bootcamp by Pablo Zamorano

EMERGENT TECHNOLOGIES AND DESIGN BOOTCAMP 2010 VELASCO - WANG - ZAMORANO

H A U E R

R E L O A D E D

CONTENTS BRIEF

C O M P O N E N T F O R M AT I O N

COMPONENT LOGIC

C O M P O N E N T G E O M E T RY C O M P O N E N T VA R I AT I O N S M AT E R I A L E X P LO R AT I O N CONNECTIONS SCALE HIERARCHIES GROWTH DIGITAL GROWTH

05 06 07 09 10 11 12 13

BRIEF-PROCESS

The project attempts to utilize a single component to create a varied three-dimensional assembly. The component is composed of a single rectangular sheet, with a system of slices and notches, that when assembled creates a three-dimensional network of components. Through bending elements out of plane, the geometry of the component is informed by the material. Utilizing no external hardware for connection and assembly, systematic incisions in the material allow for the component to be fabricated and connected together. The assembly employs bent members rather than folds to shape the component. The shaping of the component relies on the properties of the material in bending into shape. Plywood was used for several of the beneficial properties inherent in the material. The cross-grained composition of plywood allows for strength bi-directionally. Allowance for bending plywood before tearing was observed, while also preserving the rigidity needed for structural performance that is inherent in the material. The process of bending plywood involved soaking the component to create a more pliable material during the fabrication of the component.

Exercises in bending sheet were preliminarily studied, ranging in different geometries from the cone to other varied bent strip forms. Different connection orientations were studied, parallel and perpendicular orientations.

EMERGENT TECHNOLOGIES AND DESIGN BOOTCAMP 2010 VELASCO - WANG - ZAMORANO Hauer Reloaded 2

C O M P O N E N T F O R M AT I O N The initial form uses a single rectangular sheet that is partly sliced into 3 arms to compose a single triangular component. At each end of the component, a system of notches is created for internal assembly of the component and the assembly of multiple components. The multiplication of components into a system allowed for growth in a planar orientation. Deficiencies of the system included inefficiencies in assembly into the third dimension and loss of hierarchy in the notch system for connection between components.

Single rectangular sheet with cuts

60Ë&#x161;

2 Arms are bent into form

Series of notches serve as connection method

3 for each component

Components are attached using the same

4 series of notches.

a a

Deformation diagram of triangular legs

Regular patterning of components- single layer

Regular patterning of components- multiple layer

Surface growth diagram

EMERGENT TECHNOLOGIES AND DESIGN BOOTCAMP 2010 VELASCO - WANG - ZAMORANO Hauer Reloaded 3

COMPONENT LOGIC The component is formed from a rectangular sheet of plywood. The rectangular sheet is laser cut into connected strips with a system of assembly notches. The plywood is soaked until it achieves a more pliable state. The three-dimensional shape is created utilizing the system of notches.

GA IA

First connection type, the component was able to The component has 12 connections. 4 are used to connect in two directions and used all other connec- self assembly and 8 notches are used for connections to inner assembly. tions between components Considering the deficiencies in the three-legged component. Two additional legs were added to the component to create two triangles that share an edge. The inner assembly notches were re-evaluated to create a perpendicular connection that would allow the element to pull the form out of plane to create a three-dimensional form.

This iteration of the component is composed of a The final iteration of the component is similar to iterseries of connected slices with a system of notches ation 3, but separates the spacing between the conat the end of the slices. The notch system is offset nections of the three components to a single vertex. in a way for each end to receive up to three other components. The rounded ends of the notches are placed to minimize tearing of the plywood during fabrication. The inner assembly notches of the component for the end strips are moved to a subsystem freeing another notch for the possibility of IA : Inner Assembly notch assembly as compared to component 2. GA : group assembly notch

EMERGENT TECHNOLOGIES AND DESIGN BOOTCAMP 2010 VELASCO - WANG - ZAMORANO Hauer Reloaded 4

C O M P O N E N T G E O M E T RY After physically prototyping the component, the geometric properties of the component were digitally studied. The two triangles were modeled sharing an edge member and through empirical observation of the deformation in the physical model, this information was translated into the digital prototype establishing the coplanar and perpendicular elements.

