mIND oVER mATTER

Creation

madalynb — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 16:58:46 +0000

Assignment: Create something………

Product: Laptop stand! (in progress )

Iteration 1: (mock-up)

PICTURES SOON

Iteration 2: (designed)

Final Product

PICTURES SOON

Blobbot

madalynb — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 04:54:58 +0000

iRobot has just released information on a new squishable robot. The “blob-bot” can change shape at will using a principle called “jamming”. Granular media (think small particles, like bits of sand or beads) flow easily like a fluid when their container is relatively unrestricted (imagine letting sand flow through your open fingers). However, when forced close together, the particles jam up against each other acting almost like a solid (imagine squishing a handful of sand). iRobot uses this property to their advantage. Engineers found that by placing a bunch of particles within flexible silicone skin, they could design jammable plates, which can gain or lose their flexability depending on their jamming status.

Combined with an inflatable actuator in the center of the robot, the blob can change shape and therefor move at will. Hopefully, iRobot will come out with some more details soon.

Hyper-Ability

madalynb — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 02:43:48 +0000

Oscar WATCH OUT! The 7-League Boots demoed at ??? show us that you don’t need to be an amputee to get in on the human augmentation action. The boots, made from a fiberglass leaf-spring, an aluminum frame, steel closures, and a rubber “foot”, allow normal humans to accomplish an amazing array of acrobatic tricks and energetic feats. Depending on their daring, users can perform tasks such as running with an attractive bouncing gait or doing back-flips off the sidewalk. For all us tech-geeks who have been waiting for a chance to run with a gait like Mr. Pistorius, here is your chance.

[1] 7Leagues Boots: Designed by a London company, these boots are used by extreme sports fans and techies alike

Celebrity amputees like athlete-model Aimee Mullins and famed (almost) Olympic qualifier Oscar Pistorius showoff artificial limbs and bionic counterparts that not only are functional, but make us non-amputees jealous of the super-ability, customization potential, and aesthetic flair that artificial limbs offer. Unless you suffer a serious injury, most humans have to be “content” with augmenting themselves with bio-mechatronic exoskeletons to provide the same platform for customization and design.

[2] a) Designer artificial-limbs made for Aimee Mullins; b) Aimee Mullins showing off her artificial legs when posing for a photo shoot

Although it might seem backwards, humans with biological limbs now need to step up their game in order to be competitive functionally and aesthetically. And the future is right around the corner…

Along with research on bio-prosthetics, labs around the country have made progress designing exoskeletons to help humans lift heavy loads, run, walk, and jump more efficiently.

[3] Human augmentation in the lab: Ex. The Berkeley BLEEX Project, a load carrying exoskeleton

Imagine a world where it was easier for you to run to work than ride your bike? Easier for you to carry your groceries home, than lug them in the trunk of your car. Easier to bound over a wall rather than walking around it. It is this sort of hyper-ability that defines locomotion of the future.

Who knows? One day, us normal humans might just be able to to live up to our bionic counterparts.

What Does Your (Carbon) Footprint Look Like?

madalynb — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 17:06:15 +0000

Where do things come from! Find out for yourself at sourcemap.org.

The carbon footprint of a recurve archery bow that looks like this:

Can be found HERE

Functionality vs. Pure Aesthetics

madalynb — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 21:31:54 +0000

In design one always has to balance the requirements of functionality with the demands of aesthetics. We often assume that nature is somehow “streamlined” such that structures are built in the most efficient way possible. The passion flower is one of the more obvious examples where this is not the case. The complicated and beautiful structure of the stamen and other organs seems to exist purely for the purpose of being beautiful and unique, while not impeding the ability of the flower to reproduce. Assuming that humans have a natural tendency for aesthetics, what rules do we follow in order to design mechanical parts to be functional as well as beautiful?

Perfect Vision

madalynb — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 04:31:58 +0000

What would the perfect world look like from my personal design perspective?

Previously I have stated my design interests. I envision a world where everything from the objects we use to the clothes we wear are optimally adapted to our human biology, form, and dynamics. In many fields including medicine, architechture, and engineering, designers focus on crafting objects for a specific purpose while considering the usability, comfort, and control by a human user an afterthought. Human-machine interaction is vitally important in a world where we spend more and more hours of our day interacting with a robotic and virtual (non-human) world.

This is not just a utopian vision. Real progress is being made towards this ideal society. Current research into neural-controlled prosthetics, morphing skins, and adaptive sensing networks are direct examples of these principles in action.

An awesome example that combines all these properties is the new Silver Winner of the Wall Street Journal Technology Innovation Awards: Touch Bionics’ i-Limb prosthetic hand. check it out

Salutations and Welcome

madalynb — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 03:00:03 +0000

Welcome to my blog mIND oVER mATTER. This is an experimental online identity created for a class called “Future Craft” at MIT. My primary interests are in BIODESIGN, MULTI-FUNCTIONAL MATERIALS, and MODULAR FORMS.