On Friday 7 June we were treated to a brilliant Lunchtime Talk from new Studio resident Tom Metcalfe. Tom has recently joined us after working within the Product Research Studio at the University of Dundee, where he spent a lot of time looking at possibilities of paper electronics and conductive inks. In this talk he introduced us to five exciting projects that use this technology:

Interactive Newsprint

For the last 18 months researchers from Dundee, Surrey and UCLan and industry partners have been working with local communities on a project called Interactive Newsprint. Interactive Newsprint brings together communities to develop and test a new idea for community news based on digital interactive paper. They've explored the emerging technology of paper electronics and conductive inks to bring locally focussed and generated news to communities. This project came into development after research was carried out with the community and they found that although people were engaging with online media they still preferred to have something tangible in their hands when it came to local news and issues. Interactive newsprint encompasses both the physical real world object, a newspaper and online media, as embedded technology means aspects of the content can be updated in real time.  

What stage is the technology at now?

Tom explained that this is primarily a research project looking into what could be possible when the technology has developed fully. The Interactive Newsprint team have been working with Bare Conductive to explore the potential of conductive ink. In 2011 Bare launched its first product, Bare Paint. This was the first non-toxic conductive paint aimed at individuals interested in engaging with interactive electronics and in bringing surfaces to life, it’s a bit like drawing wires onto a page. The Ink provides people with an exciting platform perfect for prototyping, experimenting, and learning about electronics. You can have a look at their tutorial page to see some of the cool products & experiments that have been created using the ink.

Tom explained that at the moment it’s not possible to print components like batteries in the same way as conductive ink, therefore the newspaper has to be connected externally to a power source. However technology is evolving rapidly and it looks likely that we’ll be able to print and use circuits and batteries in a similar way to conductive ink in less than a decade. You can find out more about Interactive Newsprint on their website. Tom then went on to talk about other projects he has been involved in that use paper electronics.

The Invite

The invite was developed by Michael Shorter and Tom for Dundee’s product design MA showcase. The invite was printed with conductive ink meaning that when it was brought along to the event it could be connected via a simple bulldog clip and transformed into a musical instrument, that you could use to jam with the band. The large printed circle acts as a distance sensor allowing you to control the pitch of the audio while the three printed circles along the bottom act as buttons allowing you to control the frequency. You can learn more and find out how to make your own here.

Paper Headphones

‘Paper Headphones’ is a project developed by Tom and Michael Shorter in the Product Research Studio at the University of Dundee, Scotland. The headphones, which were printed in collaboration with Novalia, were developed especially for SXSW 2012 in support of the Paper Apps panel ‘Can Printed Electronics Save the Music Industry?’ Tom explained the Audio currently comes from 2 piezos within the paper headphones but similarly to the interactive newsprint project, as technology advances they will be able to print the electronics directly onto the paper as well. You can find out more about the project here.

Wireless  

Another product that Tom took to SXSW was Wireless. Wireless is a paper radio developed by Tom and Jack Chalkley. It pulls audio content from the internet and plays it back on a piece of paper.  The prototype they took to SXSW was 'powered' by audioBoo and plays audio tagged with #sxpaperapps. The buttons were conductive ink so the user gets to experience how the radio would function if the electronics were printed.  You can find out more about Wireless here.

Postcard Player

The Postcard Player designed by brand communications agency Uniform, is a prototype that demonstrates how Paper Electronics could allow people to experience and interact with digital music in a more engaging way. You pick up a simple postcard, printed with conductive ink and place it into the player, triggering music. It was even nominated for the digital category for the Design Museum’s Designs of the Year 2013. You can find out more about the project here.

What’s Tom working on now?

From July Tom is joining the REACT team as a producer on their Objects Sandbox.  The Sandbox seeks to bring the skills of artists, makers and researchers to the look, feel and potential of this new area of work, often referred to as the Internet of Things. Successful sandbox projects will involve physical objects that communicate using networked technologies but the output could range from buildings to clothing, craft to games. Applications for this theme will open in September 2013, to find out more have a look at the REACT website here.