Soft Bionic Manufacturing
We help design, prototype and manufacture soft and stretchable devices for wearables, medical products and robotics
We Make Soft and Stretchable Prototypes
People are soft. Shouldn't our devices be soft too? By leveraging advanced manufacturing technology and deep domain expertise, we can provide biologically inspired soft and stretchable solutions available nowhere else.
Bionic Bands
Using biology and nature for inspiration, we help prototype and develop new bands and attachment solutions based on our unique manufacturing capabilities, including in mold coatings and mid-print part placement. See our breathable watch band for an example project.
Soft Actuators
Precision micro molding and dispensing help us make extremely small soft silicone parts with hollow features, enabling centimeter scale and smaller pneumatic and hydraulic actuators. In mold FKM coatings and flourosilicones can be used for solvent resistance or reducing air loss. See our self fitting actuating band for an example project.
Stretchable Electronics
Metamaterials and intrinsically stretchable conductors can be leveraged for making electronics that can sustain repeated stretching. From interconnects to sensors, we can help make stretchable solutions.
Custom Soft Bionic Manufacturing
We utilize a robotic arm with 5um precision to 3D print and spray coat multiple materials and precisely place parts within the uncured material mid-print, allowing for monolithic fabrication. Materials include silicones of different durometers, conductive silicone, flourosilicone, FKM and plastic resins. We can leverage this system for precision overmolded parts.
Soft Sensors
By leveraging electrically functional silicones and elastomers, we can make soft and stretchable sensors that can sense pressure, strain and other parameters.
Custom Bionic Fabrication
Have a brilliant idea, but stuck on how to make it? We can help design and fabricate complex parts with multiple materials and inserted components. Explore our capabilities and get in touch to discuss your project.
Complex Part Shapes
Based on the 3D shape of the part, a mold is machined and coated with a high durability release coating. Parts are made within this mold.
"Matrix" Materials
A custom robotic 3D printer is used to print one or more materials within the mold. By combining multiple materials and in situ UV curing, their are limitless possibilities for what you can make.
Actuators
Pneumatic/hydraulic actuators and channels as well as shape change nitinol may be added as needed. Contact us to discuss your project and what might be possible.
Coatings or "skin"
An optional in-mold coating can be applied using robotic spray coating or dispensing that will act as a skin for the part. Coatings include FKM, conductive silicones, or custom materials.
Embedded Components
Optional components, such as shaped or laser cut nitinol, mechanical or electronic components, etc. can be robotically placed into the part mid-print and cured within the matrix.
Sensors and Stretchable Electronics
Soft sensors for measuring strain, pressure, touch and shape could potentially be integrated into your design along with stretchable electronic components.
Example Projects and Sample Parts
Breathable Watch Band
This concept watch band uses the biologically inspired motif of skin/matrix/skeleton and explores the concept of maximizing open area for breathability and minimal water retention while maintaining enough rigidity and softness for all day comfort. Features include:
-FKM elastomer coating for comfort and durability (in mold coating)
-Soft silicone matrix for extensibility and softness (3D printed in mold)
-Superelastic nitinol coil core to maintain rigidity and stiffness (robotically placed mid-print)
This band can be purchased as a sample or customized for your own project.
Made from low durometer silicone with an optional FKM coating, this concept band borrows the motif of a hydraulic muscle from nature (e.g. an octopus) to create a self-fitting watch band. Features include:
-500 micrometer (.02") diameter channels for air/fluid flow
-Contraction of 20% along length
-Optional FKM coating for comfort and reduced air leakage
This band can be purchased as a sample or customized for your own project. A syringe is included for demo actuation, but it is suggested that the customer supply their own pneumatic or hydraulic power source.
Actuated Self Fitting Wrist Band
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What is soft bionics, and why is it important?Bionics includes devices and technology that emulate naturally occurring organisms as well as devices and technology that work in symbiosis with our own biology and form. At Practical Bionics, we embrace both definitions and seek to not only emulate naturally occurring motifs, but leverage those to create products that are synergistic with our own form and function.
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Do you provide design and engineering services as well?Whether you have an idea sketched out on a napkin, or CAD files ready for fabrication, we can help. Get in touch to learn more.
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What is the lead time for custom parts?Lead time will depend on the complexity of the part and whether new materials need to be developed. Simple parts could be ready in less than a week, while complex parts may take 2-3 weeks or more.
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Why 3D Print inside of a mold?Printing parts inside of a mold offers a number of advantages: 1) The surface finish of parts can be made smooth, even if the layer resolution is course 2) We can use an in mold coating to apply a "skin" to the part 3) By using a pressurized mold and high temperature curing, we can use peroxide cure materials, such as FKM (which requires a sealed high temp mold), which is generally not possible in traditional 3D printing We can also print parts directly on a build platform or on or within existing parts.
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How precisely can you print inside the mold?We have developed a capacitive probing system that can align the print nozzle to the mold within 150 um at the worst, and often much better. We can print layer heights to as small as 100 um and widths as small as 200 um.
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Can you print with customer provided materials?While it depends on the material, there is a good chance we can print with most commercial silicone elastomers, although additional curing inhibitors might be needed to allow enough time for the printing process to complete.
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What other services do you offer?We have a number of relevant services we can provide, including precision 5-axis machining of small parts, laser cutting and processing of nitinol and other sheet materials, compression molding of small parts as well as custom material development of functional elastomers.
About Us
Located in the greater Seattle area, Practical Bionics is a purpose built shop for making soft bionic technology. We believe that soft bionics has the potential to unlock wearable technology and humanoid robotics, but manufacturing constraints have stifled the field. At Practical Bionics, we are creating a new manufacturing platform that will help unlock the power of soft bionics for the next generation of technology. With 20 years of research and development experience and a state of the art shop with 5-axis CNC, dual wavelength laser processing and elastomer compounding, we have the capabilities to help deliver on this dream.