University of Illinois researchers explain how they make their conductive ink on this step-by-step tutorial.

(via Boing Boing)

LED Dragon Kite by Jie Qi

Jie Qi, from MIT’s High-Low Tech group, posted a couple really nice tutorials on how to combine paper, electronics and smart materials to create beautiful objects.

The LED dragon kite: http://hlt.media.mit.edu/?p=1414
SMA origami crane: http://hlt.media.mit.edu/?p=1448

Heat Reactive Materials
Heat reactive materials change state, shape and/or color when exposed to temperatures above ambient. Naturally, many materials change shape, eg. melt, at high temperatures. What’s special about some of them is that their state, shape and/or color can be altered at relatively low temperatures (provided through hot water, body heat, hair dryers, ambient heaters, ovens, or just a hot summer day), making them easy to use and suitable for DIY projects. In this post I’ll go over thermochromic pigments and a few materials they have been incorporated into, namely paint, fabric, film and glass.

Thermochromic Pigments change color when exposed to heat and turn back to their original color when the temperature drops again. According to TEP:

Most thermochromic materials are based on liquid crystal technology. At specific temperatures the liquid crystals re-orientate to produce an apparent change of colour. The liquid crystal material itself is micro-encapsulated - i.e., contained within microscopic spherical capsules typically just 10 microns in diameter. Billions of these capsules are mixed with a suitable base to make thermochromic printing ink or, for example, plastics destined for injection molding.

These pigments can be mixed with an acrylic base or screen printing ink. At room temperature the pigment appears in its original color, but at temperatures between 27° and 30°C (80° to 86°F) this color disappears, eg, if a black pigment is applied to a white surface, the surface turns from black to white at the change-over temperature. When mixed with an acrylic base each pigment will turn instead into the color of the acrylic base or color blender, eg., if a blue pigment is mixed with a yellow acrylic base the resulting color will be green, but at the change-over temperature the blue will disappear and the green will turn into yellow. The ratio of acrylic base to coloring pigment depends entirely on the application and density of color required. For a detailed explanation of the functioning and applications of thermochromic pigments see the TEP Smart Colors info sheet (PDF) and this little demo animation.

Shi Yuan’s thermochromic wallpaper

Temperature-Sensitive Glass results from the application of thermochromic pigments to glass tiles which change color based on ambient, body or water temperature:

The textured glass surface layer protects and highlights the color-change film on the tile. The base color of the tile can match almost any color, and the temperature change point can be fit to the user’s environment and requirements. The dynamic color change begins at the selected activation temperature and shimmers through three phases, one with each 6–10° rise in temperature. Once the temperature peak is passed, the base color returns and remains the same until the temperature drops.
(source: Inventables)

Temperature-sensitive glass tile (image by Inventables)

Thermochromic Film has adhesive on one side and thermochromic ink on the other. The film is normally black but changes to bright green/blue at temperatures between 29.4 and 33°C (84º - 91º F). Due to its low change-over temperatures, touching a piece of thermochromic film for a few seconds will cause the contact area to change color - it can also be used with nichrome or any other heat source.

Thermochromic film (image by Mindsets)

Suppliers
Body Faders (US) :: thermochromic fabric
Inventables (US) :: thermochromic fabric, thermochromic film, temperature-sensitive glass tiles
Mindsets (UK): thermochromic pigments, thermochromic film
Paint with Pearl (US) :: thermochromic pigment powder

Share your knowledge
If you’d like to contribute content or corrections regarding thermochromic materials, please use the comment form below.

>> about the materials 101 series.

photochromic pigments from mindsets

UV reactive materials, which initially have an off-white appearance, change to bright colors when exposed to UV rays (sunlight or a UV lamp) and revert to their original pale color when away from UV light. The basis for these materials are photochromic pigments which can be mixed with an acrylic base and then applied as normal paint. The more dilute the pigment, the less dramatic the color change.

acrylic base to orange photochromic pigment ratio tests ran by a student of the Aix-en-Provence (France) Art School

Besides pigments, which can be used to make color-changing paints, photochromic materials are also available in the shapes of sewing and embroidering thread, plastic goods such as beads and buttons, and nail polish. Naturally it’s also possible to produce photochromic fabrics, but I haven’t been able to find them as raw materials in retail shops.

photochromic thread and beads (indoors and outdoors)

What is it exactly?
According to Wikipedia:

Photochromism does not have a rigorous definition, but is usually used to describe compounds that undergo a reversible photochemical reaction where an absorption band in the visible part of the electromagnetic spectrum changes dramatically in strength or wavelength. In many cases, an absorbance band is present in only one form. The degree of change required for a photochemical reaction to be dubbed “photochromic” is that which appears dramatic by eye, but in essence there is no dividing line between photochromic reactions and other photochemistry.

