Everyone has seen a hologram before. This special effect typically reserved for futuristic action movies can now be found in furniture.

Daryl Garcia, a natural builder, problem solver and hands-on worker, decided to take his Student Innovation Project (SIP) to the next level by merging leading technology and unique furniture pieces.

Before embarking on his SIP, Daryl mocked up a small, five-inch version of a hologram table and a hologram lantern. These small innovations gave him the idea to go big. He repurposed a spare TV, built a wooden frame to house it and used a 3D printer to create brackets to hold everything together.

The science behind a hologram is simple, you just need the right tools. The TV plays an image, which is what will be projected, and a Raspberry Pi converts the image into a hologram. Anything with an HDMI port can be connected to the TV, which makes image and video options endless. In addition, the table can play music in sync with the images since TVs have built in speakers.

Daryl explains that the more movement images have, for example exploding fireworks, the more interesting it is to watch.

Daryl isn’t done with holograms, “It would be cool to make a dining room table and make it [the hologram] rise up out of it.”

What has a SIP inspired you to do? Learn more about the Digital Maker and Fabrication degree.