Christmas Ornament Delft Blue - "View of TU Delft" - NEW

Our TU Delft campus painted with the painting robot developed during Mischa de Haan's graduation project (2022, Industrial Design Engineering). TU Delft seal at the other side. For every TU Delft enthusiast, this Christmas bauble is a must for next Christmas! Size: 7.5 x 7.5 x 3.5 cm. Comes in gift packaging. 

“View on TU Delft”

TU Delft and Royal Delft have entered into a special collaboration. We are proud to present our ceramic collection, each piece accompanied by a certificate of authenticity. TU Delft alumnus Mischa de Haan graduated in 2022 from the Faculty of Industrial Design Engineering with a very special graduation project, “Digital Delft Blue, a new approach.”

Mischa developed a true Delft Blue painting robot. Royal Delft designed the TU Delft campus motif “View of TU Delft”, which has been painted on the Christmas ornament, dish and cookie jar using this painting robot.

Royal Delft

Royal Delft is the oldest manufacturer of delftware that is still producing Delft Blue using traditional techniques up to this day. At the core of their company lies the craftsmanship of producing delftware by hand, from creating the moulds to hand-painting each piece of Delft Blue. Apart from hand-painting and transfers, Royal Delft wanted to look for new possibilities to decorate delftware. Through a collaboration with TU Delft, a first prototype was made with a lot of potential, which let to this master thesis.

Mischa’s thesis presents an improved design of a Delft Blue painting robot with a working demonstrator. This demonstrator is able to autonomously decorate tiles with different techniques, ranging from creating personalised anniversary tiles to gold lustering and painting large tableaus. The consistency of the painting robot is achieved by analysing the surface of each tile and adjusting the brush accordingly. The robot uses the traditional brush and paint as hand-painted delftware, meaning that the robot is able to change brushes and dip the paint automatically.

The benefit of this production method is the quick personalisation and cost efficiency compared to other production methods. As hand-painted products are easy to customise but very expensive, and transfer products require a large batch, robotic painting is a good alternative that is both easy to customise and affordable.

Finally, a design was presented for implementing the robot into the Royal Delft production process. The concept was validated with a showcase product, a demonstration day in the museum and a discussion with the account managers of Royal Delft. The results were promising, and the robot could be a valuable addition to Royal Delft.

Mischa de Haan currently works in the design department of Royal Delft.

Link to the master thesis “Digital Delft Blue, a new approach”: https://repository.tudelft.nl/record/uuid:8f74b8e2-c0e6-469d-9193-14bc0c492ab3