Posey is a computationally enhanced posable hub and strut construction kit developed by Michael Weller at Carnegie Mellon’s CoDe Lab. When Posey’s plastic pieces are snapped together, an exact copy of the construction appears on a computer screen and can be physically manipulated. Every joint in Posey’s structure is outfitted with an array of infrared LEDs and photosensors which combined can be used to determine the relative position of the parts. The skeleton of a puppet can be used to control the movement of a more detailed virtual puppet or for modeling molecule structures.
Building fabric-based circuits is usually a time consuming and complex task. Conductive yarns fray easily causing short-circuits and PCB designs are difficult to transfer from a CAD software, such as Eagle or Protel, to textile techniques, such as sewing or embroidery. This instructable provides a good alternative for printing and etching your soft circuit boards.
Made of electroluminescent (EL) sheets, Makoto Hirahara’s Bright Blind simulates a window where none exists. The artificial blind functions in exactly the same way as a regular blind - turning the plastic stick controls its brightness.
Electroluminescence is an optical and electrical phenomenon where a material emits light in response to an electric current passing through it, or to a strong electric field. Instead of creating light by heating a filament (as in an incandescent light bulb) or by charging a gas field (as in a fluorescent or neon tube), EL relies on phosphorescent materials which glow when exposed to a small electrical current. El lamps are low power, do not heat and emit a soft light; however, since EL panels require AC power, they usually emit a mildly annoying buzz.
The Sound of Touch is a new instrument for real-time capture and sensitive physical stimulation of sound samples using digital convolution. The hand-held wand can be used to (1) record sound, then (2) brush, scrape, strike or otherwise physically manipulate this sound against physical objects. These actions produce sound in a manner that leverages peoples existing intuitions about sonic properties of physical materials.
Sonumbra is an electroluminescent parasol designed by Rachel Wingfield and Mathias Gmachl to respond to the interplay and activity of the people orbiting it.
‘The light emitting fabric of the umbrella is crafted into a lacework of many electroluminescent fibres. This latticed pattern is animated in concert with the generated surround sound and visually illustrates the visitors’ position within the constellation’.
The demo video on their website is great at revealing the textile structure and how the EL wires are interlaced to form a light emitting fabric.
Biosculptures™ are living sculptures that use the capacity of carefully chosen plants to clean and filter water. Made of mosses, ferns and other plants growing on stone and concrete structures, they provide ecological and aesthetic solutions to water quality and water quantity problems.
Conductive ink or conductive epoxy are usually filled with silver, which makes them expensive and sometimes hard to get. This Instructable provides a good alternative that combines graphite and liquid tape.
Peter Vogel is a German artist who builds interactive sound sculptures by literally merging structure and functionality in his pieces. The wires and electronic components that give form to the sculptures are also analog oscillators triggered by photocells, which can detect when someone casts a shadow over them.
Researchers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) have made a polymer material that can heal itself repeatedly when it cracks. Modeled on human skin, the new material that heals itself multiple times is made of two layers. The polymer coating on top contains tiny catalyst pieces scattered throughout. The substrate contains a network of microchannels carrying a liquid healing agent. When the coating cracks, the cracks spread downward and reach the underlying channels, which ooze out healing agent. The agent mixes with the catalyst and forms a polymer, filling in the cracks.
It’s a significant advance toward self-healing medical implants and self-repairing materials for use in airplanes and spacecraft. It could also be used for cooling microprocessors and electronic circuits, and it could pave the way toward plastic coatings that regenerate themselves.
