Virtual Environments Module 2 Journal

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Virtual Environments Darcy Zelenko Module 2 - Design, week 4

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From the last tute I attempted to digitise the model I created. However, my model fell apart in transit and no longer existed.

I thought that I might be able bring it back from the dead by using the orthographic images I had taken.

In Rhino I used the PictureFrame tool to enable me to trace the contours of every single component that made up my model.

After tracing each one, labelling them and aligning them I wanted to use the Surface From a Curve Network tool to turn them all into individual surfaces before connecting and trimming them to achieve the desired clustering effect illustrated in my clay model.

After watching tutorial videos on the Surface From a Curve Network tool I realised that it wouldn’t work and that it would be best to start from scratch.

Although I wouldn’t be starting from scratch.

After watching Dr Alex Selenitsch’s lecture I was inspired to carry out an imporivsational modelling session.

I had a block of modelling clay, my original pattern and a plan of what i’d like to achieve drawn on the paper bag from a pork roll I got to work.

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I was really (and still am) facinated with the temporal nature of the BZ reaction. Without viewing a video, animation or the reaction in real time you don’t get the full experience.

The other point I mention is that we were working from images of natural patterns, not the actual one. So we’ve been working off a two-dimensional image, yet we are to design a lantern which has three.

With these thoughts floating around in the back of my head I took to the modelling clay with the intention of taking the Bzreaction, and substiuting a z-axis for time.

Essentially I would be extrapolating growth of the pattern from it’s spiracal and clustered beginnings along the z-axis bringing it to life.

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Using the base point from my pattern as a starting points I extrapolated them upwards using thick strands of clay. I then clustered them together to create bundle that stood under it’s own weight.

I then wanted to apply some of the principles of the Bz-reaction to my created form.

I dissassembled my strands and began to roll them out; thick at the bottom and thin at the top, which gave more manoeuvrability when it came to altering their form more-so.

I put the strands back together then compressed and twisted them to emulate the clustering and spirality which are some of the main concepts that make up the Bz-reaction

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L-R: Front, Left, Right and Back orthographic images

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When it came to digitising my model I decided that Method 3 of the guide would be most appropriate.

Along the way I found out that if you put modelling clay in the fridge to harden (because your freezer isn’t big enough), it actually does the opposite.

What I took out resembled something between a hokkien noodle and a strand of gnocchi dough.

I took advantage of this and further clustered the individual parts of my model together.

When it came to cutting the individual sections that would make up my contours the materiality of my clay dictated that I had to cut thicker pieces or it would all smoosh together

Top View

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Contours created by cutting and traacing sectional images

29 Thomas Heatherwick’s TED talk was quite informative in discussing how optimising a design solution can have many benefits such as affordability increased spatial capacity ulimately leading to the best-possible final product.

An example of this was his proposed Teesside Power Station.

Heatherwick was comissioned to design a new biomassfueled powerstation that bordered an existing township.

Biomass powerstations are usually designed well-spread out with many different buildings housing different functions. They are also quite noisy at times.

Heatherwick optimised his design to clump all the buildings togehter into one structure, saving materials and money. To overcome the problem of excess noise he partially covered the structure with soil which was excellent at absorbing the noise. He also created a number of green spaces to try and alleviate the publics view of the power station.

Heatherwick’s Bleigiessen, a sculpture that occupies the headquaters of The Welcome Trust in London is a great example of how different materialities can be employed during the ideation, design and protoyping of a project. It serves as inspiration in the design of the lantern as a similar process has been taken Heatherwick wanted to emulate the dynacism of water and capture it’s shape.

He went about this by using the German art of Bleigießen, the act of pouring molten metal into water to create form. He did this over 400 times before finally arriving at his final prototype (pictured left).

This was then digitised, so it could be replicated exactly using 142,000 glass spheres suspended along 27,000 steel wires.

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If you’re in a group out camping with only one flashlight, your night time activities will be fairly limited as in order to do the simplest things like sitting as a group, you need a wide ambient light. A flashlight doesn’t really fit this criteria as it’s beam is too bright to illuminate a face and too narrow to light a group. It’s quite a selfish thing.

