See how these average tables become kinetic art pieces for the home using a layer of sand, a steel ball, and a hand-built robot.

At this year’s WestEdge Design Fair, these coffee and side tables from Sisyphus Industries were some of our favorite designs. The brand, led by CEO/artist Bruce Shapiro, turns average tables into kinetic art pieces for the home using a layer of sand and a steel ball. Of course, there’s more to it than that as the steel ball has to move to create the mesmerizing surface patterns and that’s where the hand-built robot comes in. Intrigued" Read on to see how Sisyphus Industries makes these unique tables, for this month’s Deconstruction.

Each Sisyphus table begins here, at our custom CNC machine. Every piece is CNC-machined and hand finished.
Next, the team assembles by hand each and every two-motor robot, or what we call the Sisbot; the heart and inner-workings of every Sisyphus table.

The Sisbot works by moving a magnet which pulls a steel ball through the sand, creating unending patterns. The Sisbot is WiFi connected and controlled by a small Raspberry Pi computer and mobile app which plays any of more than 160 different design patterns, much like a music player plays an mp3 file. Each Sisyphus table allows for the user to create their own custom designs as well.

Post-assembly, each Sisbot undergoes rigorous testing to ensure not only quality, but Sisyphus? long-lasting performance as well.

Next up, CNC-mac...