How Apple Achieves a "Seamless"Design from Rapid Prototyping

When two things are grouped together, there will be traces of bonding.When two materials are connected, there will be a bonding line. If two parts are matched, there will be an assembly gap. It can be said that if there is no chemical reaction involved, the physical connection of the object will form a log. With these logs, we can analyze the formation and development of objects.As far as preparing a physical prototype of a smart phone project by rapid prototyping, these seamless logs should add into top consideration.

The seam reveals how an item is made, and then learn how the item is designed. If an item can be seamless, the designer won't add a seam. The designer pursuit of seamless, but manufacturing and production will bring seams, the confrontation between the two is the "seamless" we will explore.

Apple is very concerned about the seams in the product, always trying to minimize the seams, or to be seamless. As a result, the integrity and unity of the product will be enhanced. This is not the pursuit of the craftsman spirit, but the depth of the user's intention to care about these seams in the product.

We can analyze the “seamless” design on Apple products in three directions. From the direction of the material, two divided routes can be distinguished, that is a single material or a plurality of materials. The third direction is that the meaning of "seamlessness" is whether it is physical or user-oriented experience and cognition, that is the phenomenon of seamless. Today we focus on the seamlessness achieved under a plurality material.

On most products, multiple materials are often combined into two materials, and three or more materials are collected in one place. When two materials come together on a product, there is often a distinction between the boundaries, the side of the line is the material, and the side of the line is the material. The line is wider, then the seams and gaps, the line is narrow, it is seamless.

Small Gap

Small gaps are everywhere in Apple products, and there are gaps in the assembly structure that require process and process control. There are several gaps on the back of the iPhone SE in the above picture. These gaps belong to the assembly gap because the parts are connected to each other.

The upper and lower black glass cover (the corresponding white cover is ceramic) and the body assembly, when the iPhone 5 was launched, Apple used it as a bright spot to promote the aluminum body frame with two high-power cameras. Then find the most suitable one of the 725 pieces of the insert size to ensure that the joint gap between the two pieces is as small as possible.

In addition, the mounting gap between the stainless steel logo and the fuselage is also very small. Only when you look carefully and touch it by hand, you can feel that they are assembled with two components (Logo and body of iPhone 5 and iPhone 5s). The integration is done by masking the secondary anodization. Because the Logo has some sharp corners, this hollowing process first uses the CNC to thin the material in this area and then cut it with a laser.

Very small gaps can greatly improve the overall sense of the product, even if it is two materials, different colors and different materials, it is like the black and white inlay glass on the back of the iPhone SE, as long as it has a small enough gap with the fuselage, and with aluminum alloy The height of the fuselage is consistent enough. Although they are made of two materials, you will think that the whole phone is one, and if one seam is enlarged, the feeling will be different even if the other conditions are the same. So if the two materials meet, is the seam smaller?

Close To Seamless

The picture above is similar to the processing of the fourth generation of iPod touch. A circle of plastic trim is molded from a metal body (stainless steel or aluminum alloy). The injection molding material on the casing is nearly seamless in macroscopic view. When paired with glass, the outer edge of the glass is just the outer edge of the entire product, and the glass has a small beveled edge to enhance the edge. Therefore, the assembly gap is not easy to be seen under normal circumstances, and the combination of the black plastic edging and the metal body is nearly seamless, and the product is nearly integrated.

In addition to the fourth generation of the all-stainless steel back shell, the iPod touch opens a window for the wireless signal and closes the window with a plastic piece. This makes it possible for metal and plastic to meet on the surface. There are three ways to combine the plastic and metal on the back of several generations of iPod touch, as shown in the above figure.

Almost Seamless

The plastic strip on the stainless steel frame of the iPhone 4 is molded by placing the metal frame into an injection mold. This process is now commonplace, and almost every cell phone uses a process now called nano-injection. The surface of the metal piece to be combined with the plastic is subjected to a nano-scale surface treatment, and the bite of the injected plastic and the metal surface is also nanometer-scale, and the gap between the metal and the plastic may be referred to as a zero gap, although theoretically, the physical connection of the material will never be integrated.

Many people saw its photos early due to the iPhone 4 prototype was lost before it was released, and people expressed dislike for this black plastic strip. With the release and launch of the machine, most people accepted the result of this compromise because of the antenna's needs. Many designers recognize and praise the combination of metal and plastic. It is amazing that the materials of the opposite sex can be combined so tightly and precisely.

However, for users, they can accept the split between plastic and metal, which is a compromise result due to physical and technical limitations, and is not worthy of appreciation. Although technically seamless, they still have gaps in people's cognitive experience.

Conclusion

Apple's design pursues integrity and its essence. It is not subject to outside and fashion interference. It always finds the best results under certain conditions and will still be better next time. When there is a need to compromise, there will be a public compromise. And it won't cover up to prevent the inner and outer uniformity being masked.