Biodigital Product Design Through Additive Fabrication Technologies: Beer Tap Handles Project

Biomimicry is a new transdisciplinary science that studies the models of nature to solve human problems with a systemic approach; design based on nature has had a significant evolution in recent decades thanks to digital technologies advantage, especially digital fabrication and parametric software. This text presents the process of design, experimentation and fabrication of beer tap handles series based on morphological patterns from nature. The project followed this methodological sequence (1) Design problem (2) Selection of biological referents (3) Morphologic synthesis (4) Analysis of thicknesses and stress (5) Detailed design (6) Fabrication of 1:1 scale prototype through Fused Deposition Modelling technology -FDM- (7) User testing (8) Conclusions and improvement proposal. The digital design and fabrication process were effective, the prototypes worked and reached the project goals, the users perceived that the beer tap handles are comfortable, functional and have an attractive appearance.