At the intersection between the biological and artificial world.
During the summer of 2014 and 2015, I had the opportunity to work under Professor Neri Oxman, who at the time, was leading the Mediated Matter Group at the MIT Media Lab. Neri, and by proxy the Mediated Matter Group, had one goal; to augment the relationship between built, natural, and biological environments by employing design principles inspired and engineered by Nature and implementing them in the invention of novel design technologies.
Over the past two summers, I was fortunate enough to help push these seemingly unorthodox boundaries, currently restricted by the polarizing relationship between nature and the biological world. My goal one day is to combine my love for design and utilize the tools, methods, and inspiration from the media lab, to help restore the lost connection that humanity had once with nature.
Project 1 - Large Scale 3D Printing
Much of my first summer was defined by my efforts to help discover a seamless intersection between 3D printing and large-scale manufacturing. This research project was led by Ph.D. candidate, Steven Keating, whose primary objective was to convert a regular boom truck into a controllable 3D printable robotic arm.
My primary objective was to design a way to achieve precision material flow rate via an attachable Extruder Head, that would be mounted to the end of a Kuka robotic arm, that would then be attached to the end of a boom truck arm, which could be controlled remotely. Additionally, I was tasked with designing a way to quickly change extruder heads using a pneumatic clam.
This project was a smashing success, resulting in successfully printed resin-based structures.
Extruder Head - Achieving Precision Material Flow
Below, is a solid works demo of the final designed extruder heads. Controlled by a servo-driven leaver, the stepper motor moves incrementally at the same rate of material flow. The flow of the material is controlled by the user, depending on the structure being printed.
Pneumatic Clamp - Rapid Multi Material Exchange
The team needed a way to quickly attach and detach various extruder heads from the tip of the boom truck in a matter of minutes. Therefore, I designed this interchangeable pneumatic clamp, for the purpose of rapid material change. All of these are welded/screwed into a back mount, with supportive triangular side brackets. Additionally, you’ll notice the circular holes in the back of the clamp. That’s where the boom truck tip would attach too.
The highlighted green block represents a miscellaneous extruder head being locked into place by the clamp.
The highlighted green U-shaped component is the two-pronged endpiece that secures the clamp to the extruder head.
The highlighted green bottom component represents the pneumatic clamp itself.
Pneumatic Clamp - Final Result
The project was completed after my departure, but my designs were integrated into the final product.
Project 2 - Glass Fabrication
Much of my second summer working for The Mediated Matter Group, was defined by my efforts to discover an intersection between 3D printing and Glass manufacturing. Glass is one of the oldest production materials, and its design and production have been slow to change throughout history because of the complex material chemistry involved and extreme working temperatures required.
My primary objective was to design the look, feel, and function of the glass 3D printer, without compromising speed, durability, reliability, consistency, and safety. My biggest obstical when designing the system was designing around the tumultuous and mucilaginous nature of glass. However, after dissolving this extremely complex problem down to its most basic form, I started designing simple models using both (cartesian and polar) architecture paths, playing around with the placement of the motors, the print base, and the speed.
Cartesian vs. Polar - Designing The Optimal System
The designs below represent different possibilities of how to 3D print glass in an accurate and systematic way. Keeping in mind, that the molten glass would come from a kiln that would sit on top of the printer, I had to design the printer to be structurally sound in order to hold the weight and heat of the kiln.
Glass is extremely hot and very reactive to fluctuations in temperature. Therefore, the printer had to be sealed off from the external environment for both saftey purposes and to keep the molecular integrity constant. Finally, there was the dilema of whether or not to choose a conventional cartesian or polar plot for the overall movement of the printer. I landed on a conventional cartesian model since it seemed to be the most responsive when ran under tests.
The Optimal System
The images below are model representations of the final system. The Kiln Cartridge operates at approximately 1900°F and can contain sufficient material to build a single architectural component, sits at the top, and moves in the X / Y axis allowing for the freedom to move in space. The build plate moves in the Z direction and allows for the printer to build vertically. The internal structure of the printer allows for anneal heating and cooling, and allows for optimal thermal control / temperature fluctuations.
The project was completed after my departure, but my designs were integrated into the final product.
Project 3 - Biological 3D Printing
My final project at the Media Lab, was defined by my efforts to discover an intersection between 3D printing and the synthetic biological world. I was tasked with building and testing a first-generation biological 3D printer, capable of printing scaffolds for the growth of cell cultures and hydrogels, verified by printing in augur different shapes. I had to design this printer completely from scratch, and had to device a way to extrude delicate and temperature-sensitive augur clustures onto a petri dish, in a variety of stable shapes and sizes. I was successful, and eventually found a way to 3D print successfully stable biological structures, that could serve as scaffolding for cell cultures, which would form the foundation for complex biological systems. My printer was used as a control / reference point for the group, when designing the second generation biological 3d printer.
Design Process - Prototyping
Biological materials are tricky; they vary in viscosity, consistency, and in temperature. Understanding these constraints, I designed a variety of syringe-based extruder systems, powered by a stepper motor. The syringe would act as the material holding chamber, while the extruder head would act as the driver, extruding the material. Overall, the design below was the most successful when tested. As you can see, the left-hand picture is a mockup of the final design, the picture is a SolidWorks-based CAD mockup and the right-hand picture is the final product.
