An invention by a 3D printing company may raise the ante for how smart a building can be.
NOWlab, a branch of the 3D printing company BigRep, has developed concrete walls that respond to touch. In its model, a slab of 3D-printed concrete with a honeycomb design, three LED lights embedded in the hexagonal holes light up when skin touches the concrete.
The design uses capacitive sensors in the concrete to turn the entire wall into a light switch; the sensors are connected to the LEDs with internal cables. NOWlab says the technology could be used in the future for applications from similar light switches to activating other devices.
Source:
Smart concrete wall reacts to human touch (Curbed.com, July 2, 2018)
