Geometrical data for lattice spatial structures : regularity, historical background and education.

Dealing with geometrical information has been an important aspect of the knowledge required for construction of a structure. In particular, data generation techniques appropriate for complex geometries are crucial for the design and construction of spatial structures. This may be referred to as ‘Configuration Processing’ and has been the centre of attention for some researchers in the past few decades. A main focus of this thesis is the ‘regularity’ in structural forms and the present research shows that the ‘metric properties’ of structural forms, suggested by the Author, are fundamental for the study of regularity. Metric properties refer to the geometrical information necessary for design, and in particular, construction of lattice spatial structures. To elaborate, the research addresses the following questions: • What are the metric properties for a lattice structure and how can these be evaluated? • What is the definition of regularity for lattice structures and how can this be quantified? • How could the regularity of a lattice structure be improved? The Author is an architect and structural engineer who has been involved in the design and construction of lattice spatial structures for 20 years. The experience of the actual construction over the years has shown that there are advantages in keeping the number of different types of structural components small. In another front, the study of regularity of forms for lattice structures may involve the ‘visual aspects’, ‘arrangements of elements’ or ‘structural components’. The first two aspects are subjective matters and the latter one, that is the focus of the present work, is an objective matter. The present research shows that the metric properties of structural forms are fundamental for the study of component regularity. There are considerable benefits in terms of the construction of structures which have a high degree of regular components. The benefits include savings in time and cost of construction, as well as a reduction in probability of having a wrong arrangement during assembly. In this sense, the present work could be considered as a research of fundamental importance which provides a basis for the knowledge in this field. Most of the examples in the Thesis are single layer lattice structures with straight elements and further research on other types of lattice structures is recommended. This thesis consists of six chapters, the first of which entitled ‘Introduction’ provides background information about the research and discusses the research aims. Chapter 2 on the ‘Literature Review’ concerns the few available publications relevant to the research. The third chapter entitled ‘Metric Properties’ defines a number of geometrical parameters which are being used to generate the geometrical information. Also, the mathematics involved for the necessary calculations are discussed. This chapter is a major contribution of the thesis and to the available knowledge in terms of introduction a set of well defined geometrical parameters for design and construction of lattice spatial structures. Chapter 4 is dedicated to discussion of different aspects of ‘Regularity’ of lattice structures. To begin with, the idea of regularity is elaborated upon and then the concept of ‘regularity indicators’ are discussed. These indicators help to quantify regularity of components. Here again, this chapter presents a novel idea in the field of lattice spatial structures. Another major contribution of this thesis to the general knowledge is Chapter 5 entitled ‘Sphere Packing’. This is a particular technique for configuration processing developed by the Author to improve the member length regularity of lattice structures. An example of the application of the technique for configuration processing of spherical domes is also discussed in details. Moreover, a comparison on the variation of the member lengths of different dome configurations is discussed which shows that around 50% of the members of a dome created by sphere packing technique are with the same length. This proportion of equal length members is considerably higher than that of the other dome configurations (10%-33%). Finally, Chapter 6 provides the conclusions and some important suggestions for the continuation of the research. In addition to the main body of this thesis, copy of the relevant publications by the Author are provided as Annexes in the following three categories: i. Geometrical data generation for lattice spatial structures is the core of the Annexes A to E, then, ii. Annexes F and G are focusing on the education of spatial structures, and finally, iii. Historical background of spatial structures is discussed in the Annexes H and I

