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posted by requerdanos on Tuesday September 21 2021, @09:04AM   Printer-friendly
from the new-intelligent-environments dept.

Engineers create 3D-printed objects that sense how a user is interacting with them:

MIT researchers have developed a new method to 3D print mechanisms that detect how force is being applied to an object. The structures are made from a single piece of material, so they can be rapidly prototyped. A designer could use this method to 3D print “interactive input devices,” like a joystick, switch, or handheld controller, in one go.

To accomplish this, the researchers integrated electrodes into structures made from metamaterials, which are materials divided into a grid of repeating cells. They also created editing software that helps users build these interactive devices.

“Metamaterials can support different mechanical functionalities. But if we create a metamaterial door handle, can we also know that the door handle is being rotated, and if so, by how many degrees? If you have special sensing requirements, our work enables you to customize a mechanism to meet your needs,” says co-lead author Jun Gong, a former visiting PhD student at MIT who is now a research scientist at Apple.

[...] “What I find most exciting about the project is the capability to integrate sensing directly into the material structure of objects. This will enable new intelligent environments in which our objects can sense each interaction with them,” [co-author Stefanie] Mueller says. “For instance, a chair or couch made from our smart material could detect the user’s body when the user sits on it and either use it to query particular functions (such as turning on the light or TV) or to collect data for later analysis (such as detecting and correcting body posture).”

Because metamaterials are made from a grid of cells, when the user applies force to a metamaterial object, some of the flexible, interior cells stretch or compress.

The researchers took advantage of this by creating “conductive shear cells,” flexible cells that have two opposing walls made from conductive filament and two walls made from nonconductive filament. The conductive walls function as electrodes.

When a user applies force to the metamaterial mechanism — moving a joystick handle or pressing the buttons on a controller — the conductive shear cells stretch or compress, and the distance and overlapping area between the opposing electrodes changes. Using capacitive sensing, those changes can be measured and used to calculate the magnitude and direction of the applied forces, as well as rotation and acceleration.

[...] The researchers also created a music controller designed to conform to a user’s hand. When the user presses one of the flexible buttons, conductive shear cells within the structure are compressed and the sensed input is sent to a digital synthesizer.

This method could enable a designer to quickly create and tweak unique, flexible input devices for a computer, like a squeezable volume controller or bendable stylus.

Paper: “MetaSense: Integrating Sensing Capabilities into Mechanical Metamaterial”


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  • (Score: 3, Funny) by Thexalon on Tuesday September 21 2021, @02:05PM (3 children)

    by Thexalon (636) on Tuesday September 21 2021, @02:05PM (#1180065)

    I wonder how well this device can detect me flinging it out the 10th story window or reprogramming it with a sledgehammer.

    --
    The only thing that stops a bad guy with a compiler is a good guy with a compiler.
    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday September 21 2021, @04:43PM (1 child)

      by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday September 21 2021, @04:43PM (#1180101)

      Just make sure to remove your p*nis from it first.

      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday September 21 2021, @04:54PM

        by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday September 21 2021, @04:54PM (#1180103)

        Prude.

    • (Score: 2) by krishnoid on Tuesday September 21 2021, @10:54PM

      by krishnoid (1156) on Tuesday September 21 2021, @10:54PM (#1180200)

      It might conflate the interaction with other typical uses [smbc-comics.com], just based on the frequency of usage modes.

  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday September 21 2021, @02:28PM

    by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday September 21 2021, @02:28PM (#1180074)

    I would do anything for love
    But I won't do that

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