Prototyping / Physical Computing / Workspace

Einstein Center Digital Future (ECDF) offers professors and their researchers spaces and formats to develop ideas and solutions outside of conventional research structures. An important role plays the Micro Factory. Researchers find support here if they want to try out ideas and concepts and investigate their potentials and risks. The prototyping method has exciting approaches—whether with paper, cardboard, (digital) mockups or 3D printing. Prototyping offers researchers visual and haptic models at an early stage from which they can derive initial results, challenges or change requests.
Physical computing is also used in the Micro Factory. Sensors and microcontrollers such as “Arduino” are used to control electromechanical devices such as LEDs, motors or other hardware. These systems are interesting for research projects in design, medicine and architecture.
The Micro Factory is headed by an experienced designer, Friedrich Schmidgall, who supports and advises the researchers from the initial idea through conception to implementation. In 2019 he will offer workshops on the topics of “3D printing”, “Electronic basics” and “Arduino microcontrollers”. The target groups are professors,research assistants, PhD students and student assistants of the ECDF.
The new workspace is also be used during workshops or hackathons at ECDF.