Cambridge-based MIT researchers have developed FabObscura, a tool that turns everyday objects into animated displays without electronics. Building on traditional barrier-grid animations, the software supports complex patterns like zigzags, circles, and radials -- and the team is now exploring taking these effects into 3D printing to create interactive, sculptural objects.
"Our system can turn a seemingly static, abstract image into an attention-catching animation," says Ticha Sethapakdi, CSAIL researcher and lead author on the paper presenting FabObscura. "The tool lowers the barrier to entry to creating these barrier-grid animations, while helping users express a variety of designs that would've been very time-consuming to explore by hand."
The research team, led by Sethapakdi and including Mingming Li, Maxine Perroni-Scharf, Jiaji Li, Arvind Satyanarayan, Justin Solomon, and Stefanie Mueller, will present their work at the ACM Symposium on User Interface Software and Technology (UIST).
Interactive Animations on Physical Objects
FabObscura supports all types of barrier-grid animations, allowing displays that change appearance depending on viewpoint or barrier movement. Users can upload animation frames or choose preset sequences, specify barrier angles, preview designs, and print both barrier and image on paper or transparent sheets for objects such as books, phones, and picture frames.
A key feature is that barrier patterns can be represented as any continuous mathematical function, not just straight lines. Users can enter equations -- like a constant function for horizontal lines or a sine function for wavy patterns -- and see how the barrier moves across the image.
The tool also allows "nested animations," where different sequences appear depending on barrier movement -- for example, a car might rotate when moved vertically but appear as a spinning motorcycle when slid horizontally. Researchers have applied this to interactive items like coasters that switch icons when pressed and jar lids that reveal a blooming flower when twisted.
While nested animations can reduce visual clarity compared with simpler scanimations, design guidelines -- such as using fewer frames and high-contrast images -- help maintain crisp results. Future plans include supporting video input for automatic frame selection and extending the technique to 3D objects using 3D printing.
Latest MIT Innovations in 3D Printing
MIT continues to push the boundaries of 3D printing beyond traditional applications. In July, MIT graduates Yiqing Wang and Biru Cao unveiled the FOODres.AI Printer, a desktop 3D printer that transforms household food waste -- like banana peels and vegetable trimmings -- into usable objects. Combining artificial intelligence, real-time material analysis, and extrusion-based 3D printing, the project originated from the MIT IDEAS Social Innovation Challenge, which supports student-led environmental and social initiatives.
In addition, MIT researchers are addressing a key challenge in 3D printing: ensuring printed materials perform as designed. Many printers struggle to match the precision of computational models, leading to inconsistencies in weight or strength. Josephine Carstensen, Gilbert W. Winslow Associate Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering, explains: "If you don't account for these limitations, printers can either over- or under-deposit material by quite a lot, so your part becomes heavier or lighter than intended. It can also over- or underestimate the material performance significantly." Her team developed a method that integrates printing limitations into the design process, aligning numerical models with experimental results to ensure predictable material performance. The approach is detailed in an open-access paper in Materials and Design, co-authored by Carstensen and PhD student Hajin Kim-Tackowiak.