Mechcircuit Uhlelo Lokwakha Amamodeli Okusebenzisana

Press Kit

Unique Properties

Mechcircuit enables non-expert users to design and fabricate interactive prototypes with electronic circuits and mechanical structures. Users can achieve mechanical functions like rotary and linear without using traditional mechanical parts. Meanwhile, instead of involving complicated operations like wiring and soldering in conventional electronic circuits, Mechcircuit applies magnetism and laser-cut slots to connect the components, making connecting and replacing quick and easy.

Dimensions & Packaging

Mechcircuit uses acrylic sheets with a thickness of 2mm. Usually the prototype is no smaller than 10mmX10mmX5mm. the size of the prototype varies depending on the actual design.

Tags

Interaction Design, Magnetoelectric Materials, Prototyping, Computational Aided Design

Production Technology

Taking advantage of the fact that rubidium magnets are both magnetic and conductive, we have designed mechanical structures with magnets. It is much easier to design and assemble than the traditional mechanical structure. At the same time the mechanical structure is still interactive. To facilitate user design and generation, we have developed computer-aided design software. The software integrates various modules for user-friendly prototyping. We used a commercial grade laser cutter for cutting and processing and conductive silver ink for the circuitry.

Design Challenge

Mechcircuit wanted to integrate the design of structures and circuits, while simplifying the design and manufacturing process. It was challenging to use a different design and fabrication approach than traditional ones and to use materials that were readily available. Based on several attempts, we finally chose rubidium magnets as the magnetoelectric material and used conductive silver ink paint to replace the traditional Dupont wire.

Research

Mechcircuit leverage the neodymium magnet’s natures of magnetism and conductivity to integrate electronics and mechanical structure joints into prototypes. We conduct the evaluation to explore technological parameters and assess the practical feasibility of the fabrication pipeline. And we organized a user-observing workshop for non-expert users. Through the outcoming prototypes, the result demonstrates the feasibility of Mechcircuit as a useful and inspiring prototyping method.

Inspiration

In prototyping, the design of electronic circuits and the design of mechanical structures are often carried out separately. In addition, the electronic circuitry and the mechanical structure also affect the prototype's styling. This makes the design often not optimal.

Project Duration

The project starts in July 2022 and ends in December 2022 at the School of Software, Zhejiang University, Ningbo, Zhejiang Province, China

Operation Flow

The mechanical structure composed of magnets allows the user to design and assemble easily. As the user manipulates the structure, the circuit signals change. The user can interact with the circuit by manipulating the structure.

Patents

All photos/videos are from Shuyue Feng, Department of Industrial Design, School of Software, Zhejiang University