Student Portfolio
ARCH 473/3522 - DIGITAL DESIGN STUDIO AND WORKSHOP Sophie Rami Spring 2020
The American University in Cairo (AUC) School of Sciences and Engineering - Department of Architecture ARCH 473/3522 - Digital Design Studio and Workshop (Spring 2019) Student portfolio documenting samples of work submitted along the course, including research, experimentation, 3D modeling, digital fabrication, parametric design and modeling, physical model realisation and analysis. Student name: Sophie Rami Student ID: 900160867
Š The American University in Cairo (AUC), May 2020
Sophie Rami Architecture Student I am Sophie Rami, a senior architecture student at the American University in Cairo. Regarding my personality I love Making use of time Not only in academics but also in my extracurricular life. In fact, i am a scout leader and volunteering with Sudanese refugees in Egypt, with whom i find my self as i discover my capabilities as a person in a community, who have her roles and duties. Regarding, architecture and how this Digital Design Studio and workshop affected me, my thinking process and my capabilities. I personally found out my capability in thinking through sketching which can be later translated into an algorithmic thinking through deducing some rules and relations which should help me finally in designing a certain thing. I was so interested by the 3D modeling enviroment as they are great and easy tools that can help generate interactive models which are easy to understand and manipulate to reach better results. It was my first encounter with softwares like Rhino and grasshoper and what was the most interesting to me was the concept of parametric modeling due to the fact that it is responsive to any minor change you apply so it gives a wide variety of solutions to any problem we may encounter through the continuous generation, analysis and evaluation of architectural alternatives in any iterative design process we are working on. So, The process of working in this course opened my eyes to an intersting world of computational design that may encourage me to continue working/studying in such a field.
Table Of Content:
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Project I Mobile Shelter for the Homeless
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Project II - Part I The blank Facade Canvas
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Project II - Part II The Parametric Facelift
3D Shot of The Final Model of The homeless’ Mobile Shelter designed.
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Project I Mobile Shelter for the Homeless
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Modeling & Fabrication - Mobile Shelter for the Homeless
3 A collage of the natural inspiration with the final model of project I
The Project that follows, will be focusing on choosing a natural inspiration focusing on the growth of one of its aspect, elaborating in it and abstracting it to derive certain concepts and rules to follow during the design of the project. The latter consists on designing a mobile Shelter for homeless which is inspired by the growth of the natural inspiration and follows its natural rules to reflect on the activities and architecture of the spaces inside.
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Enviromental Analysis
Location
Hot Desert Climate
El Minya
Besides of its well known monuments and archeological sites, El Minya is knows for its industrial activities related to agriculture. A focus on El Minya’s main crops, resulted in taking as inspiration the natural growth of a plant from the site which is the corn.
Sun Shading chart (Summer)
Sun Shading chart (winter)
Rarely in Confort zone
Dry Bulb & Humidity
Site Slection
Between residential buildings Near school
Wind wheel - prevailing N/NW
Mainly need evaporative cooling techniques due to high heat gain.
Near agricultural land
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Site selected (2475 m^2)
Psychonometric Chart Modeling & Fabrication - Mobile Shelter for the Homeless
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Target Users
So, the designed shelter will be dedicated to homeless children living in El Minya’s streets. Aiming to fulfill their needs, of a protective place to Sleep,Play & Work
Around 5,000 homeless child occupy the streets of El-Minya.
What are their NEEDS?
What Properties of space may satisfy those needs?
How can they be Translated into Functional spaces? ARCH 473/3522 - Spring - 2020
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Inspiration - Corn-
A group member sketch of the different constituent of the plant
Starting the project as a group research and by understanding the growing mechanism of the corn all together, helped us illustrating the different part of the process of the growth into sketches and diagrams illustrating the seperate parts, which helped us later on in abstracting those several process and coming up with more elaborate ideas out of them.
Cyclic Growth that starts and ends with a seed
Life Cycle of the plant as whole Portfolio
Modeling & Fabrication - Mobile Shelter for the Homeless
Conclusion of The Growth
Through studying the growth mechanism some conclusions were driven as a group and on which our thinking process for the specific growth in ceratin parts were built,.
Typical start & end product with a contrary in-between process
A process of elongation,
Branching out,
Intensity , & expansion
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Form Generation Inspiration The Part I chose to focus on is the growth of the seeds out of the cob on a micro and a macro-scale of interpretation of the phenomena.
