Mobile fabrication: connect to the environment

We explore the future of fabrication, in particular the vision of mobile fabrication, which we define as "personal fabrication on the go". We explore this vision with two surveys, two simple hardware prototypes, matching custom apps that provide users with access to a solution database, custom fabrication processes we designed specifically for these devices, and a user study conducted in situ on metro trains. Our findings suggest that mobile fabrication is a compelling next direction for personal fabrication. From our experience with the prototypes we derive the hardware requirements to make mobile fabrication technically feasible. A key condition for mobile fabrication devices is it's ability to fabricate in connection to the environment in which it is used.