We've seen some cool products come out of the idea of using sea creatures as a basis for design, so kudos to Richard Rogers Partnership for looking at dwellers on the bottom of the ocean for inspiration in creating this ultra-efficient lighting system. But why the hell is it called Maantis (sic)? Last I checked, those skinny bugs didn't know how to scuba dive. Incongruent monikers aside, the Maantis uses polycarbonate ribs to diffuse, refract and reflect the light emitted by the LEDs in the middle so you get the most illumination out of your wattage.

When the Maantis is switched off, its ribs are still working to squeeze every bit of light out of your space, so it emits a slight glow. The spotlight at the end of the central spine is optional — also a good place for a motion sensor for some automatic switch-on action.

Obviously, a lot of offices would have to get onboard for the Maantis to go mainstream. Yeah, it looks kind of ugly, though people said the same thing about the Aeron office chair when it first came out, and that product went on to redefine its category. We remain skeptical of the Maantis, though, if only because things named after that particular bug tend not to do so well.

Check out a few more pics of the Maantis after the jump. — Peter Pachal

Maantis Lighting System, via Oh Gizmo!