This robot that can spin together 3D-printed furniture could really get your creative juices flowing. And maybe eventually inspire the world to nix sectional couches once and for all.
Meet Galatéa, the honking, seafoam-coloured robot arm that looks like road construction equipment. “She” was invented by engineer Sylvain Charpiot, founder of French startup Drawn. Galatéa is a large-scale 3D printer, formerly an industrial robot that worked in a car factory, that makes fully recyclable furniture that’s limited only by the imagination. She heats plastic (Drawn says it’s the same kind used in Legos) at over 440 degrees Fahrenheit to make simple furniture. Right now, objects can reach six-and-a-half feet long and four feet high.
Everyday folks aren’t really the target audience, but rather designers or interior decorators, or people who run restaurants, venue halls, or other places that want to show off Galatéa’s creations at a single event. (The creations are one-time use. The company says they’re recycled right after the event.)
The company says you can watch Galatéa for a couple hours as she creates furniture and decorations just for you. What makes them customisable? Everything’s in your hands: the object’s shape, colour, material, and size.
There’s currently a Kickstarter campaign so that Charpiot can create a “little brother” robot to take to the trade shows of the world. There’re over 20 days to go, and Charpiot’s already met his funding goal, with over $US20,000 raked in. Eventually, he hopes to spread the business and eventually mix-and-match materials like wood and linen in the products.
Sorry, IKEA. But I gotta side with the giant robot arm on this one.
[DesignBoom via Kickstarter]
Pictures: Drawn’s Kickstarter