Gone are the days of old when each piece of furniture was handmade for hours by an expert craftsperson. For better or worse, we now live in an age where we can be assisted by technology in the design and creation of furniture like sofas, beds and anything else you could imagine.
With a population providing increasing demand for affordable and attractive furniture that gets shipped quickly, the onus is on designers to create aesthetically-pleasing pieces that can be mass produced for a reasonable price. This is where technology steps up.
4 ways technology affects modern furniture design
1. 3D modeling techniques. This is an incredibly useful tool for designers who are weighing up a shortlist of 5-10 different designs for a piece of furniture. Instead of spending time and money creating each piece, they can use technology to view realistic 3D models of the designs. This way, they can see how they are going to look in different physical settings before they are even produced.
2. Augmented reality (AR). A step up from 3D modeling, using AR for furniture design helps designers experience their pieces in real life, without making them beforehand. Using an AR app, designers can superimpose a piece of furniture into a real space around them, so they can experience exactly what it would be like.
3. 3D printing. It’s hard to wrap your head around the idea of a 3D printer, but these are invaluable tools to furniture designers. Essentially, a designer can input their 3D design to the printer, and the printer will put together fine grains of glass, concrete, plastic, metal and ceramics to produce a replica of the design. 3D printers make for a reliable way for designers to test ideas quickly.
4. Internet of Things. The IoT refers to a network of smart sensors connected to the internet. This is helping furniture designers to break new ground and produce ‘smart furniture’ for a new age. For example, an office storage cabinet could be fitted with a sensor that delivers a notification to a customer’s phone when it is running low on certain supplies. Alternatively, a bed could be fitted with a sensor that sends a signal to your smartphone’s alarm clock once you have been sleeping for a certain period of time.
–Written by Jack Vale
