The Origami – 100% Recyclable Personal Mono Laser Printer was designed for the eco-conscious. Its exterior is made of 100 percent recycled paper. In addition, at the end of the printer’s life, its materials can be recycled to produce more paper for printing. This eco-friendly circulation is Origami’s key concept.

Printers consume a lot of paper. It’s easy for people hit the print button on their computer, but they don’t consider what kind of impact this has on the environment. The design team gave deep thought to how it could recycle used printer paper in a more productive way. The end result is a printer whose exterior is made of recycled paper.

Printers usually have a complex structure, so much so that they are regarded as a machine rather than an electronic product. They also are composed of a large number of plastic components and pieces that are brought together to create a solid complicated structure, including the complex hinged structure of the exterior cover. Because of the large number of pieces and components, printers are often regarded as a product that can’t have a simple surface. This required complexity results in increased unit costs, an inefficient production structure with a complex manufacturing process, and negative effects on the environment.

The design team sought to rethink these assumptions. It created an exterior design using recycled paper while still ensuring the high level of durability offered by traditional plastic covers and designing the critical components to function effectively. These requirements were satisfied by combining the material characteristics of cardboard with an origami-based assembly method. Cardboard is cut out based on a planar figure and is folded in sequence to create an exterior box form in which an engine unit is placed. The direction of the cardboard sheets was effectively arranged according to functions. In addition, designers adopted a paper-folding approach where different elements come together structurally to ensure outstanding durability. In doing so, they achieved a level of durability that is as high as that provided by plastic exteriors. This also enabled the creation of a design that breaks away from the complicated hinge structure of traditional desktop printers while still offering uncompromised printer functionality.

Designed by Min-chul Kim, Sang-in Lee and Seung-wook Jeong of Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.

Contact: Juehyun Jung – [email protected]