The prototype of a self-shaped chaise lounge. Photo: University of Stuttgart / ICD, Robert Faulkner
The prototype of a self-shaped chaise lounge. Photo: University of Stuttgart / ICD, Robert Faulkner - The project "HygroShape" is using a new approach in digital design and manufacturing to program wood as a natural material - [Picture: University of Stuttgart / ICD, Robert Faulkner] Elegantly curved seating furniture that is delivered in a flat-pack and assumes its shape overnight all by itself - this may sound like a dream to those who ever puzzled over the assembly instructions from a furniture store. HygroShape is the first concept for furniture that makes this dream a reality. It relies on the shaping forces of nature and combines these with the possibilities of digitalization. It was developed by the team of Prof. Achim Menges at the Institute for Computational Design and Construction (ICD) at the University of Stuttgart. With HygroShape, ICD researchers Dr. Dylan Wood and Laura Kiesewetter are exploiting an intrinsic property of wood that is known to every carpenter or joiner: The cell walls expand when wet and contract when drying, while the stiffness exactly correlates with the change in moisture content. If wood dries in an uncontrolled manner, this hygroscopic shrinkage causes undesirable deformation and the material warps.
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