A high-tech answer to square-dance squabbles

With the guidance and support of industrial designers from Sony China, Zhu and her school teammates designed a speaker that might terminate the problem once for all.

The speaker, dubbed the "dazzling dancing mate", uses a highly directional audio beam speaker that can channel sound in specified directions and control the transmission range.

"It means that, other than the people within the speaker's transmission diameter, others won't hear the music," Zhu said.

The dazzling dancing mate is equipped with three loudspeakers that can broadcast audio in a set range.

The top projector with a 360-degree spinning camera can capture dancers' steps and automatically project different light effects.

"There is applied technology in the field already, so we believe our design can become a commercial product in the near future," Zhu said.

Sony's student design workshop, whose theme this year is "wellness", is in its eighth year in China.

Collaborating with universities, the program aims to provide a platform to combine advanced media and Internet technology with creative and curious young talents on campus.

Four tech designs from 16 students were exhibited in July, including the dazzling dancing mate, a musical toothbrush designed for kids who dislike brushing their teeth and an intelligent jogging mate for the growing number of joggers in China.

"We encourage students to look into the details of daily life around them and to care about people who have troubles," said Zhong Hongsheng, an acclaimed designer from the Innovation Center of Sony China.

"The works of students can become commercial products within five years," Zhong said.