'Peel-and-Go' 3D-Printed Structures Fold Themselves Up
A team of researchers from MIT and Umass Amherst have designed 3D-printed structures that can fold themselves up without any outside stimulus, and the folding begins the instant it is peeled off the printing platform. In the short term, the technique could enable the custom manufacture of sensors, displays, or antennas whose functionality depends on their 3Dl shape. Longer term, the researchers envision the possibility of printable robots. One of the big advantages of devices that self-fold without any outside stimulus, the researchers say, is that they can involve a wider range of materials and more delicate structures. "If you want to add printed electronics, you're generally going to be using some organic materials, because a majority of printed electronics rely on them," says MIT graduate student Subramanian Sundaram. "These materials are often very, very sensitive to moisture and temperature. So if you have these electronics and parts, and you want to initiate folds in them, you wouldn't want to dunk them in water or heat them, because then your electronics are going to degrade."
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Transcript
00:00:00 [MUSIC PLAYING] A team of researchers from MIT and UMass Amherst have designed 3D printed structures that can fold themselves up without any outside stimulus. And the folding begins the instant it is peeled off the printing platform. The key to these new self-folding designs? A new printer ink material the team developed that actually expands after it solidifies.
00:00:30 Printed devices are built up in layers. And in their prototypes, the MIT researchers deposit their expanding material at precise locations on the top or bottom few layers. The bottom layer adheres slightly to the printer platform, and that adhesion is enough to hold the device flat as the layers are built up. But, as soon as the finished device is peeled off the platform, the joints made from the new material
00:00:52 begin to expand, bending the device in the opposite direction. The researchers say one of the big advantages of devices that self-fold without any external assistance is that they can involve a wider range of materials and more delicate structures. So far, parts that fold have commonly relied on external stimulus like heat or dipping in water. This poses a challenge, as printed electronics typically tend to degrade when exposed to heat or moisture.
00:01:19 A folding process that does not require an external stimulus enables self-folding parts with functional electronics. To show the resiliency of the device's folds, the team subjected printed prototypes to a series of lab tests, which demonstrate the structure's flexibility while maintaining its folds, showing the structures will ultimately reassume their folded shape regardless of how forcibly straightened out the folds may be. The researchers hope that a better theoretical
00:01:48 understanding of the reason for material's expansion will enable them to design material tailored to specific applications, such as printed antennas that fold to the correct shape when peeled, or even curved sensors and displays for user interfaces. [MUSIC PLAYING]