First triangular component inscribed within circle

The geometry of inner component connections is modeled such that there is always a perpendicular connection

Second triangular component mirrored along shared edge

The lines that compose the strips of plywood are deformed toward the center of the triangular surface according to their corresponding planes

Vertices of the mirrored components are connected The centroid of each surface of the tetrahedron is to create a tetrahedron located by the intersection of lines connecting each vertex to the midpoint of the opposing line

Given the deformation of the line, the circles at the endpoints rotate changing the perpendicular relationship to describe the rotation of the component

Planes are created from the deformed lines to give shape to the geometry

EMERGENT TECHNOLOGIES AND DESIGN BOOTCAMP 2010 VELASCO - WANG - ZAMORANO Hauer Reloaded 5

C O M P O N E N T VA R I AT I O N S After defining the digital geometry of the component, three variables were identified for further exploration.

Centroid variation

90ยบ

75ยบ

45ยบ

30ยบ

Rotation

20mm (37 strip length)

40mm (37 strip length)

70mm (37 strip length)

The flexural properties of the component were studied by manipulating three variables: location of the centroid, degree of rotation of triangular elements, and strip width Strip width

EMERGENT TECHNOLOGIES AND DESIGN BOOTCAMP 2010 VELASCO - WANG - ZAMORANO Hauer Reloaded 6

M AT E R I A L E X P LO R AT I O N Initial studies of geometry began in cardstock for rapid and economical prototyping. After some exploration of geometry was done, laser cut designs in flexible polypropylene sheet was further elaborated in the investigation of a system of components. 1.5 mm plywood was chosen as the material of further study based on the bending used in the geometry and the fabrication limitations of the AA

Paper sheet

Polypropylene sheet

Plywood sheet

The fabrication of the birch ply used digital laser cutting machines. This machine allows for flat sheets to be cut or etched, which allows for a digital translation of a two-dimensional drawing into the material with a high level of accuracy. In order for the plywood component to be shaped, the unformed component required more flexibility. After a thorough soak in water, the plywood became pliable enough to bend into shape. Depending on the thickness and amount of curvature for the component, the soaking time varied from different prototypes. The largest prototype inn both dimension and thickness (3ply 4 mm thickness) required 3 hours of soaking, while the thinner (3ply 1.5 mm thickness) required an average of 30 minutes of soaking to form. In the last iteration, there was a requirement for lamination of two sheets of 3ply 1.5 mm Birch ply. After soaking, the form experienced delamination while forming in the areas with greatest curvature. This was due to inefficient curing time of the adhesive.

EMERGENT TECHNOLOGIES AND DESIGN BOOTCAMP 2010 VELASCO - WANG - ZAMORANO Hauer Reloaded 7

M AT E R I A L E X P LO R AT I O N The cut pattern for the fabric involved a system of interlocked lines which increases the ability for stretching the fabric beyond the ability of an uncut sheet.

Studies into the possibility of fabric shading elements were introduced into the system. Connected between two layers of plywood that would comprise the component, a fabric shading element would be added to define a possible environmental function for the system.

Deployed position

Un-deployed position

Lycra fabric was used to test based on the highly elastic properties of the material. Fabric studies were made to minimize the amount of fabric needed to span the element when deployed. Through a system of incisions in the fabric, it allowed for a larger span for the fabric beyond the inherent properties of the material.

EMERGENT TECHNOLOGIES AND DESIGN BOOTCAMP 2010 VELASCO - WANG - ZAMORANO Hauer Reloaded 8

CONNECTIONS

4 c

c a

b/2 b/2

The repeatable component is composed of a series of connected slices with a system of notches at the ends of these slices.

