Development of a 4D hand gripping aid using a knitted shape memory alloy and evaluation of finger-bending angles in elderly women

As the global population ages, there is an increasing demand for physical assistive devices for the elderly. This study aimed to develop and evaluate a wearable gripping aid for elderly women to assist in their handgrip ability. We developed an actuator module for the hand-gripping aid using a 4D knitted shape memory alloy and attached to a flexible nylon glove. At baseline, we measured the bending angles of the knitted shape memory alloy and the subjects fingers while gripping. The bending angles of the gripping aid demonstrated similar hand mobility to those of elderly women in real life. We also found that SMA modules attached to a glove could implement the bending angle when gripping a ball derived from the index and middle fingers of elderly women. The finding could help to develop hand products that could be worn on the hand of the elderly by realizing the bending motion of each finger. The outcomes of this study suggest the practical potential of this wearable device as an effective hand-gripping aid for the elderly, based on a novel 4D material and ergonomic design approach.This work was supported by Seoul National University Research Grant in 2021 and the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) grant funded by the Korean Government (MSIT) (2016R1A5A1938472)

Explorando e-materiais na construção de um novo design da moda

A Moda no século XXI, emerge sob uma nova forma de expressão e de comunicação resultante da interação entre o Design e a Tecnologia. Desta simbiose, surgem novos e fascinantes mundos visuais, onde o aleatório é trabalhado em analogias artísticas que trazem consigo dois conceitos, “Ser digital” e “Mobile”. Nas sociedades atuais, assiste-se à globalização da eletrónica portátil, aos avanços no campo da tecnologia de miniaturização sem fios e em rede e fomenta-­se o uso diário de dispositivos eletrónicos portáteis. As possibilidades oferecidas por determinadas linguagens de programação, nomeadamente o Processing - e microprocessadores, como é exemplo o Arduíno, alteraram o papel e o trabalho do Designer de Moda colocando-o perante uma mudança de paradigma que vai levar a novos domínios da criação artística e à adoção de novos materiais e materialidades. A tese que aqui apresentamos teve como base esta realidade, reflete o nosso percurso de investigação que se objetivou na exploração das potencialidades criativas dos materiais com características computacionais - de controlo, de interação e de projeção gráfica e auditiva, hoje comummente designados por Tecnologia Wearable - quando aplicados ao Design da Moda.The Fashion in the twenty-­first century, emerging in a new form of expression and communication resulting from the interaction between the Design and Technology. This symbiosis, new and fascinating visual worlds arise where the random is working on artistic analogies that bring with them two concepts, "Being Digital" and "Mobile". In today's society, witnessing the globalization of portable electronics, the advances in wireless technology and miniaturization in network and fosters-­daily use of portable electronic devices. The possibilities offered by certain programming languages, namely Processing -­ and microprocessors, as exemplified by the Arduino, changed the role and work of the Fashion Designer putting him before a paradigm shift that will lead to new areas of artistic creation and the adoption of new materials and materiality. The thesis presented here was based on this reality reflects our journey of research that is aimed at exploiting the creative potential of the materials with computer features -­ control, interaction and graphic and audio projection, now commonly referred to as Technology Wearable - when applied to the Design of Fashion

Organic User Interfaces for InteractiveInterior Design

PhD ThesisOrganic User Interfaces (OUIs) are flexible, actuated, digital interfaces characterized by being aesthetically pleasing, physically manipulated and ubiquitously embedded within real-world environments. I postulate that OUIs have specific qualities that offer great potential to realize the vision of smart spaces and ubiquitous computing environments. This thesis makes the case for embedding OUI interaction into architectural spaces, interior elements and decorative artefacts using smart materials – a concept I term ‘OUI Interiors’. Through this thesis, I investigate: 1) What interactive materials and making techniques can be used to design and build OUIs? 2) What OUI decorative artefacts and interior elements can we create? and 3) What can we learn for design by situating OUI interiors? These key research questions form the basis of this PhD and guide all stages of inquiry, analysis, and reporting. Grounded by the state-of-the-art of Interactive Interiors in both research and practice, I developed new techniques of seamlessly embedding smart materials into interior finishing materials via research through design exploration (in the form of a Swatchbook). I also prototyped a number of interactive decorative objects that change shape and colour as a form of organicactuation, in response to seamless soft-sensing (presented in a Product Catalogue). These inspirational artefacts include table-runners, wall-art, pattern-changing wall-tiles, furry-throw, vase, cushion and matching painting, rug, objets d’art and tasselled curtain. Moreover, my situated studies of how people interact idiosyncratically with interactive decorative objects provide insights and reflections on the overall material experience. Through multi-disciplinary collaboration, I have also put these materials in the hands of designers to realize the potentials and limitations of such a paradigm and design three interactive spaces. The results of my research are materialized in a tangible outcome (a Manifesto) exploring design opportunities of OUI Interior Design, and critically considering new aesthetic possibilities