These 3D- printed ‘ Wi- Fi objects’ don’t need any power

These new 3D- printed plastic objects can pass on the info through Wi- Fi, reducing the need of batteries or alternate smart electronic equipments

Researchers at the University of Washington have developed a new way for 3D- printed plastic objects to pass on information through Wi- Fi eliminating the need of batteries or electronics. They demonstrated how it can be done with commercially available plastics and Wi- Fi receivers.

“Our goal was to create something that just comes out of your 3D printer at home and can send useful information to other devices,” says Vikram Iyer, a graduate student on the project. “But the big challenge is how do you communicate wirelessly with Wi- Fi using only plastic? That’s something no one has been able to do before.”

To make this thing work, the team assembled things like 3D- printed gears, switches and springs that could be used translate motion into antenna- transmitted information. The team developed an anemometer that measures wind speed, and attached it to a gear. When the gear spins, the teeth connect with an antenna incorporated within the object and the antenna then reflects ambient Wi- Fi signal, which is then decoded by a Wi- Fi receiver.

The signal transmission is dependent on the speed of the wind, the faster the gear spins and the more rapid signals are transmitted. The team also deployed a scale and a flowmeter to measure the speed of the water.

Additionally, three widgets — a button, a knob and a slider, that work similarly and can be used to connect with other smart devices. The researchers also created two smart objects — a detergent bottle with an attached flowmeter to track the amount of remaining detergent and a test tube holder that can measure the amount of liquid. Lastly, the team developed a way to print iron into 3D objects, which when read using a magnetometer through a smart device, can be used to transmit information about that specific object

“It looks like a regular 3D- printed object but there’s invisible information inside that can be read with your smartphone,” said Justin Chan, another student on the project. This team is making their 3D- printed models available for public so everyone can utilise the new object in their households.