electroloom, a 3D printer that creates finished garments

electroloom, a 3D printer that creates finished garments
all photos courtesy of electroloom

electroloom is for designing and manufacturing  3D fabrics from a computer, with no sewing required. the printer works with practical polyester and cotton blends, that are shipped as liquids in pods that are placed into the machine prior to each job. the team consists of marcus foley, aaron rowley – both biomedical/mechanical engineers and joseph white, a computer engineer. the technology they devised first starts with a designed template using CAD. it is then inserted into the printing chamber, and the liquid solution is guided onto the cast by an electric field – the process is called electrospinning. the printer evenly coats and binds the nano fibers together into a cohesive seamless fabric. once removed from the mold, the unique material can flex, drape, and fold just like the most commonly known fabrics. the electroloom prototype can only mold 800mm by 900mm sizes, and connects to a computer via USB. the project is looking to introduce colors and other types materials to the electroloom soon. electroloom is currently looking for funding on kickstarter, which is centered on raising money on developer kits. the program is to engage with early adopters, who will be the pioneers responsible for bringing this technology to fruition. they are looking for people who want to use, explore, hack, and improve the printers, so that ultimately it can provide a more robust and reliable technology.

image of the fabric’s microstructure

 
working prototype of the printer

time-lapse of the electrospinning process 

a sample of the printed fabric