Freeform Surface Interfaces Created Using Additive Manufacturing

Abstract

The assignment for this thesis was to develop a new visual product feature that is uniquely producable by additive manufacturing (AM) methods. In the first phase of the project the field of additive manufacturing was explored and the visual properties of products were studied. The most important finding here was that some AM technologies are gaining the capability of creating optical product features such as lenses and waveguides. Insight that waveguides could be used to create display features with complex shapes led to the formulation of a vision that describes the emergence of devices with interactive product surface features labeled ‘Freeform Surface Interfaces’ (FSI). It is found that such interfaces would have profound impact for the way products are used and manufactured. Using experimental prototypes the possibility of creating FSI’s using LED matrices and printed lightguide matrices. An important step in this was the realization that LEDs can be simultaneously used for both display functionality and sense functionality. The experiments find that such displays are possible, but that crucial steps eed to be taken in order for such interfaces can become sufficiently reliable. An attempt is then made to link process variables of the printing process used to the observed attenuation in printed lightguides, but this proves unfeasible within the scope of this project, and signifies the need for additional research. Lastly, a proof-of-concept prototype is made to demonstrate both current and expected future capabilities of printed lightguide FSI’s. This prototype and the vision supporting it finds strong validation with professional industrial designers.