Designer Spotlight API: Nu Bracelet

March 11, 2013

This week at SXSW, Shapeways launched its new API, which enables anyone to make apps that make products. Our Designer Spotlight focuses on one API user, Invisible Light Network, who created a way to visualize music into the wearable form of Nu Bracelet.

This is ‘Bad Brains – Fearless Vampire Killers’

Tell us a little bit about yourself: Who are you? Where are you located?

Invisible Light Network is a multidisciplinary design studio based in Brooklyn.
We’re involved in everything from industrial design to interactive, animation, and film projects. What ties everything together is an excitement about exploration and trying new things.

What’s the story behind Nu Bracelets? How did you get music to look so good?

Three of our biggest interests recently have been 3D printing, music, and fashion – and we wanted to do a project that brought all of those together.
Nu is our attempt to make something that was not only beautiful and inspired by music, but was actually generated by the musical data in a song. We wanted to embrace the concept of 3D printing and create a concept where every single customer would get a completely unique bracelet.
The code behind Nu is built in Rhino’s Grasshopper framework for generative modeling. Shapeways and Rhino work together incredibly well – it’s a completely painless process to move between the two.

This is ‘Fennesz – The Color of Three’

What brought you to 3D printing with Shapeways?

Shapeways is well known in the industrial design community for their innovation and quality, so it was always our first choice as there’s really no other way we could have produced something this complex. In addition, the process of working with Shapeways has always been so easy and everyone there is incredibly available to help.

Who inspires you? Any designers you like on Shapeways?

We always try to pull our inspiration from many fields. Nu was very inspired by architecture and structural designers. We’ve always liked the work that Nervous System and Geraldesign have on Shapeways.

How was the API to work with?

The API was very easy to work with and integrate on our site. Just as important as the API, however, was the availability of the Shapeways team, like Brad, to help us with any questions we had during the process, which makes all the difference.

Check out the Nu page and order your own custom music bracelet.
Excited to try the API? Start here!

And if you’d like to be featured in the next Designer Spotlight, email natalia@shapeways.com.