Small/ Fragile
16 concentric row with a total of 800 seeds/fruit (40/row)
Strong /core/base
Explicit change in the nature of the corn while grwing
Growth and changes occurs inside the tassel so are not visible to the human eye observing “An Outer Phenomena, Reflect an inner phenomena� What we actually see indicates what actually occur inside the husks
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Modeling & Fabrication - Mobile Shelter for the Homeless
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Very tiny & Thin thread roots Holds the Kenel/seed “Main,desired part of the corn fruit�
Seeds are deeply attached to the core.
Along the several cross- sections , a change in the color of the seed as well as its fluidity occurs as an indication to the growth Smooth transition between differet sizes that they seem identical although they are not.
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During the growth mechanism, the husk plays a major role by being entangled, each and every layer of the husk plays a role in protecting the fruit inside giving it more importance and value by being something that need to be secured and shielded.
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Abstraction
Space created in between Thin fragile
Interlocking
Small
Shapping the cross sections so that they become thinner and more fragile Portfolio
Solid
A surface That Responds to what occur inside Layering
Functional Space
Cut into different cross sections
Applying force , deteriorate the form
Entagled shapes resist the force better
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core
Zones comming out of it
Shapping the different zones as per the seed cross section
Trying another alternative
Hidden VS Revieled Aspect
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Conclusion
Reflect the Microscale on the outer surface Perforation density Logic
The shelter responds to Users’ Needs Light Ventilation Circculation
Packing Up
self organization structure
weaving
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Modeling & Fabrication - Mobile Shelter for the Homeless
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Section Illustrating the abstracted concept s from the corn
Main Longitudinal Structure with Multiple elements and particles hosted on it
Emergence of pattern and shape Shelter Rooted in Earth Sketches illustratic the process of design
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Design Approach Inspired by the growth of the corn which is clearly shown throw its different cross sections, a zoning of the different spaces of the Shelter was Made with respect to the needs of the users and the quality of space i want them to feel and to be delivered through design.
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Form Generation First Transition Attractive, welcoming, interactive, absorb children to the inside
Zone I Open as if they are in the outdoors, accesible Second Transition Openings size affect the feeling of a smooth transition between spaces inside the shelter Zone II communal, a space that connect and group users, Focus Third Transition Brutal Transition to the most private and secular zone Zone III Individualistic, protective
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Merging the different Zones into One Entity
Through the process of thinking and designing the shelter as a whole, some Difficulties occured.
One cannot design each Zone Seperatly and then combine/ merge them.
The Solution was thinking of the structure as a whole and then the zones’ design will come and emerge out of the MAIN CONTIOUS ELEMENT. ARCH 473/3522 - Spring - 2020
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Final Approach
Diagramtic sketch
Elevation Portfolio
Modeling & Fabrication - Mobile Shelter for the Homeless
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Section
Plan ARCH 473/3522 - Spring - 2020
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The Shelter As the growth of the corn fruit occurs in layering of one single element that develop, change its structure, color and constitutions . In addition that the growth happens mainly on the microscale of the fruit which is inside the seeds and is not seen however it is reflected on the outside through change in size,color and texture of the outer skin of the fruit. on those aspects , were based the design of the shelter to be a one continious entity through which occurs all the activities and functions.
Voronoi structure density and size change per zone Portfolio
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As per the corn growth, the activities occuring inside the shelter are reflected on the outer skin of its structure. The Voronoi structure forming the pannels which covers the shelter vary their density and size as per the zone’s functional needs and requirements they get smaller as we reach zone 3 where less light and more privacy are needed , while their size is extremely large in zone 1 where it is more public and more light is needed..etc
The Voronoi structure is inspired by the corn seeds’ cross sections where the structure density and size also vary.
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Modeling & Fabrication - Mobile Shelter for the Homeless
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Fabrication Several trial with different Infills for a fine profile, Same Result 15 hours
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Modeling & Fabrication - Mobile Shelter for the Homeless
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Changine the profile into a normal one with a thickness 0.1 mm was the solutions as the time of fabrication decreased with the same speed and same properties requires as above
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Preview of Process
Final 3D model to be printed Portfolio
Modeling & Fabrication - Mobile Shelter for the Homeless
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The process of Fabrication through 3D printing illustrate how intricate and beautiful are the details of the model. Showing each and every detail in a way that could not be visualised through another process such as the waffle technique ,initially thought of, to create the model through laser cutting. The Shift from Laser cut to 3D printing was due to the fact that the 3D printing would be more efficient to use with the curvilinear and organic structure as it will save a lot of time to assemble the small details. In addition to the material it self used for 3D printing will suit best the model rather than the rigid and solid cardboard that would have been used in laser cut.
