Exploring Concepts from Soft Robotics — Professor Kari Love

A Silicone Mold of My Own

This project was an adventure. I started by thinking, I want to avoid the 3d printer. So, I laser cut some cardboard into my flower shape.

This was a problem because of the holes in the side, so I taped them up

And then kept taping

But there were so many holes and taping kept going on and on.

The cardboard mold still leaking through its holes

so I hit the 3d printer and made a mold. So. Much. Easier.

It's two pieces, one of which creates the negative spaces and the other caps it off.

Casting these thin pieces spoiled me forever for trying to go with thicker casts. They came out so perfect and bubble free.

I joined the two halves together with a little more silicone and walla, my mold and cast was inflating.

First I drove it manually with a big syringe.

Then I hooked it up to programmable air and played with the buttons. The single pedal inflating more than the others, its being stretched out provided a bias channel for the air to flow to.

I over inflated it and it made a huge pop and everyone in class jumped. Most of the inflation happened right away, before it maxed out and struggled to inflate anymore. A moment later, it burst.