Pi Lab: Programmable Inflatables
Exploring the promising applications of 3D-printed inflatables
Name
Pi Lab: Programmable Inflatables
Year
2020 — now
Programmable Inflatables investigates how inflatable 3D-printed shapes can trigger innovation in fields like packaging, healthcare and architecture.
Subproject of Pi Lab.
At the basis of Pi Lab: Programmable Inflatables lies Aera Fabrica, a technique that was developed by Roos Meerman of Fillip Studios and has so far been used for artistic purposes.
The technique is a combination of blow moulding, glass blowing and 3D printing. By heating up a 3D-printed PLA balloon, it becomes flexible and can be inflated. Cooling it down solidifies the inflated shape, while reheating it makes it shrink back to its original 3D-printed form.
The technique allows a small 3D printer to print big objects.
In the Aera Fabrica process, the shape is determined before inflating it, which makes it ‘programmable’: we can influence the final outcome.
A cross-disciplinary research project
In the research group of Pi Lab: Adaptable Auxetics, we are investigating how the technique can be made applicable for industrial applications and innovations in packaging, healthcare and architecture. The research group consists of Ass. Prof. Bas van der Linden (TU/e Mathematics and Computer Science), Sioux Technologies, BASF Forward AM, MakerPoint and students from Fontys Engineering and Design Academy.
Interested in joining the research group of
Pi Lab: Adaptable Auxetics? Contact us.
Read all about our cross-disciplinary research groups on the Pi Lab page.