Cumulative, Collaborative, Disruptive ; Architectural geometry in research, practice, and its imminent mainstream future

Solutions to the significant social, ecological and economic opportunities and problems of 21st century architecture and urbanism involve a vast number of variables. These solutions will require the use of data-driven technologies to acquire physical and social information of sites and consumer communities, digital technologies to design for the briefs so acquired and robotic manufacturing to deliver the designed solutions effectively

Force-Driven Weave Patterns for Shell Structures in Architectural Design

The use of lightweight carbon fiber reinforced polymers (CFRP) in the discipline of architecture opens new possibilities for the construction of architectural components. CFRP has been explored mainly in engineering fields, such as aeronautics, automotive, ballistic and marine engineering. CFRP has also been explored in the discipline of architecture in the construction of shell structures because of its high strength-to-weight ratio and low-cost. There is, however, limited research on how structural analysis can be used to inform weave patterns for shell structures using CFRP. Further, previous research in the field has not performed physical structural tests to validate which force driven weave patterns perform best. This thesis addresses this gap by contributing a methodology for the creation of CFRP weave patterns from structural analysis and their validation through physical testing. Specifically, this thesis addresses three main problems: Firstly, understanding and analyzing the structural behavior of a shell structure through computation; Secondly, the creation of a weaving pattern of carbon fiber optimized for structural performance; the third part seeks to translate the digital model into fabricated prototypes. The results of this research show that force-flow derived patterns perform best. Consequently, force-flow is the information we should implement to create a more efficient force-driven weave pattern in shell structures. Adviser: David Newto

Fabricate

Bringing together pioneers in design and making within architecture, construction, engineering, manufacturing, materials technology and computation, Fabricate is a triennial international conference, now in its third year (ICD, University of Stuttgart, April 2017). Each year it produces a supporting publication, to date the only one of its kind specialising in Digital Fabrication. The 2017 edition features 32 illustrated articles on built projects and works in progress from academia and practice, including contributions from leading practices such as Foster + Partners, Zaha Hadid Architects, Arup, and Ron Arad, and from world-renowned institutions including ICD Stuttgart, Harvard, Yale, MIT, Princeton University, The Bartlett School of Architecture (UCL) and the Architectural Association

Fabricate 2017

Bringing together pioneers in design and making within architecture, construction, engineering, manufacturing, materials technology and computation, Fabricate is a triennial international conference, now in its third year (ICD, University of Stuttgart, April 2017). Each year it produces a supporting publication, to date the only one of its kind specialising in Digital Fabrication. The 2017 edition features 32 illustrated articles on built projects and works in progress from academia and practice, including contributions from leading practices such as Foster + Partners, Zaha Hadid Architects, Arup, and Ron Arad, and from world-renowned institutions including ICD Stuttgart, Harvard, Yale, MIT, Princeton University, The Bartlett School of Architecture (UCL) and the Architectural Association