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The natural robotics contest: Crowdsourced biomimetic design
Get PDFBiomimetic and Bioinspired design is not only a potent resource for roboticists looking to develop robust engineering systems or understand the natural world. It is also a uniquely accessible entry point into science and technology. Every person on Earth constantly interacts with nature, and most people have an intuitive sense of animal and plant behavior, even without realizing it. The Natural Robotics Contest is novel piece of science communication that takes advantage of this intuition, and creates an opportunity for anyone with an interest in nature or robotics to submit their idea and have it turned into a real engineering system. In this paper we will discuss the competition's submissions, which show how the public thinks of nature as well as the problems people see as most pressing for engineers to solve. We will then show our design process from the winning submitted concept sketch through to functioning robot, to offer a case study in biomimetic robot design. The winning design is a robotic fish which uses gill structures to filter out microplastics. This was fabricated into an open source robot with a novel 3D printed gill design. By presenting the competition and the winning entry we hope to foster further interest in nature-inspired design, and increase the interplay between nature and engineering in the minds of readers
The aesthetics of sustainable industrial design: Form and function in the circular design process
Get PDFThe relationship between form and function has long been a point of debate in the design community. Particularly, the famous principle ‘form follows function’ has been a focal point of such discussions. Since its introduction, many studies have been undertaken by theorists and practitioners to challenge or disprove this injunction. Furthermore, from the modern perspective of sustainability which has attracted global attention over the past few decades, there is a crucial link between design and sustainability. That is, poor designs, generally, lead to poor products which contribute to environmental and economic degradation. Consequently, understanding the relationship between form and function in design could contribute to a more sustainable environment. In this paper, first, we explore the views of some influential figures of the twentieth century's industrial design on this essentially philosophical, yet practically crucial, axiom of modernism. Then, we propose a design process model for aesthetic‐sustainable industrial design drawing on a theory of design aesthetics and the principles of circular design. This model integrates a circular design module into the industrial designer's theory of aesthetics to complement the design process in terms of sustainability. The proposed design process model could help designers establish an appropriate relationship between the form and the intended function of a product to contribute to lowering its environmental impact
People, place and purpose: Place-based approaches to ecological citizenship
Get PDFHumanity faces serious challenges in the coming decades: climate change, biodiversity loss, growing inequality, and more. These systemic global crises cannot be tackled in isolation because they are all interconnected. But our systems are not fit enough to deliver a good balance of environmental and social goals. We have a collection of rules and norms that reward some behaviours and punish others. In their current form, our systems seem to incentivise overconsumption, degrade communal bonds, and destroy natural wealth. But this is not inevitable or unavoidable; it is simply how our socio-economic structures have evolved to operate. The researchers in this project believe that place-based approaches and community engaged arts practices around the theme of sustainability, can enable a growing network of ecological citizens. In this paper we will explore how through creative arts practices, sharing ideas, thoughts, and questions and learning from best practices at a local, national, and international level from a variety of partners can create sustenance for a community-based network. Ways of building a network of new and existing place-based arts research and knowledge exchange which has the potential to include children and young people in the decision-making process, will be considered. We will consider how examples with embedded creative practice, such as community growers/larders/kitchens, forest schools etc., support partnership working within place-based projects. We will also discuss a people-centred approach to helping stakeholders, children, and young people, to make transitional choices, mitigate against negative consequences and empower local agency, in different localities. We will aim to show how diverse groups of people can begin to make impactful change through for example, community-focused approaches and community-led practices, activism and collective learning, advocacy, and design thinking in projects. We are defining ecological citizenship as accessible activities and skills which establish sustainable practice(s) and/or address ecological inequalities. This is also encompassed in our approach to the project, to our contextual surroundings, materials we use (and more) as an act of citizenship towards each other and the ecosystem
Coloring in the void: Absurdity and contemporary art
Get PDFBoo Boo Bird is a song, or a poem perhaps, or a song and a poem, by the Scottish poet, songwriter and humorist Ivor Cutler. This wistful ballad describes the plight and flight of a mythical bird, the Boo Boo bird. What we discover through the song is that the Boo Boo bird has no defining features, in fact — it has no features at all. The Boo Boo bird is invisible and recognized only by its call: ‘boo boo, boo boo’. The repetition of the word is important, and the absurdity of the invisible bird is amplified by its childish double name; boo boo, like an infant’s first attempts at vocalization, or that informal way of referring to a failure, a mistake, a booboo. There is something haunting about the way Cutler sings to this impossible creature and it is this element which makes the work so compelling; that it can be simultaneously ridiculous and also very moving.1 It straddles a certain border between irony and sincerity. And it is this border, or rather the oscillation between the states of irony and sincerity and between falling and failing, that features in the works discussed within this chapter, tracing a line between things and what is at the outermost edge of things, namely, the void
“I am feeling blue… and red”: Exploring alternative ways of feeling colours through a wearable haptic artefact
