ABSTRACT

4D Printing, developed as collaboration between the Self-Assembly Lab, Stratasys and Autodesk, is a new process for printing customizable smart materials. 4D Printing entails multi-material prints utilizing the Stratasys Connex printer with the added capability of shape transformation from one state to another. A 4D-Printed component is produced by depositing two or more polymer types that have different expansion or contraction rates onto one another to create a system for self- transformation. With a single multi-material print, a product or mechanism can transform from any 1D strand into a 3D shape, from a 2D surface into a 3D shape or morph from one 3D shape into another. 4D Printing \involves a growing field of researchers and companies investigating multi-material printing for self-transformation. 4D Printing offers a new perspective on material design and environmental interaction while making it simple to produce products or physical components that can radically self-transform.