Suppliers
:: Mindsets (UK): photochromic pigments and sewing thread
:: Solar Active (USA): UV reactive sewing and embroidering thread, plastic goods (beads, buttons, etc.), nail polish

Share your knowledge
If you’d like to contribute content or corrections regarding UV reactive materials, please use the comment form below.

>> about the materials 101 series.

MAKING STUFF: Stronger, Smaller Cleaner, Smarter is a four-part PBS television series focusing on materials science:

While reports on “smart materials” or “bionic humans” are familiar enough from TV news and magazine shows, Making Stuff will be the first documentary to provide the basic science behind these and many other technology breakthroughs. Each of the four one-hour public television programs – Stronger, Smaller, Cleaner, and Smarter – will embrace developments in traditional and emerging materials as well as current research in rapidly expanding fields such as nanotechnology and biomaterials. This series will also explore the human stories that helped shape important breakthroughs in the past – the visionary talent, sheer luck, and dogged determination that turned a wild idea into a useful material.
>>Materials Research Society

For more details check out the Materials Research Society and PBS/NOVA websites.

Last March I had the opportunity to teach an openMaterials workshop at the very special École Supérieure d’Art d’Aix-en-Provence (France). It was part of a larger event in which the school invited researchers and artists from several fields to lead a one week class for 2nd year art students. The goal was to show them different technologies and materials, which they’d later use on an art project. Besides my smart materials class, there was also an astrobiology workshop by Andy Gracie and a video class by Douglas Stanley.

I was so impressed with the work done by these young students that I can’t resist sharing some photos and descriptions of their projects. These were kindly sent by the very talented artist and teacher France Cadet, who guided the students during the making of their final projects.

Barbed Wire by Morgane Guiard
Morgane wanted to represent barbed wire on her art piece. At first she tried to work with fiber optics: the images on the screen were supposed to drive the might to the fiber optics and make the data travel trough. This structure turned out to be really nice and poetic but also very fragile. She eventually broke it and decided to go with red EL wire. This time she put the display behind the barbed wire and made the EL blink according to the speed of the increasing number of victims shown on the screen (the number of victims barbed wire made during 3 different wars).

Interactive Tapestry by Sarah Martinis and Caroline Geneste
Sarah and Caroline made an interactive tapestry (a bit like “toile de Jouy” with some bone sprinted on it). The patterns were fitted with copper electrodes connected to several capacitive sensors. They were playing 8 different yelling sounds and used a sport electronic hacked device with a few electrodes around the wrist.

EL Dress by Amélie Djellel
Amelie used EL wire and a few handmade conductive fabric sensors to create a touch sensitive seethru dress. Each sensor triggered different strands of EL wire shaped inside the dress and representing forms between the meridians, the veins and the organs. The brightness of the EL changed according to the pressure applied on the sensors.

Color Changing Suit & Dance Performance by Lou Feraud
Lou created a suit sprinkled with UV active (color changing) beads and ink. She then wore it during a dance performance, in which she held some UV LEDs at the tips of each finger on one hand, and bright LEDs on the other hand.

Color Changing Stickers by Mélanie Cartier
Mélanie also used UV active ink to create stickers with the radioactive logo to evoke the memory of the radioactive accident and its invisible repercussions.

Animal by Huna Ruel
Huna used conductive fabric sensors to create a little animal that moves when touched (contracting its head and tail). She then covered it with latex. Unfortunately, once dry the latex shrank a bit and caused the sensors to be on at all times.

During the workshop, Amélie and I made some cards with different types of handmade sensors (using paper, conductive fabric, and velostat) to be kept at the school as a reference. The beautiful drawings and neat handwriting are hers :)

Thank you to all the fun and talented students and their awesome teachers France Cadet, Jean Pierre Mandon and Laurent Costes for a really great week!

More than a photo

Augmented Photography- is questioning the meaning of photography and going beyond still image. The installation is audience aware, it means when someone approaches the photograph, doll on the picture opens her eyes and starts to blink to a viewer. If none is looking at the picture the doll’s eyes are closed. Only time-to-time, she is waking up and asking for attention. Thus, my idea is to bring life to printed photography and challenge its form.