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Portfolio
Part I :Material Exploration - The Blank Faรงade Canvas
33 Collage Illustrating the 3 main phases during working in this project - materials selection, form making, Form Fabrication -
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Project II - Part I The blank Facade Canvas ARCH 473/3522 - Spring - 2020
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Part I :Material Exploration - The Blank Faรงade Canvas
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Through the first Phase of exploring the material, different approaches were taken into consideration in order to reach a wide variety of outcomes, through which results, conclusions and linkage to the second part of the project will be deduced and taken into consideration. Those conclusions are in a form of parameters to be played with and variables that each has a different impact on a certain outcome desired.
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Physical Experimentation - Part 1 The Approaches I chose to experiment, mainly focus on using Gypsum/White Cement and Nylon Stocking.
The material chosen to be casted is Gypsum / White Cement as it has the capability to solidify when it us keft in the air. Deduced through experimentation: The more the water means more time for the material to solidify, which also means a better chance and time to reshape the structure.
Nylon Stockings were chosen as the fabric to be dealt with as it is a one element that can take various shapes without the need for tailoring. Deduced through experimentation: The transparant stocking has the most Lycra so it is the easiest to reshape VS the Opaque.The patterned Stockings didn’t print the pattern as expected. Secondary Materials were used to serve as a formwork for the Fabric and each had a different Impact and was implemented in a different way . Deduced through experimentation: All Materials work mainly on applying a certain force or pressure that result in a tension in the fabrics which lead to more practicality in working.
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Part I :Material Exploration - The Blank Façade Canvas
Rules deduced from Research Methodology of Casting through using fabric as a form finding technique mainly consists on having fabric as the main formwork where you pour the material that has the ability to harden/solidify by time such as Gypsum, But in order to prepare the fabric to be able to hold the poured material, you need to apply certain foces on it of to add a secondary material that works as a formowark for the fabric itself.
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II
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III
Support
Fabric
Casting
Framework for Fabric
Formwork for Concrete Casting
Material that will be poured as liquid and solidifies
Sketches illustrating the 3 Phases That will be followed During Material Exploration
Rules deduced from Research
Sketches of hypthethical designs and techniques that could be applied ARCH 473/3522 - Spring - 2020
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Approach -1Form Follows Manual Deformation & Structure
Volume of model
Weight of model
30x 20 x15-20 cm
Heavy
Ratio of poured material
Secondary Formwork & how it works
circular plastic 1:1 (gypsum:water) rings
Ratio of Formwork VS model 20%
An irregular form shaped with rings and Stockings.
A Form that is continous but difficult to hold/stand alone.
Adjust Rings to be on central axis for shape to be uniform.
Rings create tension in fabric which define a boundry to be casted
Easier Manipulation of shape
Pouring was done in several Steps for the Gypsum to solidify.
Once Gypsum poured, manual shapping of material is done
Once Gypsum poured, manual shapping of material is done
The Approach mainly focus on creating tension in fabric by adding the rings and letting the fabric take its default shape without any personal intervention so that the material take a chance to move smoothly within the formwork . Portfolio
Part I :Material Exploration - The Blank Faรงade Canvas
Approach -IIForm Follows Structure
Seperate elements
Thinking of whether to pour gypsum inside or outside.
Volume of model
Weight of model
30x15x10 cm
N/A Failed
Ratio of poured material
2:1 (gypsum:water)
Secondary Formwork & how it works
Thick wide wooden sticks
work together as A Rigid structure with its ups and formwork for fabric downs and holes
Cover the fabric from the outdife with Gypsum
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Failure of the Wooden structure and broking down
Ratio of Formwork VS model 70%
Fitting the wooden Structure inside Stockings to create a formwork for fabric to be poured
The Approach mainly focus also on creating tension to the fabric by streching it toward various Axis VS the 1st approach . Pouring the concrete was from the outside so that the Fabric formwork would act as a mold that will be removed once the structure dries. As, through pouring from the inside the Gypsum will face several obstacles and won’t have a clear path to continure all over.
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Approach -IIIForm Follows Manual Deformation
Volume of model
Weight of model
20 x 5 x 1-3 cm
Heavy
Wire used as a formwork for Fabric to be easily reshaped to show Dynamic aspect of fabric.
Ratio of poured material
Secondary Formwork & how it works
Wires 2:1 (gypsum:water)
Wire adjusted to be Wires frequency increased for manipu- uniaxial for ease of pouring. lation of shape.
Ratio of Formwork VS model 20%
Gypsum will fall down by gravity.
