Keyshapes : (Re)design your surroundings, furniture & accessories with 3D printed connectors

Oct. 29, 2014 | By Alec

Everyone who has ever worked on a 3D printing project can verify that designing, developing and manufacturing is a time-consuming endeavour that requires special skills and a host of materials and technologies. But does it have to be?

For at the Dutch Design Week, which was held in Eindhoven, the Netherlands from 18 to 26 October, an interesting exposition could be visited hat puts things into an entirely different perspective. Entitled Keyshapes, this exposition combined three intriguing projects that focus on valuable manufacturing and seek to reinterpret design.

The Keyshapes exposition is a collaboration of three design design projects: the Belgian Unfold, the American Jesse Howard (USA) and the Dutch Kirschner 3D projects. All of them consist of promising designers and visionaries who are currently researching new design and printing techniques that focus on the consumer, the designer and the environment. In a nutshell, they have been asking themselves how manufacturing can make our surroundings more environmentally friendly and how design itself can be reinterpreted.

Their solution? Keyshapes, a manufacturing system that will allow you to (re)create and re(design) your surroundings, furniture and accessories to match your lifestyle, preferences, space and budget. Use it to adapt your physical world to match your ideas without constantly buying and throwing stuff away, and save money by customizing and reshaping your possessions.

Key to attempt to make 3D printing more valuable and effective as an environmentally-friendly manufacturing tool are integration and connecting. 'Keyshapes integrates other materials and objects into a design which allow for more possibilities and larger products. It all fits together through 3D-printed connectors that can be generated to adapt to real life measurements (parametric). The aesthetic quality is secured in the product design and the materials used for production. A simply plywood lamp in your student room can alter into a majestic lamp mounted to the wall of your office.'

However, design must also be adapted to make manufacturing easier. This is realised through a series of three different projects that together reinterpret product design and creation to allow anyone to easily and affordably adapt their surroundings.

Project: Of Instruments and Archetypes
Designers: Kirschner 3D, Unfold & Penny Webb

The first of these projects, entitled 'Of Instruments and Archetypes', the design team of Keystones explore the possibilities of taking back virtual, non-physical instruments, and returning them to the real world without losing their digital functions.

of Instruments and Archetypes by Kirschner 3D, Unfold, Penny Webb © photo by Joris Peskens

What they have effectively developed is a method for easily transporting measurements from real time to the digital screen, without actually needing to input data by hand. As can be seen in the video, this involves a calliper measuring tool that transfers measurements of physical objects to an on-screen 3D model. As they explained, this project enables us to change what 3D design is:

Measuring becomes something without numbers, but with accurate precision; measuring becomes making. These instruments can then be used in an application where archetypical, parametric objects can be customised with exact measurements and materialised by digital production techniques such as 3D printing.

Need a new part for a lamp? Want to make a new component for some household item? With this technology, anyone could easily access manufacturing technology without needing a load of technical knowledge, time and money. Reshape objects in your home, rather than replacing them.

Project: From Database to Object
Designers: Jesse Howard & Kirschner 3D

That, effectively reveals what the other two projects are about as well. For the second project, entitled 'from database to object designers' is all about enabling makers to easily produce and alter objects. After all, manufacturing even simple objects relies on 'combining existing components (cords, fittings, light bulbs, hardware, etc.) that vary in terms of local sources, standards and availability' with manufacturing technology. By developing a database of needed components and parts ,objects can be flexibly adapted and altered and thereby make manufacturing far easier and efficient.

Project: Parametric Design Freedom
Designer: Kirschner 3D

The final project, entitled Parametric Design Freedom, in turn seeks to more fully integrate existing elements into manufacturing. While the current 3D printing focus is only fully-printed objects, the idea is that this project will make combining 3D printing technology with other products more easier.

As they explained, this project, 'explores the development of new design techniques using the potential of parametric design as a basis. Through parametric design local dimensions can be used as input for product design.' What it effectively is, is an attempt to combine data of real life measurements with 3D files that can 'be generated to adapt to real life measurements.' This has already resulted in a range of open design furniture that can adjust to fit your lifestyle, space and budget. 'Consumers give shape to the dimensions and materials, to make great designs personal and functional.'

Of course, these are still just explorations of designing and 3D printing possibilities, and cannot yet be applied to actual objects yet. Nonetheless, integrating 3D printing and designing into all aspects of our daily lives – and making it more accessible – could be the key to making this technology a manufacturing mainstream. And more importantly, it could be really good for the environment as well, so it's definitely worth looking into.

Visit Keyshapes at the Dutch Design Week (DDW), October 18 - 26.
Location – Kazerne Eindhoven
Paradijslaan 2-8
5611KN Eindhoven
The Netherlands

Posted in 3D Printing Applications

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