From Pollock to 3D printing, thanks to artificial intelligence

From Jackson Pollock to 3D printing, the step is shorter than one might think: thanks to artificial intelligence, researchers led by Harvard University have developed a technology that exploits that used by the artist, the master of drawing, by leaving it to drip or by spraying colors on the canvas, to print objects. complex processes faster and more accurately. Results, Published in Soft Matter magazine allowed you to make a number of challenging shapes, paint like Pollock and even decorate cookies with chocolate syrup.

3D printing has revolutionized many areas of manufacturing, but it is still a very slow process. One problem is that the liquid inks used must obey the laws of physics: in short, when they fall from a height, they become difficult to control because they tend to fold and curl in on themselves, like spilling honey. On a slice of bread. For this reason, most 3D printing technologies place the nozzle from which the ink comes out a few millimeters from the surface, avoiding the problem.

But researchers led by Gaurav Chaudhary wanted to find a way to use physics to their advantage rather than bypass it. “Pollock’s method of throwing paint from above meant that even if his hand moved along a specific path, the paint did not follow that path due to acceleration due to gravity – explains Choudhury – so a small movement could cause large splashes of paint.” To test the method, the study authors turned to an artificial intelligence-based machine learning algorithm, which allows it to learn from its mistakes and become more accurate with each attempt.