Your next wooden chair could arrive flat, then dry into a 3D shape (video):
Wooden objects are usually made by sawing, carving, bending or pressing. That's so old school! Today, scientists will describe how flat wooden shapes extruded by a 3D printer can be programmed to self-morph into complex 3D shapes. In the future, this technique could be used to make furniture or other wooden products that could be shipped flat to a destination and then dried to form the desired final shape.
[...] A few years ago, the team developed an environmentally friendly water-based ink composed of wood-waste microparticles known as "wood flour" mixed with cellulose nanocrystals and xyloglucan, which are natural binders extracted from plants. The researchers then began using the ink in a 3D printer. They recently discovered that the way the ink is laid down, or the "pathway," dictates the morphing behavior as the moisture content evaporates from the printed piece. For instance, a flat disk printed as a series of concentric circles dries and shrinks to form a saddle-like structure reminiscent of a Pringles® potato chip, and a disk printed as a series of rays emanating from a central point turns into a dome or cone-like structure.
The ultimate shape of the object can also be controlled by adjusting print speed, the team found. That's because shrinkage occurs perpendicular to the wood fibers in the ink, and print speed changes the degree of alignment of those fibers. A slower rate leaves the particles more randomly oriented, so shrinkage occurs in all directions. Faster printing aligns the fibers with one another, so shrinkage is more directional.
[...] Further refinement will allow the team to combine the saddles, domes, helices and other design motifs to produce objects with complicated final shapes, such as a chair. Ultimately, it could be possible to make wood products that are shipped flat to the end user, which could reduce shipping volume and costs, Kam says. "Then, at the destination, the object could warp into the structure you want." Eventually, it might be feasible to license the technology for home use so consumers could design and print their own wooden objects with a regular 3D printer, Sharon says.
(Score: 4, Funny) by Opportunist on Wednesday August 24 2022, @03:47PM (4 children)
IKEA has delivered like that for ages. Some assembly required, some screws missing.
(Score: 1) by tbuskey on Wednesday August 24 2022, @04:41PM
Ikea also didn't include durability in the box
(Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday August 24 2022, @05:11PM (2 children)
Shipping costs might be up, since the article has to be shipped wet (presumably sealed in plastic or foil) and only takes final shape when dry. Just the opposite of dehydrating a variety of products to (among other things) reduce weight and shipping costs.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday August 24 2022, @05:51PM (1 child)
Or they come dried, have to be watered to activate and then take shape?
(Score: 2) by maxwell demon on Thursday August 25 2022, @02:43PM
Be sure to always keep your room moisteners working, or else your furniture will lose shape!
The Tao of math: The numbers you can count are not the real numbers.
(Score: 3, Interesting) by Freeman on Wednesday August 24 2022, @05:11PM
This is cool and interesting. Though, this is essentially the stage nano-crystal displays were about 25 years ago. https://www.technologyreview.com/2006/05/01/100953/nanocrystal-displays/ [technologyreview.com] Now, we have cool things like MicroLED displays and Samsung's Quantum Dot LEDs, etc. https://www.makeuseof.com/tag/qled-vs-oled-microled/ [makeuseof.com]
So, sometime in the next 25 years we might see wood furniture that assembles itself.
Joshua 1:9 "Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee"
(Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday August 24 2022, @05:50PM
My biggest complaint about IKEA is that their products don't have enough fiberboard, and aren't moving to the landfill fast enough. Glad to see somebody's working on that. /sarcasm.
(Score: 2) by krishnoid on Wednesday August 24 2022, @06:40PM
I don't think it works the way you expect [youtu.be] it will, though.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday August 24 2022, @07:43PM
Only opens when it's sunny, snaps shut in the rain