Mark Wilson, writing for Co.Design, profiles a robotic arm that draws based on how bees determine their pollination route:
“The algorithm used for determining the pen’s route is based on how bees choose their own path flower to flower,” Jones tells Co.Design. “Whilst being up to my elbows in the maths and code of it, the reasons for choosing [the aesthetic] were purely visual–I appreciate the very organic shapes that occur from lots of short, straight lines.”
The result is enchanting. It’s a mind-numbing pattern, filled with the 2-D hypnotic equivalents of fractals and clothes dryers. So it may surprise you that Mind Out is essentially just a proof-of-concept that it’s possible to print precisely calculated lines on a grand scale. And at the same time, despite its mechanical nature, Mind Out’s connection to nature resonates on a deeper level than insect logic. It’s, in a strictest sense, highly materially efficient.
A video of the process:
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