Next Stages in Automated Craft

Next Stages in Automated Craft

The Integration of Rapid Manufacture Technologies into Craft and DIY Applications

Ben Hughes | Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design, University of the Arts
Matt Sinclair | Loughborough University of Technology

Advances in the sophistication and affordability of rapid manufacture technology has
started to pave the way for home use (Malone and Lipson, 2007a; Burns and Howison,
2001). This paper explores scenarios linking the potential of such technologies to craft and
DIY use. While certain forms of automation and semi-industrial processes are already
familiar in this area (knitting and embroidery machines, laser cutting), it is suggested that
the next stage of development will involve more complex processes, currently more
closely linked to applications of rapid prototyping. The improvement in entry-level CAD
software (both 2-D and 3-D) has brought an increasing number of unlikely end-users into
closer contact with the kind of processes normally associated with mass-manufacture or
the professional practice of industrial design (Gershenfeld, 2005). Such users are not
merely replicating industrial processes however, but are modifying and experimenting
with both the machines and materials available to them. Future processes might be
accessed remotely, some of them through browser interfaces, or eventually housed at
home as is the case with home knitting or printing solutions. The paper presents examples
from a project undertaken by postgraduate industrial design students investigating the
possibilities of future manufacturing scenarios. It also demonstrates the broader potential
of exploring this issue in the area of design education. Illustrative examples are taken from
a project undertaken by postgraduate industrial design students and also demonstrate the
potential of exploring this issue in the area of design education.