Spatial Structures; Movers and Shakers, Volume 3, Issue 1

The Spatial Structures; Movers and Shakers e-magazine was originally launchedin the build-up to the Spatial Structures 2020/21 conference, which wasorganised by the Spatial Structures Research Centre at the University of Surrey,and held in August 2021. Following the success of the conference, new editionsof the e-magazine are now published twice a year.Drawing from – and building on – the conference’s theme of ‘inspiring the next generation’, thise-magazine aims to reach out and encourage young people to enter the field of spatial structures,and to highlight and promote the exciting research and innovation taking place within the discipline.With this in mind, Spatial Structures; Movers & Shakers celebrates the life, work and achievementsof world-leading individuals who are involved in spatial structures, as well as spotlighting renownedorganisations and interesting projects that are pushing the boundaries within the field. We commendoutstanding contributions to research and education, as well as exploring new insights in design,fabrication and construction. The articles include Q&As based on video interviews which areavailable on the YouTube channel ‘SpatialStructures2021’. In addition, the video section ‘Your Space,Your Structure’ offers individuals the opportunity to present some of their own work and theirinspirations in the field of spatial structures.This e-magazine is published by the Spatial Structures Research Centre at the University of Surrey.We hope you enjoy reading it

Symmetry in Traditional Persian Poetry

A great many Persian poems have been composed by many famous or obscure poets throughout the centuries which Persians have learned, memorized and recited throughout their lives. Regardless of their meaning, there are other aspects that make learning these poems simple and pleasant. It seems that the rhythm in traditional Persian poems is an important factor that makes it possible for non-Persian speaking people to enjoy Persian poems. As Marco polo, writes in his itinerary: ‘Persians are people who speak in poetry and walk on beautiful carpets’. Since Poem has a rhythm beyond the usual rhythm of the language, Which is due to the positions of syllables and how they sound, in this study with the help of graphs relating to syllables, we try to analyze the rhythm in different structural types of traditional Persian poems like elegy, lyric, couplet, etc. To this end, using dedicated software developed to analyze the music of poem through transcription of poems; samples of traditional Persian poems are analyzed

SYMMETRY IN TRADITIONAL PERSIAN POETRY

A great many Persian poems have been composed by many famous or obscure poets throughout the centuries which Persians have learned, memorized and recited throughout their lives. Regardless of their meaning, there are other aspects that make learning these poems simple and pleasant. It seems that the rhythm in traditional Persian poems is an important factor that makes it possible for non-Persian speaking people to enjoy Persian poems. As Marco polo, writes in his itinerary: ‘Persians are people who speak in poetry and walk on beautiful carpets’. Since Poem has a rhythm beyond the usual rhythm of the language, Which is due to the positions of syllables and how they sound, in this study with the help of graphs relating to syllables, we try to analyze the rhythm in different structural types of traditional Persian poems like elegy, lyric, couplet, etc. To this end, using dedicated software developed to analyze the music of poem through transcription of poems; samples of traditional Persian poems are analyzed

Symmetry in Traditional Persian Poetry

A great many Persian poems have been composed by many famous or obscure poets throughout the centuries which Persians have learned, memorized and recited throughout their lives. Regardless of their meaning, there are other aspects that make learning these poems simple and pleasant. It seems that the rhythm in traditional Persian poems is an important factor that makes it possible for non-Persian speaking people to enjoy Persian poems. As Marco polo, writes in his itinerary: ‘Persians are people who speak in poetry and walk on beautiful carpets’. Since Poem has a rhythm beyond the usual rhythm of the language, Which is due to the positions of syllables and how they sound, in this study with the help of graphs relating to syllables, we try to analyze the rhythm in different structural types of traditional Persian poems like elegy, lyric, couplet, etc. To this end, using dedicated software developed to analyze the music of poem through transcription of poems; samples of traditional Persian poems are analyzed

Zygmunt Stanisław Makowski: A pioneer of space structures

The objective of this paper is to present information about the life, personality and the contributions of Professor Zygmunt Stanislaw Makowski as a pioneer in the field of Space Structures. He was the Head of the Department of Civil Engineering of the University of Surrey, in the United Kingdom, for 22 years. Professor Makowski also created the Space Structures Research Centre of the University of Surrey in 1963, and the work of this Centre, over the years, has won a great deal of international recognition

Member Length Regularity of Lattice Domes

The objective of this paper is to investigate the member length regularity of lattice domes. Also, a recently developed configuration for lattice domes generated by Surface Sphere Packing technique is compared to five other lattice dome configurations