ENSCI Les Ateliers — Diploma Project

Tangible faces
for digital alterity

If a robot doesn't need to look human, what should its face be? Three robotic heads, one shared body, zero screens.

↓ Discover the specimens
robot faces · square loop

Robots have no face.
Or one that unsettles.

The uncanny valley isn't a law of nature — it's what happens when imitation is the only strategy. What if machines had their own face? Legible, expressive, non-human.

Rorschach · portrait video
SP — 01

Rorschach

Temperature as language.

Liquid crystal paint on hand-embossed aluminium. Six independent Peltier zones shift colour in ~2 seconds. Each thermal state produces a pattern the viewer reads like an inkblot.

CommunicationThermochromic
MaterialAluminium 1mm
ActuationPeltier ×6
FinishHand-embossed + LC paint
Seiche · portrait video
SP — 02

Seiche

Flow as language.

Fluorescent liquid circulates through silicone channels driven by peristaltic pumps. Fast reads as agitation, slow as calm. A chromatophore system built from medical-grade tubing.

CommunicationMicrofluidic
MaterialSilicone Shore A 20
ActuationPeristaltic pumps
FinishUV fluorescent fluid
Insect · portrait video
SP — 03

Insect

Tension as language.

0.5mm nitinol wires contract at 70°C, animating antenna-like structures. Auxetic geometries amplify micro-movements into visible surface deformations. Near-silent. No motors.

CommunicationShape-memory alloy
MaterialNitinol 0.5mm
ActuationSMA thermal
FinishAuxetic PLA lattice
Neck · exploded view or tracking video
SP — 04

The Neck

The body all three faces share.

3-axis motorised neck (pan, tilt, roll). Three iterations from bulky to compact. 12 PLA-printed parts, 3 MG996R servos, 30 minutes to assemble.

Axes3 (pan, tilt, roll)
Parts12 PLA printed
Servos3× MG996R
Assembly30 min
Camera→ Python→ OSC→ Max MSP→ ESP32→ Head

Not one robot. A system.

Each specimen is a combination of parameters. An expression engine translates internal states into physical dynamics. The project focuses on heads — the system is designed for the whole body.

Explore the full research →

Two generative engines

Genome interface

The Genome

Each specimen is defined by combinable parameters — structure, surface, movement, colour. Variations produce individuals. The system generates diversity beyond what a single designer could imagine.

Expression engine

The Dynamogramme

A live reaction-diffusion simulation shaped by the robot's internal states. Six parameters drive the output — a six-dimensional space of possible expressions, readable by humans or owned by AI.

The technical backbone

System architecture diagram
Process · workshop / prototyping video
Experimentation

From sketch to functional prototype

7 months of iteration. Silicone casting, metal embossing, SLA printing, nitinol bending, electronics soldering. Most experiments failed — all taught something. Three heads emerged from hundreds of tests.

Tools & processes

SolidWorks SLA printing Silicone molding Metal embossing Arduino ESP32 Python Max MSP Unreal Engine C++

7 months condensed into one sequence

Vimeo embed · 16:9
photo

ENSCI Les Ateliers graduate

I design expressive interfaces for machines. From shape-memory alloy actuators to real-time expression engines. 7 months from blank page to 3 functional robotic heads. Next: scaling expressive robotics with a team.

↓ Download CV ↗ Full research project ↗ Main portfolio