Architecture, Building and Planning - Research Publications
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ItemComputational design and robotic fabrication of a self-supporting acoustic shell(CRC Press, 2022-07-08)In the early twentieth century, acoustic shells were primarily conceived as permanent structures, generally made in reinforced concrete. Architects like Candela and Niemeyer exploited the high density and plasticity of concrete to realise forms that could reflect sound efficiently. However, building doubly-curved shapes required laborious construction methods, including using complex and wasteful formworks. This paper presents the development and application of a computational workflow for the design and fabrication of acoustic concrete shells. The workflow allows controlling the shape of discrete, curved panels that can be assembled into continuous surfaces. The panels are designed to comply with the robotic fabrication requirements of a novel Parametric Adjustable Mould (PAM) technology and assembled to create shells that satisfy a set of acoustic requirements. The technology is used to fabricate custom curved concrete panels using a single mould frame that reduces waste in concrete formwork.
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ItemTowards swarm construction(The Association for Computer-Aided Architectural Design Research in Asia, 2021-01-01)Swarm intelligence has primarily been explored in architecture as a form-finding technique with resulting material articulation using advanced 3d-printing technology. Researchers in engineering have developed swarm robotics for construction and fabrication, typically constraints to small scale prototypes as the technology matures within the field. However, a few research explores the implication of swarm robotics for construction on the building or urban scale. This paper presents a novel swarm robotics construction method using mole-like digging technology to construct new architectural language using machine intelligence. The research discusses the role of swarm intelligence behaviours in design and synthesis such behaviour with machine logics. The paper addresses the conference theme through the speculative projection of future construction methodology and reflects on how automation can impact the future of construct and design.
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ItemFreeform Volumetric Fabrication Using Actuated Robotic Hot Wire Cutter(Springer, 2021)This paper discusses the design, fabrication and operational workflow of a novel hot-wire cutter used as an end effector for a robotic arm. Typically, hot wire cutters used a linear cutting element which results in ruled surfaces geometry. While several researchers have examined the use of hot wire cutter with cooperative robotic arms to create non-ruled surface geometry, this research explores the use of an actuated hot wire cutter manoeuver by a single robotic arm to produce similar form. The paper outlines the machine making process and its workflow resulting in a 1:1 scale prototype. The paper concludes by examining how the novel tool can be applied to an urban stage design. The research set up a fabrication procedure that has the potential to be deployed as an on-site fabrication methodology.
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ItemDIGITAL STUPEFACTION(he 25th Annual Conference of the Association for Computer-Aided Architectural Design Research in Asia, 2020-08-05)Digital design techniques have saturated architectural discourse in the past forty-plus years from modelling to simulation and fabrication. Digital or Computational Design now forms part of the standard architectural curriculum, promising efficiency in modelling, design, advancing site analysis and ease of fabrication. Alongside these promises, we as educators begin to witness a new level of complacency governed by the use of the digital tools; we call this Digital Stupefaction. With the increasing ‘smartness’ of digital tools, what is the risk of shifting away from the focus of what students should/could know, and what information they embody? Is it still relevant to be able to draw on intrinsic background knowledge, or tacit knowledge in action, when everything can be analysed and verified on the fly (or even pre-selected via AI)? How can educators respond to these challenges by adjusting the way they deliver subjects associated with digital design?
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ItemFuture prototyping Exhibition Catalogue(Melbourne School of Design, the University of Melbourne, 2020)Future Prototyping is the long-awaited effort to critically review and survey the current state of design innovation within the Australia and New Zealand context as we moved into a new decade. With foreword by Professor Jane Burry, authors of numerous books including Prototyping for Architects (Burry & Burry 2016, Thames & Hudson), the catalogue is edited and introduced by the curatorial teams consisting of architecture educators and design practitioners. This catalogue accompanied the Future Prototyping exhibition held at the Dulux Gallery, the Melbourne School of Design, from 24th of Feb – 27th of March 2020. The exhibition gathered for the first time 36 unique projects spanning multiple disciplines from art to engineering, architecture, fashion and computing to examine the status of prototype and how it acts as a pivotal moment for designers to articulate novel ideas and speculate on the future of our society.
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ItemHOUSE #05 Incremental Construction in Digital Practice(UCL Press, 2020-04-06)House #05 explores the integration of custom moulds with a proprietary construction system for in-situ concrete casting. The project foregrounds a design methodology that allows the fabrication procedure to drive the design process, primarily using tooling and construction procedures as agents to inform the architectural design.