The notch system is offset in a way for each end to receive up to three other components. The rounded ends of the notches are placed to minimize tearing of the wood during fabrication

EMERGENT TECHNOLOGIES AND DESIGN BOOTCAMP 2010 VELASCO - WANG - ZAMORANO Hauer Reloaded 9

SCALE Initial studies of geometry began in cardstock for rapid and economical prototyping. After some exploration of geometry was done, laser cut designs in flexible polypropylene sheet was further elaborated in the investigation of a system of components. 1.5 mm plywood was chosen as the material of further study based on the bending used in the geometry and the fabrication limitations of the AA

The scaling of this element analyzes the material properties of an alternate plywood. In this analysis, 4 mm 3 ply plywood was used. The form experienced minor tearing at the bending points of the sliced members. At this scale, forming the component increased in difficulty, with much more resistance in shaping the piece. The scale was also too large for the space that it is intended to occupy.

In this model, the width of the arms were made slimmer. The member was made from1.5 mm 3 ply birch plywood. The slenderness of the arms made fabrication of a single component effortless. However, when amassed into a system, the slenderness of the arms offered less structural capacity.

In this model, the material of the component was similar to scheme two. The overall length was shortened and the overall width of the slices were increased. This allowed for less deformation with aggregated into a system of components while also maintaining flexibility when assembling the component.

In this model, the length and width of the component were shortened while maintaining the 1.5mm thickness in 3ply birch plywood. This tested the higher limits of the material in its capacity to achieve the curvilinear form.

Considering the scale of the space the component was intended to occupy, this scale was chosen for elaboration because of a wider variation in geometry when the component is multiplied, and the structural capacity of the material arranged in the component geometry.

EMERGENT TECHNOLOGIES AND DESIGN BOOTCAMP 2010 VELASCO - WANG - ZAMORANO Hauer Reloaded 10

HIERARCHIES The component proved to be too varied when trying to connect single components, where control over the comprehensive growth of the components became chaotic. In the understanding of the space for generating the components, hierarchies of forms were created to edit the number of connections to gain a more comprehensive understanding of the mode of growth of the component.

D=2C=8B=16A

This assembly is one of the primary units of the system. This assembly consists of two of assembly (3) that are linked in parallel.

C=2B=4A

This assembly is made from two of assembly (2) by mirroring the component across the unconnected ends with. The mirrored components are rotated to fit perpendicularly together locking the form together

B=2A

This assembly (1) is made from two components that are interlocked.

The component is made from rectangular wood.

EMERGENT TECHNOLOGIES AND DESIGN BOOTCAMP 2010 VELASCO - WANG - ZAMORANO Hauer Reloaded 11

GROWTH The component proved to be too varied when trying to connect single components, where control over the comprehensive growth of the components became chaotic. In the understanding of the space for generating the components, hierarchies of forms were created to edit the number of connections to gain a more comprehensive understanding of the mode of growth of the component.

Three points were given in the studio space (1,2,3 in diagram)

EMERGENT TECHNOLOGIES AND DESIGN BOOTCAMP 2010 VELASCO - WANG - ZAMORANO Hauer Reloaded 12

DIGITAL GROWTH

From the physical models, the components and assembly were digitally modeled. Utilizing Grasshopper to generate possible populations on a defined path. In this case, it is following a defined line. Some deficiencies in the digital model are the lack of known internal deformation observed within the physical model and the lack of gravitational forces impacting on the model.

A surface based digital model was created to begin to experiment with a canopy structure. In this model, a repeatable module of four components was created to tile across a curved surface. In order to do this digitally, a base plane of the four components were created across a surface and populated.

3 2

EMERGENT TECHNOLOGIES AND DESIGN BOOTCAMP 2010 VELASCO - WANG - ZAMORANO Hauer Reloaded 13