Adjust the quantity all Once Gypsum poured, shaping of gypsum based Shaping the wire inside. on wire. over shapping of material is done The approach focus on applying pressure after casting with an already imbeded structure that serve initially on creating tension on the fabric to ease casting and then used to be twisted and rotated to shape the fabric filled with casted material.
Gypsum Fill the whole stocking
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Part I :Material Exploration - The Blank Faรงade Canvas
Approach -IVForm Follows Structure
Napkin to be used as a formwork
Volume of model
Weight of model
15 x 20 cm
light
Folding the fabric
Ratio of poured material
2:1 (gypsum:water)
Hold the folded fabric from both sides with pins
Secondary Formwork & how it works
Napkin and closed loop pins
Ratio of Formwork VS model 10%
Adjust Spacing be- Adjust the curvatween folded parts. tures of the fabrics
This Approach (in addition to approach 5 & 6 ) Focuses on Subsituting the stockings which is a closed Fabric with a planar fabric that has a surface and we apply forces on it to take shape. The approach consist on starting witha manual manipulation of fabric and then adding a material (pins) to hold the fabric formwork before pouring. Pouring cement above fabric to fill gaps in the folded partsv
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Approach -VForm Follows Structure
Napkin to be used as a formwork
Volume of model
Weight of model
20 x 20 cm
N/A Failed
Ratio of poured material
Secondary Formwork & how it works
Napkin and 2:1 (gypsum:water) Metal Clips
Using Clips as attrac- Clips resulted in a tion point in fabric floral shape from the other side
Ratio of Formwork VS model 10%
Pouring Gypsum above fabric to fill gaps in the folded parts
The Approach uses napkin instead of Nylon Stockings as it is a harder/thicker material and gypsum will be casted above/over it. A process similar to the smocking process was initialised in this approach through the clips that holds certain parts and result in curvatures and spaces formed in between to be filled with the casted material.
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Part I :Material Exploration - The Blank Faรงade Canvas
Approach -VIForm Follows Structure
Volume of model
Weight of model
8 x 5 cm
light/heavy
Ratio of poured material
2:1 (gypsum:water)
Secondary Formwork & how it works
Plastic Cup and Napkin
Ratio of Formwork VS model 10%
Napkin to be used Plastic cup was Formed fabric Cement Poured into the cup as a formwork used as a formshape resulted to fill the gaps between folded work to the napkin fromhand pressure parts The Approach uses napkin instead of Nylon Stockings as it is a harder/thicker material an
Approach -VIIForm Follows Manual Deformation
Volume of model
Weight of model
30x 5 cm
Heavy
Ratio of poured material
2:1 (gypsum:water)
Secondary Formwork & how it works
Elastic Rubber Bands
Ratio of Formwork VS model 2%
This Approach Focuses Basically on the capability of the fabric on its own and letting it’s original shape be the formwork it self by being casted. Adding to it forces in certain points all over the Axis by using rubber bands which results in tension in other part of the fabric and create an interesting shape at the end.
Napkin to be used Pressure by rubber bands as a formwork applied after semi-dry ARCH 473/3522 - Spring - 2020
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Physical Experimentation - Part II
During this phase, I tried to find solutions for failures from 1st experimentations while making usse of the conclusions i came up with.
Conclusions for casting using fabric formwork - Tension - Gravity - The fabric needs to be harder - certains parts needs more strength - Gypsum/cement should be smooth to allow time to take the shape desired - some approaches needed more that 1 secondary elements to support - A base for the model is needed Parameters to be changed
- Number of Sticks - Dimensions of sticks - Fabric mtarial - Secondary materials
The model and technique i focused on: Mix gypsum with cement
Harder Stocking with less Lycra
pros: - Interesting shape - Several itterations with same elements - Can be casted from inside or outside - Flexible for changes Cons: - Could not withstand the gypsum’s weight - Doesn’t have a base for support - Not strecthed enough
Create a base for the model
Mixing water with white glue
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Part I :Material Exploration - The Blank Façade Canvas
Goal Of Experiment :
Variation 1
cast over the formwork from outside without falling
Support System Strenghtend
2D configuration
2D - 3D
Volume of model
Weight of model
30x15x10-15cm
Light
Ratio of poured material
Ratio of Formwork VS model
2:1 80% (gypsum:water)
Streching stocking hold the stockings not enough ups & downs
Covering formwork with pouring material Observation:
Final Outcome ARCH 473/3522 - Spring - 2020
The focus in this experiment was to use same technique the structure stands as first time while adding a on its own, covered support for the structure to with the poured ma- whithstand the load of the terial but the shape pouring material, the number is note defined as of sticks also increased in adexpected from the dition to changing the stockformwork ing material made it stonger.
