Transmaterial » fabric

Fuzzy Light Switch

Blaine Brownell — Mon, 27 Jun 2011 14:00:15 +0000

International Fashion Machines provides private research and consulting in electronic textiles to a variety of clients, industries, and the military. They work with the latest electronic yarns and a variety of textile processes including embroidery, sewing, weaving and braiding. IFM also creates electronic textile connections, both intra-textile and between traditional electronics and textiles.

Designed by Maggie Orth, IFM’s Fuzzy Light Switches are woven and embroidered touch sensors for dimming lights or controlling electronic devices with the touch of a hand. IFM’s interactive textiles can cover a wall, control the lights in the room, or become part of the furniture.

Contact: International Fashion Machines, Seattle, WA, USA.
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GKD Metal Fabrics

Blaine Brownell — Wed, 22 Jun 2011 14:00:03 +0000

Woven metal fabrics have been developed for use as decorative and functional design elements in architecture. The French National Library in Paris was the first architectural project where GKD, in cooperation with French architect Dominique Perrault, succeeded in systematically implementing metal meshes in a building in various ways and applications. Since then, this development has continued worldwide.

For decades, GKD has manufactured metal fabrics for industrial applications in filtration and separation technologies and the process belt sector. At first, it was their visual attractiveness that made metal fabrics suitable for the architecture and design sector. During the continuous product development, it became clear that metal fabrics also have considerable technical advantages which are extremely relevant in the field of architecture. Today, the architect has a wide range of fabric samples at hand, with weaving widths up to 26 feet.

Woven metal fabrics may be used as partition elements, projection screens, and acoustic scrims appropriate for public buildings, opera houses and concert halls.

Contact: GKD-USA, Inc., Cambridge, MD, USA.
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Digital Dawn

Blaine Brownell — Mon, 13 Jun 2011 14:00:46 +0000

Designed by Rachel Wingfield, Digital Dawn is a textile that responds to environmental stimuli. Digital Dawn functions as a traditional window blind with a reactive surface that is in constant flux, growing in luminosity in response to its surroundings.

Wingfield intended Digital Dawn to emulate the process of photosynthesis using electroluminescent printing technology. Light-dependent sensors monitor the changing light levels within a space, triggering the growth of the organic foliage on the blind. A natural environment will appear to grow on the window surface, exploring how changing light levels within a space can have profound and physiological impact on our sense of well-being.

Contact: Loop.pH Ltd & Elumin8, London, UK.
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SOUND Wall

Blaine Brownell — Fri, 08 Apr 2011 18:00:18 +0000

The NONdesigns SOUND Wall, designed by Scott Franklin and Miao Miao, is a modular system of interactive tiles used to create wall surfaces that alter their texture and light qualities based on environmental stimuli. With every sound produced by its audience, the SOUND Wall responds by opening its “skin,” allowing light to spill out across the textural surface. Each module reacts independently, causing the wall to have reflections of activity where it is closest to sources of sound. The system is expandable to any wall size and its sensitivity is adjustable to react to soft or loud sound levels. The modules are custom-built for each project, so size and color can be selected to fit the application.

Contact: NONdesigns, LLC, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
Find more information in Transmaterial 3.

Parametre

Blaine Brownell — Fri, 21 Jan 2011 15:00:07 +0000

Parametre is a lightweight, expandable 3D textile system designed to deliver visual impact with minimal material. Made of 100% non-woven polyester, this flexible textile can be used in a variety of residential or commercial applications in which a rich visual texture is required. Parametre may be used as a solar shading device, space divider, light diffusion panel, or screen for rapidly reconfigurable spaces.

Contact: 3form, Salt Lake City, UT, USA.
Find more information in Transmaterial 3.

NanoSphere

Blaine Brownell — Fri, 08 Oct 2010 14:00:10 +0000

NanoSphere is a self-cleaning finish technology composed of nanoparticles that form a fine structure on textile surfaces. Water or substances such as oil or ketchup simply run off the NanoSphere surface, and any residue can easily be rinsed off with a little water. Textiles with NanoSphere treatment require less frequent washing and can be washed at lower temperatures. They also exhibit increased abrasion and weather resistance. The function of NanoSphere is retained even after numerous washing or cleaning cycles. NanoSphere has been developed in accordance with the Bluesign standard, guaranteeing the highest possible exclusion of harmful substances.

Contact: Schoeller Technologies AG, Sevelen, Switzerland.
Find more information in Transmaterial 3.

Litmuscreen

Blaine Brownell — Fri, 10 Sep 2010 14:00:07 +0000

Jordan Geiger developed Litmuscreen as an architectural and product design material based on the performance and properties of litmus paper. Litmuscreen is a simple modification to an old technology—the adaptation of chemical properties found in lichen to indicate acid/base imbalances in a liquid. In this product’s application, a rugged textile suitable to exterior uses displays shifts in color to red or blue as an indicator of environmental pollutants in rain. The intuitive interface provides real-time information regarding local air pollution conditions, without the use of electricity or additional construction.

Contact: Ga-Ga, Berkeley, CA, USA.
Find more information in Transmaterial 3.

Unrepeatable Carpets

Blaine Brownell — Sun, 05 Sep 2010 14:00:54 +0000

A collaboration between visual artist Marcel Kronenburg and software engineer Marten Teitsma, Unrepeatable Carpets are the result of a process designed to create unique carpet patterns throughout buildings. A reaction against the repetitive monotony of standard carpet tiles, Unrepeatable Carpets apply randomly generated images and patterns to a variety of carpet materials. Custom-designed software runs a computer-controlled carpet printing machine, and this process generates an endless variety of outcomes using a particular decorative pattern. Due to the universal quality of the pattern, however, tiles may still be easily replaced when necessary.

Contact: Carpets for Buildings, Arnhem, The Netherlands.
Find more information in Transmaterial 3.

Cork Fabric

Blaine Brownell — Sun, 22 Aug 2010 22:00:25 +0000

London-based designer Yemi Awosile has developed a new fabric from an innovative combination of repurposed cork and elastane. Cork Fabric is suited to interior design applications such as upholstery, wall coverings, and wall panels, and benefits from the high elasticity of elastane fiber as well as the acoustic and thermal insulating properties found in cork. The cork is made with the by-products from wine stopper production and is treated with a metallic finish. The fabric is available in a variety of colors and fiber combinations.

Contact: Yemi Awosile, London, UK.
Find more information in Transmaterial 3.

Zetix

Blaine Brownell — Fri, 06 Aug 2010 14:00:43 +0000

Most blast-defense systems are only capable of coping with a single explosive event. Once they have deployed, any protection they offered is lost. The unusual construction of the Zetix fabrics means that they effectively “vent” much of the blast energies through, lessening the load on the support structure. As a result, they offer a multiple-blast event solution for natural or human-initiated disasters. Zetix textiles may be used for window protection, blast screens, fragmentation liners, as well as body armor enhancements.

Contact: Auxetix Ltd., Devon, UK
Find more information in Transmaterial 3.