Experimenting with 3D-printed textiles and printing directly onto fabric to explore wearable designs that can respond and change their patterns with actuators.
Basics of 3D Printing
Group Assignment - Test
- For the group assignment, we tested the design rules for the Prusa 3D printer.
- Speed: Normally you don't need to adjust the speed, but if it's hitting the printed object while priting, you can adjust the speed to be slower by clicking Setting > Speed.
- Supporter: If the 3D figure have the floating parts, you need to add the supporter. You can demonstrate the 'slice' and see if it's stable enough. If not, add the supporter.
- Bridge Support: The 30mm bridge was the most stable. Beyond that, the structure started to sag and produce spaghetti.
Pattern Design Pipeline
Bitmap Pattern
I wanted to design a parametric textile pattern using a bitmapâgeneration pipeline in Grasshopper. I followed this video tutorial to create a workflow that converts a blackâandâwhite image into a bitmap and extrudes spikes based on the pixel values. Because of the limited print bed size, I couldnât generate detailed patterns such as a human face, which require varying spike heights for fine details.
So I shifted the goal toward generating patterns inspired by nature. I used images of conch shells and ocean waves and converted them into blackâandâwhite gradient images.
This is the Grasshopper pipeline I created.
The pipeline worked well, but it produced too many spikes for reliable printing. I increased the spacing and reduced the density to make the pattern printable.
Experiment 1: Printing On the Fabric
I found many examples of people using 3D printers to create novel textiles. By printing directly onto a stretchable mesh, you can create shapeâchanging surfaces, and with embedded electronics, even interactive textiles. I wanted to try this approach myself.
Ribbon
Before printing the full version, I tested printing on a ribbon. Since the 3D printer bed is magnetic, people recommended using strong magnets to hold the ribbon in place, but I couldnât find any, so I used tape instead. The test flower print worked, but the spike height was too low, making it look almost 2D. I decided to increase the spike height.
For the final version, my plan was to print the preâstretched base layer, pause the print, place the textile, and then continue printing so the textile would be embedded between layers. I sliced the model accordingly and inserted a nozzleâchange pause to place the textile at the right moment.
However, because the pattern relied on a very small pixel scale, the print failed, resulting in this deformation.
Gauze Pad
For the textile layer, people recommended using a flexible mesh pad that stretches with body movement, allowing the 3Dâprinted pattern to move as well. I couldnât find mesh pads in the lab, so I bought a Halloween spiderâweb decoration, which is extremely stretchable. I printed the base layer and attempted to place the spiderâweb mesh between layers.
Ceci pointed out that the spiderâweb material behaves like loose threads, meaning the nozzle would snag on it and ruin the print. (Thank you, Ceci, for saving the machine!) She suggested using a gauze pad instead, which was the only suitable material I could find nearby.
I printed the base layer first, then taped down the gauze pad to keep it stable during printing. The print adhered well on top of the gauze, but because gauze lacks elasticity, the final textile did not show any shapeâchanging behavior.
Experiment 2: Foldable Textile Printing
Then I found an interesting paper on active membranes. Active membranes: 3D printing of elastic fibre patterns on preâstretched textiles introduces several types of active structures, and I wanted to experiment with them.
I tried printing one of the patterns, but it failed because the structure must be extremely thin (around 1â3 mm) for the preâstretched textile to fold correctly. Since the structure height was so low, the nozzle repeatedly disrupted the print.
Experiment 3: Printing Chainmail
Chainmail Design based on the Paper
I followed this chainmailâstructure paper and generated a chainmail pattern in Grasshopper. Then I added the bitmap spikeâgeneration pipeline I created earlier. I adjusted the spacing so the spikes would sit neatly on the center of each chainmail cell.
Printing Different Color
For printing the chainmail, I used the Critical Matter Groupâs Bambu printer. It was fast and accurate, producing much smoother results than the Prusa. Using the softwareâs brush tool, I added color changes directly into the print.
The result was BEAUTIFUL!
3D Scanning
For 3D scanning, I wanted to capture abstract natural patterns and print them. During a day trip to North Beach near Boston, I found beautiful coralâlike formations and brought them home to scan.
I used the Polycam app, but because the individual structures were so small, the camera couldnât capture them accurately. Iâll need to try again with a more precise scanner.
Appendix
This is the zip file of every rhino and stl files that I've printed.