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Variation 1I varying linkage of Support
Thin small numerous sticks linked together
Goal Of Experiment : Reach a more defined output with lots of ups and downs and varoations
Top View of Linkage
Volume of model
Weight of model
30x15x5 cm
Light
Stretching stocking for formwork to fit
Ratio of poured material
Ratio of Formwork VS model
2:1 70% (gypsum:water)
Formwork Inside Fabric formwork
Observation: The final outcome was more defined and clear in comparison to the first one but a lot of the sticks used were unnecessary and had no effect on the fabric formwork Covering formwork with pouring material
Final Outcome
The focus in this experiment was to reduce the sticks size to have better control over the structure . A more interesting shape was created however after Pouring not all the sticks had an impact on the surface due to their small size Portfolio
Part I :Material Exploration - The Blank Faรงade Canvas
Variation III Stand Alone Formwork
Stand Alone Sticks
Goal Of Experiment : Use less material & be able to manipulate each element seperatly to have various impacts
Stong Base with different heights
Volume of model
Weight of model
20 x 8 x 5-10 cm
Light
Ratio of poured material
Ratio of Formwork VS model
2:1 40% (gypsum:water)
Fitting the Formowork inside the fabric
Covering formwork with pouring material Observation:
Final Outcome ARCH 473/3522 - Spring - 2020
Final Outcome
The results were more intricate than previous variations with less complexicity in the way elements are linked & with better definition of edges through manual manipulation.
The focus in this experiment was to manually manipulate the sticks orientation to have a better impact on the fabric without the sticks being connected to each other but to the base. which created the most interesting result at the end in comparison to the previous approaches. Sophjie Rami
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Variation 1V Formwork Material& pouring technique
foam as a sendry Formwork
Goal Of Experiment : cast the poured material from inside the formwork and make use of the inbetween spaces.
Arranging foam
Pouring by gravity
Volume of model
Weight of model
20 x 10 x 5 cm
Heavy
Fitting formwork Inside stocking
Ratio of poured material
Ratio of Formwork VS model
1:1 80% (gypsum:water)
Observing in between spaces resulted
Covering formwork with pouring material
Keeping it to dry
Changing the secondary material from sticks to foam board as it is a more staThe results ble material it creates the reached were unexpected as the support as well the 2ndry shape was interest- formwork at the same time. ing in the way that Casting was from inside this time it mixes between It was also used to merge rectilinear and curvilinear through between rectilinear as well as smooth transitions curvilinear shapes created in the void between the shapes. Resulted in a smooth well defined structure Observation:
Final Outcome
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Final Outcome
Part I :Material Exploration - The Blank Faรงade Canvas
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Conclusion Input model
The table below discusses briefly the relation between the different alternative and the changes made in order to reach better results in the most efficient way. by playing with variables of the different parameters.
Problem A deteriorated model that couldn’t stand on it’s own with no base and a loose fabric formwork The pointed shape created seems like a rigid shape rather than a curvilinear one Deformation created by the formwork isn’t sufficiently explicit and noticable Exccessive number of sticks used just to make the structure stable and stand
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Paramteres and variations made - Fabric Formwork
Loose stocking replaced with a thicker one that has less lycra which made it stronger to whistand weight & force of gypsum applied.
- secondary Formwork
Rectilinear boxes as a formwork left empty curvinilnear spaces to be filled with poured material.
-Attraction Points
- Thickness of support sticks
low weight High weight Number of sticks create numerous attraction points at the intersection of fabric and sticks & thin sticks increase the weight of those attraction points
- Linkage of support
Simple connections made is easier to manipulate the attraction points to respond on our own needs, respecting the same outer shape
Part I :Material Exploration - The Blank Façade Canvas
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Output Formwork
Output Model
Conclusive statment - A base is needed to hold the structure. - A thick formwork is required to whistand the load - A strong rigid secondry formwork made it possible to poure the casting material inside. - Thickness & number of elements create various attraction points with a high weight which result in a more interesting shapes - Efficency of material results from having a main base with elements coming out of it while eliminating unnecessary Sticks
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Conclusive Diagram Application of conclusive statments on a sketch illustrating how the process of exploring the materials could be implemented on a facade design. The unit illustrated will be repeated with changing the different variables and Parameters such as : 1- Steel Anchors size (thickness and height) 2- vectors of the steel rods 3- Fabric Thickness/ elastic material to be stretched 4- opacity of elastic fabric
Sketche of a pannel in a volume of 30 x 30 x15 cm which will be repeated all over the double skin Portfolio
Part I :Material Exploration - The Blank Faรงade Canvas
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Portfolio
Part II: The Parametric Facelift
55 Parametric double skin facade for Blom Bank south 90th street
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Project II - Part II The Parametric Facelift ARCH 473/3522 - Spring - 2020
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Portfolio
Part II: The Parametric Facelift
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After Exploring several approaches to experiment with the material in Part I: The Blank Faรงade Canvas and drawing conclusions, paramters, rules and relationships out of them. Conceptual approaches were driven in order to build a paramteric logic that will be used to generate a prototype for a building faรงade skin for the Blom Bank Egypt SAE - Main Branch, South Teseen Rd, New Cairo. Th prototype should put into consideration environmental comfort, spatial relations, human aspects & aesthetic considerations. All, by assuming functional and behavioral scenarios and settings and through using a passive approach for the envelope that provides adequate shading and sun protection.
