearing hug buttons embrace each other, it triggers an electrical switch paired with the buttons to turn on/off. This means lights will automatically come on, coffee will be brewed and music will start playing when you simply hug your loved ones.
Japanese people tend to feel shy about making expressive gestures in public, and hugging is no exception. “Hug buttons” were created to give people reasons to embrace each other more without making them conscious of doing so. Yukai Engineering collaborated with Dentsu for the designing of the product and developed the prototype.