Liquid Metal Dispensing

Soft Interfaces is an interdisciplinary research project that deals with the perception and reaction of textiles after touch. By embedding conductive liquid metals such as Galinstan in stretchable textiles, the research team has succeeded in creating a surface that is not only functional but also tactile, adaptive and visually appealing.

Textiles with liquid metal pathways

The result of a year-long research partnership between Robin Hoske and Felix Rasehorn from WINT Design Lab and Lukas Werft and Christian Dils from Fraunhofer IZM is an interactive lamp with a textile shade that responds to the slightest touch. When the fabric is stretched, the cross-section of the liquid metal pathways. This subtle change is evaluated to adjust the light temperature and intensity.

Liquid Metal Dispensing is still in the laboratory stage. So far, the technology has not yet been successfully used in product development. Therefore, research work on the production of a printable ink was just as necessary as the development of a technique for encapsulating the liquid metals. The project investigated the construction of functional circuits and their integration into individually knitted textiles.

For Soft Interfaces the designers at WINT researched how the sensitivity of liquid metal sensors can be transferred to various fields of application. The result is a lamp whose light can be modulated directly by touch, offering haptic precision and differentiated tactile feedback.

In the future, such intuitive control could also be used to control operating systems in cars or transform home textiles into responsive surfaces. New levels of sensitivity could be achieved in medical products.

www.wintdesignlab.de
www.izm.fraunhofer.de