Chuck Hoberman (born 1956) is an artist, engineer, architect, and inventor of folding
toys and structures, most notably the
Hoberman sphere.[1][2]
Early life and education
Hoberman's father was an architect, and his mother,
Mary Ann Hoberman, was a children's book author.[3] He wanted to be an artist from an early age, doing drawing and painting, and eventually taking courses at
Cooper Union in
New York City. He studied
liberal arts at
Brown University, and went on to earn a
bachelor's degree in
sculpture from
Cooper Union in 1979, and a
master's degree in
mechanical engineering from
Columbia University. At some point during his education, he was asked to produce a sculpture that could move. He made a work that unrolled colored plastic sheets on the floor, and he became fascinated with
kinetic art.[3]
Finishing his formal education, he then went to work for a
robotics engineering firm, where he added
computer modeling (CAD-CAM) to his skills.[3] After six years, he left to pursue his artistic and technical interests full-time.
Hoberman has installed permanent building facades that transform in transparency at the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering of
Harvard University and the Simons Center for Geometry and Physics at
Stony Brook University.[4] He designed the
Hoberman Arch as a centerpiece of
Salt Lake City during the 2002 Olympics. It was later moved to Olympic Cauldron Park and then to the
Salt Lake City airport.
In July 2011, the rock band
U2 concluded a nearly three-year world-wide
concert tour (called "360°") that featured Hoberman's expanding video screen, a 3,800 square feet (350 m2) elliptical display that would grow into a seven-story cone. The display weighed 120,000 pounds (54,000 kg), and incorporated 888 LED screens displaying a total of 500,000
pixels. The complex apparatus was successfully transported and reassembled for 110 concerts during that time.[4]
Toys
In addition to toys such as the Hoberman sphere, Hoberman created the "Brain Twist", a hard plastic
tetrahedron that folds, stellates, and becomes self-dual while having a component that rotates similarly to a
Rubik's Cube. Likewise, Hoberman's "Pocket Flight Ring" is a folding, throwable toy resembling a
chakram.[5] Hoberman has also created the Expandagon Construction System, a kind of
construction toy,[6] and the Switch Pitch, a toy which turns itself inside out when tossed into the air, thus appearing to change colors.[7]
Awards and honors
In 1994, the
Museum of Modern Art added the Hoberman sphere into its permanent collection.[8] Hoberman won the
Chrysler Design Award for Innovation and Design in 1997 and was a finalist for the 2000
SmithsonianNational Design Award. He shared the LDI2009 Award for Excellence in Video Design and Technology for the U2360 expanding video screen.[9]
^US 5024031, Hoberman, Charles, "Radial expansion/retraction truss structures", published 1991-06-18
^US 5234727, Hoberman, Charles, "Curved pleated sheet structures", published 1993-08-10
^US 6082056, Hoberman, Charles, "Reversibly expandable structures having polygon links", published 2000-07-04
^US 6190231, Hoberman, Charles, "Continuously rotating mechanisms", published 2001-02-20
^US 6739098, Hoberman, Charles, "Retractable structures comprised of interlinked panels", published 2004-05-25
^US 6834465, Hoberman, Charles, "Folding covering panels for expanding structures", published 2004-12-28
^US 7100333, Hoberman, Charles, "Loop assemblies having a central link", published 2006-09-05
^US 7125015, Hoberman, Charles & Davis, Matthew, "Transforming puzzle", published 2006-10-24, assigned to Charles Hoberman
^US 7464503, Hoberman, Charles, "Geared expanding structures", published 2008-12-16
^US 7540215, Hoberman, Charles & Davis, Matthew, "Synchronized ring linkages", published 2009-06-02, assigned to Charles Hoberman
^US 7584777, Hoberman, Charles & Davis, Matthew, "Panel assemblies for variable shading and ventilation", published 2009-09-08, assigned to Charles Hoberman
^US 7559174, Hoberman, Charles, "Covering structure having links and stepped overlapping panels both of which are pivotable between extended position and a retracted position in which the panels are stacked", published 2009-07-14
^US 7644721, Hoberman, Charles & Davis, Matthew, "Synchronized four-bar linkages", published 2010-01-12, assigned to Charles Hoberman
^US 8615970, Hoberman, Charles; Davis, Matthew & Drozdowski, Zygmunt Joseph et al., "Panel assemblies having controllable surface properties", published 2013-12-31