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Site Analysis Site needs to be analysed with respect to the enviromental needs in addition to the opportunitie of possible views that could be derived
The chosen building is the Blom bank in South 90th street with a 5 storey glazed Curved Facade facing south/ South west
Legend Site Facade Needs to be Protected from harsh sun exposure from the west, while preserving/ making use of the view
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Garden view on the west
Facade Facing South/South west
Sun Path most exposure (S/SW)
Part II: The Parametric Facelift
Enviromental Analysis
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Hot Climate Enviroment
Sun shading Summer
In December ,sun is needed from 7 am to 11 am and after that shade will help In november, Sun is needed from 7 am to 8 am only From June to October shade is needed from sunrise to sunset
Winter -Shade is needed only in June and it would help from March to May during the afternoons -From December to March sun is needed
Wind wheel - The prevailing wind comes from north east and the secondary prevailing wind comes from north & north-west. - The maximum wind speed comes from southwest -Temperature lies between 0 and 21 C during winter % humidity between 30-70% which are mostly around the comfort zone
psychometric chart - Sun shading of windows appears to be the highest design strategy needed to enhance temperature and daylight exposure of the building. - Cooling, and evaporative cooling and high thermal mass night flushed will also be effective techniques in this weather zone.
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Logic of the Building Facade skin Preliminary sketches
Diagrams and conceptual sketches illustrating the process initiated to create the parametric generative double skin facade
Macroscale : Facade
Microscale : Panel
Concept Need:
Shading screen works as the exterior face coupled with a high performance curtain wall system as the interior layer of the facade Portfolio
A Double skin Facades with responsive panels which help in solar avoidance due to the hot climate in Eypt and especially in the desert climate of ne cairo In addition to providing a good enviroment for a good visibility with suitable daylight without glare. Part II: The Parametric Facelift
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Materials Structural Element 3D tensile stressed Steel cable structure
Panels’ Fabric Support
White rhomboid textile awnings Revealing & Concealing Materials chosen were inspired by King Fahad National library in Riyadh that have a double skin facade that has a similar mechanism than the one i am thinking off: -It acts as sunshades - The 3D structure is adjustable to provide maximum daylight and transparancy while avoiding direct solar radiation and absorbance -Interpret an old traditional material in a modern, technological way of the 90th St.
