Smarter Smart Materials

SMARTER SMART MATERIALS – INTEGRATING HUMAN INTERACTION WITH ENVIRONMENTALLY RESPONSIVE MATERIAL SYSTEMS

The aim of this research project is to outline and develop concepts for the creation of Smarter Smart Material (SSM) systems that effectively and efficiently change shape through interaction with both humans and the environment. Currently, there are several shape-changing material systems that exhibit responsive behaviour based on environmental stimuli such as temperature (thermorphs) and humidity (hygromorphs). Shape change is an integrated function of the material; as it does not require electronic actuation, it can be deployed in various settings at low cost and in small form factors. However, this behaviour is directly linked to the environmental stimulus and therefore cannot be further controlled by human interaction. Conversely, fully electronically controlled shape-changing parts are often too complex for the simple repetitive tasks they are required to perform.

Through this interdisciplinary and international collaboration, we will develop methods to integrate human interaction and control with environmentally responsive material systems, where the user can additionally interact with and control the shape change. This will be achieved by adding controllable actuation methods compatible with the additive manufacturing of shape changing materials and developing a human interaction pipeline. The advantage of this approach is that it adds new functionality to the highly efficient movements of the environmentally responsive material system.

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Prof. Achim Menges and Dr.-Ing. Dylan Wood
Institute for Computational Design and Construction (ICD), University of Stuttgart

RESEARCHERS

Tiffany Cheng (ICD)
Yasaman Tahouni (ICD)

PARTNERS

HCI Engineering Group, Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, MIT

FUNDING

MIT International Science & Technology Initiatives (MISTI)
MIT-Germany, University of Stuttgart Seed Fund (4574645969)