Get PDFWearable haptic artefacts are more and more present in our everyday life. They increasingly mediate our perception, transforming the ways in which we interact with ourselves, the environment and others. Wearable haptic artefacts can sense the body and its surroundings, impacting our subjectivity by shaping perceptions, actions, and behaviours. Such ability to influence our senses is helpful in creating engaging multisensory experiences. In my work, I explore the technological mediation between the human body and its surroundings by facilitating new relationships among the senses. This article presents a wearable haptic artefact in the shape of a glove called “I am feeling blue… and red”, which was designed to enable users to experience colour through touch. The goal is to suggest a mode of colour experience and break preconceptions one might have towards the relationship there is between touch and colours. Through an autoethnographic account, the article reflects on the artefact’s design process and user interaction. It proposes strategies for developing unique multisensory experiences using wearable haptic artefacts. These strategies can assist artists and designers who want to create captivating interactions by connecting the senses of sight and touch
Grey on grey: At the threshold of art history and philosophy
No full textInspired by Hegel’s invocation of philosophy as a painting of ‘grey on grey’, this collection of essays explores the rich scope of ideas implicated by grey, as a colour and a philosophical concept. The volume attests to the insistent logic of grey´s self-differing at stake in the ontology of artworks and images, revealing their deadlocks and potentials both past and present. Crossing art history, visual studies, philosophy, anthropology, media, literary and decolonial studies, contributions consider the immanence of grey on grey in rethinking the temporalities, techniques and media of art
Effect of linear density on the mechanical properties of 3D spacer composites with improved manufacturing quality
Get PDFThe innovative 3D weaving method allows I-beams to be woven in one piece and promises to eliminate delamination failure with the interlacing yarns. Therefore, woven I-beam composites have been developed to improve the resistance of laminated I-beam composite structures against delamination. In this study, woven I- beam fabrics (IBFs) were produced by the 3D weaving method by using 300, 600, and 1200 TEX E-glass fibers with a custom-built weaving machine. Then, IBFs were made into woven I-beam composites (IBCs) using the vacuum infusion method (VIP) to examine the influence of linear density on the mechanical properties of IBCs. The results of the three-point bending test represent that 300 TEX, 600 TEX (warp density: 20 ends/cm), 600 TEX (warp density: 12 ends/cm), and 1200 TEX samples had an average maximum flexural stress of 8.6, 9.2, 8.5, and 8.8 MPa, respectively. The compression strengths for 300 TEX, 600 TEX (warp density: 20 ends/cm), 600 TEX (warp density: 12 ends/cm), and 1200 TEX were 2.6 MPa, 3.8 MPa, 2.9 MPa, and 4.1 MPa, respectively
RESenv: A realistic earthquake simulation environment based on Unreal Engine
Get PDFEarthquakes have a significant impact on societies and economies, driving the need for effective search and rescue strategies. With the growing role of AI and robotics in these operations, high-quality synthetic visual data becomes crucial. Current simulation methods, mostly focusing on single building damages, often fail to provide realistic visuals for complex urban settings. To bridge this gap, we introduce an innovative earthquake simulation system using the Chaos Physics System in Unreal Engine. Our approach aims to offer detailed and realistic visual simulations essential for AI and robotic training in rescue missions. By integrating real seismic waveform data, we enhance the authenticity and relevance of our simulations, ensuring they closely mirror real-world earthquake scenarios. Leveraging the advanced capabilities of Unreal Engine, our system delivers not only high-quality visualisations but also real-time dynamic interactions, making the simulated environments more immersive and responsive. By providing advanced renderings, accurate physical interactions, and comprehensive geological movements, our solution outperforms traditional methods in efficiency and user experience. Our simulation environment stands out in its detail and realism, making it a valuable tool for AI tasks such as path planning and image recognition related to earthquake responses. We validate our approach through three AI-based tasks: similarity detection, path planning, and image segmentation
Designing for real people: Teaching agility through user-centric service design
Get PDFWe present the design and evolution of a project-based course – Designing for Real People – that aims to teach agile software development through an unwavering focus on the user, rather than emphasising the processes and tools often associated with a method like Scrum. This module is the result of a fruitful collaboration between a Computer Science Department, bringing knowledge and skills in the software engineering aspects, and the Service Design group of a neighbouring Art College, with expertise in user research and user experience design.We present the details of the current structure, content and assessment strategies developed for the module, as well as the principles behind its design. The core theme of the course is gathering and responding to feedback, and so here we present how this has been applied to the design of the module itself, with lessons learned, and improvements made over time. By reflecting on our own work, we aim to provide recommendations that may aid others considering how to teach these topics
Engagement towards creating new models for later life living
Get PDFThis paper presents initial findings and principles attained from an ongoing knowledge transfer project between academia and industry partners aiming to develop more inclusive later-living housing models against the background of current UK market stagnation and lack of suitability of existing stock. Housing for later-living in the UK lacks meaningful community engagement and hence frequently fails to embody genuine needs beyond basic accessibility principles. Potential residents are frequently reduced to simplified statistics or uncomplicated representations of ‘third age’. The lack of engagement has contributed to unsuitable UK housing stock, inconsistent language use, and limited understanding of older people’s actual experiences and desires for their homes and communities. The UK faces the challenge of creating more human-centric, socially and economically sustainable spaces within homes and in the urban environment, whilst avoiding age segregation. In recent years this has been acknowledged, yet developments proclaiming to be designed for older cohorts continue to be poorly executed, through fragmented planning policies failed designs; persistently institutionalised features; and lack of inclusive understanding. This paper will discuss the prevalence of limited inclusive intentions and outcomes particularly in terms of older populations in architecture, and the consequences of neglected community engagement within the architecture design process, pointing out uncodified methodologies and fragmented literature. The paper will present a successful example of a housing project for later living in Europe, and conclude by proposing a more human-centric approach and a set of initial inclusive design approaches and principles for housing