Briefly about the technology behind:

And here you can read more about the process. ]]> http://openmaterials.org/2010/03/20/augmented-photography/feed/ http://openmaterials.org/2010/02/24/the-cardboarduino/ http://openmaterials.org/2010/02/24/the-cardboarduino/#comments Wed, 24 Feb 2010 19:33:51 +0000 catarina http://openmaterials.org/?p=2899

Inspired by the paperduino, the cardboarduino is a physically larger version (with space for a 9V battery), designed by Allegheny College’s faculty member Matt Jadud, as way to introduce students to the fundamentals of soldering and working with physical computation.

The Cardboarduino is intended to be printed, cut out, and glued to the front and back of a piece of 5″ x 6″ piece of posterboard.

The builder pokes holes through the posterboard everywhere there is a dot on the top side of the design. It also labels the locations of all of the components, including color bands for the resistors.

Download the printable PDFs from concurrency.cc

(via guibot)

Currently the site offers three designs; a stool, a chair and a rocker.

The OpenStructures project is an open and modular construction system where everyone designs for everyone on the basis of one shared geometrical grid:

It is an ongoing experiment that wants to find out what happens if people design objects according to a shared modular grid, a common open standard that stimulates the exchange of parts, components, experiences and ideas and aspires to build things together.

When we look at modular construction systems we can clearly distinguish two different models:
- Closed modular systems, where one entity designs a complete system for everybody, and which operate according to a hierarchical (vertical) model.
- Open modular systems, where everybody contributes a small piece to a common system, and which operate according to a (horizontal) network model.

Within current hardware constructions we observe the existence of various closed systems:
- Designer A designs modular system 1
- Company B designs modular system 2
Although all these systems enjoy the benefits of modularity within their system, they most of the time are completely incompatible with one another.

Within software constructions however we are witnessing the emergence of open modular systems.
- Wikipedia, open knowledge sharing
- Linux, open programming

The OS project tries to find out what happens if we would initiate an open modular system for hardware where different entities design different parts and components but all according to one shared modular grid.

Conceived by designer Thomas Lommée, the project was first shown at Z33. The exhibition was comprised of several OS project scales, starting with “open parts” - which are the smallest OS - elements comparable to cells. These “open parts” are then assembled into functional self-sustaining entities: the components or organs of the OpenStructure-system. Following, different components are composed with frames and joints to form structures. Structures then have the capacity to develop and can eventually grow into an assembly of different structures that together function as a superstructure.

The exhibition in Z33 follows the story-line of the different scales and furthermore highlights a collaborative installation as a first “BetaTest” of the system. Just like software, that is reviewed before its launch, the model is tested by setting up a fully-functional kitchen. It demonstrates the streamlined process between different functional entities on the one side and is a vivid patchwork of various personalities, materials, inspirations and motivations on the other.

In preparation for the exhibition, Thomas Lommée collaborated with the KHLimburg and the Hogeschool Sint Lukas in Brussels. During several workshops, students were told about the topic and the first tests took place. This process is going to continue next year through collaborations with Sint Lukas Brussels and the Design Academy Eindhoven.

Thomas Lommée has invited the following designers, craftsmen and enthusiastic autodidacts to collaborate on this project and design within the grid: Laurens Bekemans, Biogas-E vzw, Nicolas Coeckelberghs, Kar Yan Cheung, Brussels Cooperation, Alistaire Dewit, Lise Foré, Christiane Hoegner, Bob Jacobs, Fabio Lorefice, Lucas Maassen, Jeroen Maes, Samyrah Moumouth, Karl Philips, Thermopolnv, Unfold, Jo Van Bostraeten.

OpenStructures is a collaborative effort (open to everyone), originally conceived at the Institute without Boundaries and now being further developed and tested by Intrastructures in association with the research group 4Dimensional Design of the Department of Architectonic Engineering Sciences at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel.

Learn more about and participate in the project @ the OpenStructures site:
:: purpose, goals, and potential
:: grid
:: parts
:: components
:: structures
:: designer platform
:: blog
:: participate

The Z33 art center also has an upcoming show titled Design by Performance which will feature, among many other interesting works, Unfold’s Claystruder (paired with a virtual trowing wheel that scans 3d hand movements and generates virtual objects to be printed at a later time) and David Bowen’s Growth Modelling Device. If you’re in the neighborhood (Hasselt, Belgium) or can make it there, don’t miss this exhibition!

UPDATE :: The Open Structures project is currently part of the ‘Up to You’ exhibition @ Stroom (The Hague, Netherlands).