With FilaLoom, knitting yarn and filament knitting come together in a project developed by Joram de Haas. Layers are added on top of one another. The project builds on the fact that both methods produce a finished product by adding material layer by layer.
The yarn is placed not by hand but with a tool head. This tool head resembles those found in tool-changing printers and, when used together with the 3D printing head, can produce embedded mechanisms as well as 2D and 3D structures. The embedded structures are larger than most examples.
Hackaday emphasizes that the idea of embedding components into 3D-printed parts is not new, but that this application offers additional features. Sam Smith was thanked for the news tip.
Why it matters
Since the idea of embedding components into 3D-printed parts is not new, FilaLoom’s real innovation lies in combining two separate manufacturing methods in a single machine. The ability to produce embedded mechanisms within the same workflow means that part fabrication and placement are no longer separate stages. Because this approach brings together textiles and additive manufacturing, it is directly relevant to makers and hobbyist communities who develop prototypes. The fact that it is based on tool-changing printer architecture, meanwhile, suggests that the technique could be compatible with existing desktop manufacturing infrastructure. The report, however, does not say whether the project will be commercialized or opened up to other developers; until that answer comes, FilaLoom remains a technical experiment demonstrating the possibilities of hybrid manufacturing.