Master’s Thesis in Product Design at the Politecnico di Milano (Italy)
Thesis Advisor: Prof. Venanzio Arquilla
The TESSILE project explores the use of elasticized textiles as an actuator in soft, transformable shading assemblies. The prototyping process involves 3d-printing filament onto flat pre-stretched fabric, resulting in selective deformation of the plane and highly complex curvature. The composite surface may be folded, cut or laminating to achieve additional aesthetic and functional effects.
Though experimental in nature, the process is based on mathematical principles that can be scaled up to real-world building applications. Along with CNC knitting, the method is among only a few fabrication techniques capable of generating complex surface curvature without the need for molds, formwork or manual labor. With advances in digital fabrication and smart textiles, this new shape-making technique promises to unlock new opportunities for design and manufacturing in the coming years.
Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC-BY 4.0)
