uniMorph is an enabling technology for rapid digital fabrication of customized thin-film shape-changing interfaces. By combining the thermoelectric characteristics of copper with the high thermal expansion rate of ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene, we are able to actuate the shape of flexible circuit composites directly. The shape-changing actuation is enabled by a temperature driven mechanism and reduces the complexity of fabrication for thin shape-changing interfaces.
UniMorph composites can be actuated by either environmental temperature changes or active heating of embedded structures and can actuate in different shape-changing primitives. Different sensing techniques that leverage the existing copper structures can be seamlessly embedded into the uniMorph composite.