King Fahad National Library Riyadh, by Gerben Architekten
Diagram of the technique used in real life
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General Logic A self Shading System created through the protrusions of the cantilivered slabs each floor and the other, which increase in length while going up the bank toward the least used parts (Lounges, Cafeteria..etc) VS the bank offices and meeting Rooms on the lower level. Protrusions helped creating a used corridors in between the 2 facades forming a corridor double skin facade type
Specific Logic Design Response Time is great factor affecting the design and responsivness of the DSF. As a South, South West facade is highly exposed to sun during the day,
1- Solar angles vary during the day, being heighest at noon the decrease gradually until sunset. 2- Human Behavior as they approach the facade 3- Visibility, making use of the outer view
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Early Hours, completely shaded, less density by the rods’s rotation -- better daylight for Focus in work and ultimate exposure to the view
High Solar Angles: Facades response when the sun is high to be more extruded to the outside from above and decrease until it goes down to increase the self shaidng effect created earlier by the prtrusions of the slabs Visibility & Himan Behavior Fabric is Twisted in a way that it provides a Good view while avoiding sun
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Solar & Shading Analysis
Sun Radiation for the year 2020 set to be the hourly average from sunrise to sunset 8:00 AM
10:00 AM
12:00 PM
2:00 PM
4:00 PM From sunrise till noon, sun exposure is mainly on the eastern facade which is mainly shaded due to the adjacent buildings. At noon, Sun is perpendicular to the building From Noon till sunset, wesstern facade is exposed to the sun with the building shadow dropped behind ARCH 473/3522 - Spring - 2020
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Panels’ Movement Diagram The Diagram Below was generated to illustrate the way the panels response and behave based on the previous solar radiation studies on the Bank facade
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1 Open
Open
Close
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Based on sun movement from East to West
Close Close
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Close Close Open
7 Open
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Open Close
Based on sun movement at Western Facade
Movement of panels (opening & Closing) was subdivided into 2 category, vertical and horizontal based on the general movement of the sun from east to west and based on its specific movement within the day, after noon, until sunset Part II: The Parametric Facelift
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Design Strategy
Varying the Size of the panels will Southern Facade require Horizontal shad- result in a more dense configuration of the steel rods intering devices secting creating a more vertical elements stretching the fabric and Western Facades Require Vertical Shading acting as Vertical Shading Devices. (Vice versa) Devices
Panels size difference in the X direction
Final Expected shape of the variation in density and size of panels
-Having a surface -Evaluating point on the surface -Moving the points away,in the normal direction, each with a different amplitude - Directing the orientation of the points
-Selecting the vertices of the faces subdivided to the closest points within the face . -Closing when sun approach and opening it when away
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Model Progress 1
The Grasshoper shots below Describe the process until reaching an initial approach toward the parametric double skin facade with shots of how it behaved according to sun movement.
Protrusions of slabs creating a curved profile for the facade, will continue for all upcoming trials
Slabs Extension
curved self shaded profile
A one Surface Created
Subdividing the surface into small panels
Process that is specific to this approach
Identify the verticies
Sun movement 1 Portfolio
random points in normal direction
Sun movement 2
Connecting points with verticies
Sun movement 3
creating a surface out of the prev. connections
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First Trial for Responsive Panels
Grasshoper Definition
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Randomness
Plans
Smooth surface, Intersecting sur- Elevations allowing, daylight face allowing self and view shade and avoiding sun exposure
Horizontality- to protect from Southern sun
Verticality - to protect from western sun
Randomness of previous Itterations would have required a definitions for each and every panel of the facade in order for it to respond and behave according to sun movement and behavior of users inside Geometrically not applicable without a logic that is random
Unformity- Structured Randomness Same logic of rods creating tension on a fabric surface which by closing and opening, each panel behave with respect to sun movement and human behaviour.
Parameters Extrusion of Panels to the outside
Kinetic Movement of panels
Playing with The extrusion of panels to the outside of the original skin will enhance the self shading as well as it will enhance the cavity through which the air will circulate and solar radiation will be minimal in the inside space
The kinetic movement of the panels with respect to sun movement along the day
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General Logic
of the double skin facade
Specific Logic
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Panel Mechanism Process of form finding
Application In grasshoper
Starting from the material explorations and the derived parameters, toward the conceptual approach that ended with a randomness logic for the parametric facade, until deriving a more logical and realistic behavior for the responsive panels
The mechanism of each pannel consist of having 4 axis of motions on which the fabric gets folded in and out toward 4 points in the normal direction Abstraction - structure process The Structure of each panel consists of a main rectangular Frame which work as the main Support.
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Identifying a grid through the midpoints of the frame’s edges then Highlighting the intersection points. Then identifying 4 points from the center of the frame and moving them toward the normal direction. Connecting between the intersection points and the 4 points in the normal direction, create several axis of motions on which the fabric gets fold and unfold.
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Spacial Skin Experience Same logic of rods creating tension on a fabric surface which by closing and opening, each panel behave with respect to sun movement and human behaviour.
Play with plane levels
Play with Floor Heights
Terraces ovelooking gardens below
Extract of different planes to show extrusion and depth wether to the inside or outside of the main facade
Largest Depth Mild Depth Least Depth
Terraces
Double Heights Diagram illustrating Depth from Original Skin Gradual Iincrease of floor plane depth as you go up responding to interior spacial needs and to the irregular profile of facade that enhance self shade Portfolio
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Extension of the second skin Extension Upward to create Experiencial space on the roof top to feel the holistic structure created experiencing itss working mechanism by being so close
Extension downward to create a shaded area at main entrance of the building
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Construction Process Diagram
Parapet/railing for extended Slabs
Curtain wall after adjustment
Double Skin Facade
Entrance Extension
Extension of facade on roof using : Pergola
Columns Supporting the roof Pergola extension
slabs Ending at different levels at the outer edge Building Structural Columns
Columns To support extension
Pannel & slab Connection Slabs Extensions to the outside may seem useless at the first sight. However, they have a main role, in addition to highlighting the double skin curved profile that shows the self shading idea, it also works as the main support which holds the panels creating the double skin, through the pipes and the metal spheres attached at the corners.