However, this can be changed with the addition of two simple things: a full water jug and duct tape.

Attatching a flashlight to the water jug (as pictured left) will create a lantern that can be used to illuminate a group of people.

With relative ease you’ve created a pretty decent lantern mimicing a campfire and harnessing the sense of community that comes with it.

I want my lantern to have a similar process behind it. That is, my lantern isn’t meant to be held my one person for an extended period of time. It should be able to be shifted from one position to another with relative ease with a sturdy base on which to sit.

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Digitised Model After tracing my contours and aligning them I was presented with a set of contours that needed quite a lot of scaling done to them to come up with a workable model.

To be able to scale each direction differently I used a Scale NU componeant in Grasshopper to do this quickly and accurately.

While the unscaled version is a more accurate model of my clay creation, I think it needs a lot of tweaking in order to turn it into a developable surface that can me then made into a lantern

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33 After having a bit of trouble creating a model that could be digitised properly I think I’ve got something that can be developed further before panelling.

I need to play around with the panelling grid a little further but it’s well on the way to becoming ready to accept a customised panelling

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Virtual Environments Darcy Zelenko Module 2 - Design, week 5

35 Feedback from the tute after the break led me to the decision that I needed to make another model. The geometry digitised from the previous model wasn’t that flash and the model itself lacked a connection to the pattern that the first model had.

I made sure to use decent modelling clay this time around and was all the more satisfied for having done so.

In making this model I brought back the idea of creating a mass from modular units and then halving then and halving them again before assembling them atop of each other.

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Orthographic images of model ranging from Front (far left) through left, back, and right (far page right)

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Top orthographic view (far left)

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Section slices of 2D model ready to be traced into Rhino

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Developing Contours I had to pierce my model a few times to get reference points for each contour and slicing was still slightly difficult. I still managed to achieve a much better result that before.

Lofting the surfaces provided a better result that after being rebuilt was able to be panellised quite well.

What I really like about the loft was that while being able to see the original plasticine model, it’s taken on a certain abstraction that is quite intriguing.

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Digitised contour lines were lofted (right) before a panelling grid could be developed (far right)

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Panelling

2D Panellisation techniques using Box and Wave Pattern

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2D Panellisation techniques using Triangular and a custon 2d pattern (note gaps)

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3D Panellisation techniques using Pyramid and a custom 2D panel combined with the Offset Faces Border tool

45 After experimenting with a number of the 2D panel techniques I decided the triangular one fitted my model quite well. In some of the other ones there were slight overlappings, no matter now much tweaking I did.

I also attempted to play around with the custom 2D panel technique but I was also met with a number of gaps. In further refining my design I want to revisit these options with the knowledge I’ve accumulated over the past week to tweak them to try and make them work.

I was met with similar problems when it came to the 3D techniques too.

Triangular pattern combined with the Offset Faces Border Tool and a section of the model that was picked to experiment with a panel prototype

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Fabrication

Due to time constraints made worse by illness I was forced to acquire other card from Eckersleys. While it was convenient to do this the GSM of the card meant that the card cutter wouldn’t cut it all the way through. I had to finish off the cuts at home by hand.

While this panel is quite simple it helped me get a feel for the card cutter and I learned that even though the card may be the same thickness, GSM has a lot to do with the make up of a paper type and will have flow-on effects for how well it can be cut and manipulated.

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Lighting Effects

These panels come from a triangular panel experiment that has two overlapping skins.

With regards to lighting effects I wanted to experiment with overlapping patterns as the concepts of clustering and overlapping were evident in my base pattern.

As mentioned earlier the materiality of my card meant that it didn’t cut as planned.

I was going to disregard this model because I thought that the individual holes would be too much effort to cut out by hand. I thoughtlessly started to pick away at them in hope that it would create the designed holes but all it did was peel off most of the fibres leaving a thin circular layer of card.

As I had used the Maple Lantern as an inspirational image I was really impressed with the effect that I achieved. I repeated this process on another piece before overalpping them together to examine the results of the diffused light.

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