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Protrusion Study
Extension of panels that are close to the sun at it’s worst orientation during the harsh hour (2 PM) are highlighted in the plan below in comparision to the other panels in the same row that have less depth toward the outside
Enviromental Response
As the depth increase, the gap between the 2 skins of the building increase creating more space for air to move and circulate as well as it creates a buffer from the exterior
Large Depth ARCH 473/3522 - Spring - 2020
Small Depth Sophjie Rami
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Final Model After several approaches to apply the conceptual ideas at the begining as well as applying it on several design alternatives, the design of the parametric facade below was the best to be achieved, showing and illustrating how it looks like as a whole structure and giving glimpse of how it is responsive to another factor, which is the sun
Top View
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Elevation South-south west
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Elevation - West
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Elevation - East
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Sun Movement Study pictures below shows how the parametric double skin facade generated behave and respond toward the sun movement. so, 2 illustrations for the sun were identified to observe the motion. - One is moving with respect to sun movement from east to west, - the other one is ficxed to indicate the worst location at 2PM Sun at 8 :00 AM
Sun at 10 :00 AM
Sun at 12 :00 PM
Sun at 2 :00 PM
Sun at 5:00 PM
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Kinetic Pannels A closer look to the panels while opening when sun is away and closing while sun is close to facade.
Fully Closed
Fully Opened ARCH 473/3522 - Spring - 2020
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Sections Studies Roof Extension
Balconies Double Height
Variations made by extending the floors either to the inside or to the outside, and the balconies created by making protrusions to the inside in the main curtain wall, in addition to the double heights created, are all shown in the blow up and in the sections afterwards.
Entrance Extension
Sections On plan
Cross Sections Parallel to building Portfolio
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Cross Sections Parallel to building Sections parallel to each others and to the buildings were taken each 2 meters to observe the variations that made to the slabs and which have impact on the spacial experience of the users inside the buildings and in spaces were they have access to balconies and to the corridor inbetween the 2 facades.
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Grasshoper Definition The definition of the parametric double skin facade generated through Grasshoper and Rhino, was aiming to achieve the 2 paramters that change each seperatly based on the sun movement.
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A sun path was simulated to whitness that changes that occur and to observe how each panel respond to the motion . In addition to adding, the full structure at the end through pipes and sphere, resulted in giving the double skin facade a realistic feeling that could be applied in real life.
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Progress behind the Final Outcome Developing The Kinetic Movement kinetic movement for panels was initially achieved through responsive panels that change their size as a simulation for opening and closing. However, this technique was not structurally applicable in real life as their is no solid structure that could change their size to espond to sun movement.
Sun Movement 1
Sun Movement 2
Sun Movement 3
Sun Movement 3
Sun Movement 1
Sun Movement 2
Final Outcome A more realistic approach was realised to suit the application of the parametric facade in real life Portfolio
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Developing The Double Skin Facade look & aesthetics Elevation
Plan
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Elevation
Plan
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Elevation
Plan
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Roof and Entrance Extensions were a bulky adds-on the main double skin Facade which gave an exccessive look to the whole building due to their size and how the entrance extended toward the pavement To solve the previous problem, separating the roof extensions from the main facade minimized the bulky effect by making it work as a pergola supported on columns. In addition to that, reducing the entrance extension gave a better look while defining it as well. The idea of separating the roof extension was not an efficient solution as it didn’t make use of the structural support it can get out of the main skin, so shifting it back to the initial solution while keeping the entrance’s extension as trial 2 was the best balance that can be reached. Sophjie Rami
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Biblography •
Performance Based Envelopes: A Theory of Spatialized Skins and the Emergence of the Integrated Design Professional by Franca Trubiano
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Responsive Building Envelopes: Characteristics and Evolving Paradigms kathy Velikov And Geoffrey Thün
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HOT CLIMATE DOUBLE FAÇADES: Avoiding Solar Gain , Terri Meyer Boake, B.E.S., B.Arch., M.Arch., LEED AP
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king fahad National Library by gerber Architekten , Design Bloom
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Grasshoper-parametric tower, sun responsive, youtube by paramarch
ŠAll rights reserved, American University in Cairo (AUC) May 2019