INFINITY
CONTENT
PROCESS & ITERATIONS
DERIVATION OF THE COMPONENT
MATERIAL STUDY
DESCRIPTION
PROCESS & METHOD
PROCESS & METHOD
EXPERIMENT 01 EXPERIMENT 02
OPTIMIZATION OF COMPONENT
DESCRIPTION
DESCRIPTION
To each material, a beautiful set of characteristics. When identified and experimented with, infinite options arise. Infinite forms, infinite transformations, infinite actions and infinite reactions. Experimenting with piano wire, the material’s most prominent qualities were investigated. The material was left to act by itself and react to itself, when faced with different conditions. The manner in which the material acted at different scales was studied : different thicknesses and to different forces in relation to its natural geometry. Impressed by the materials ability to form the right curvature and inspired by Ernst Haeckel organic art and theories of change, the result was an organic transformational component with infinite possibilities. A component that is not only made of the piano wire, but that also portrays several of the wire’s great qualities such as elasticity. Similar to the human muscle, this component, due to its elasticity, is never permanent and always capable of change when faced with a force. Like a muscle in the human body, the component is capable of change alone as well as affect its surrounding when undergoing change as part of a system. Keeping such qualities in mind, experiments with optimization of the component was undertaken, as to become part of a larger parametric system that is also never constant, but always changing in both form and density.
“Nothing is constant but change. All existence is a perpetual flux of being and becoming”
MATERIAL STUDY
MATERIAL STUDY Identifying the most prominent characteristics of the piano wire
Flexibility
Reaction to Compression
Reaction to Tension
Elasticity
Transformability
MATERIAL STUDY Studying geometries and mechanisms of interest
MATERIAL STUDY DERIVATION OF THE MUSCLE
Certain characteristics of the material resembled the human muscle, thus the mechanism of the muscle was studied further in order to apply it to the material. Muscle Extension
Muscle Flexure
THE COMPONENT
THE COMPONENT PROCESS & ITERATIONS
The initial muscle model started with four piano wires that meet at both ends. The component proved successful when compression was applied to both ends, but when released, the component proved to be unstable and lacked direction.
INITIAL MUSCLE MODEL
THE COMPONENT PROCESS & ITERATIONS
3D printed joints were designed to hold the piano wires in place. Different angles were tested and the result was a variation of curvatures and densities. The joints proved successful in defining direction and density but were permanent and forced the material into a form.
60 °
45 °
60 °
3D PRINTED JOINTS
THE COMPONENT PROCESS & ITERATIONS
A more natural joint was then designed by inserting the wires in a cross manner through a flexible tube. This cross joint proved to be more efficient as the direction was being defined by the material itself and not the joint. The cross joint also allowed us to insert full wires instead of segments as the forces were being equally countered by the joint. The form was then repeated in a symmetrical manner with a sliding element in between and the result was our final component.
CROSS JOINT
FINAL COMPONENT
THE COMPONENT FINAL COMPONENT
The final component “infinity� is made up of two cross joints at each end with a slider at the center. With the presence of the slider the component has infinite possibilities of form and curvature rather than a static permanent appearance.
End Joint
Slider
End Joint
INFINITY
THE COMPONENT POSSIBLE MODIFICATIONS OF THE COMPONENT The component is able to constantly transform both when alone or when part of a system.
SLIDING END JOINT -Controlling Curvature
CURVATURE
SLIDING MID JOINT -Controlling Density
OPTIMIZING THE COMPONENT EXPERIMENT 01
OPTIMIZING THE COMPONENT | EXPERIMENT 01 LINEAR CONNECTION The first experiment involved connecting the component in a linear manner by the end joints of each one to create a parametric surface defined by the position of the joints and sliders of each component in relation to its neighboring components.
OPTIMIZING THE COMPONENT | EXPERIMENT 01 SURFACE The result of experiment-01 was a surface that was able to transform with one parametric component which was the middle slider. The model was not as sturdy as expected and the method of joining was not very successful.
OPTIMIZING THE COMPONENT EXPERIMENT 02
OPTIMIZING THE COMPONENT | EXPERIMENT 02 STAGGERED CONNECTION At an attempt to improve the way one component affects its neighboring components when undergoing change, we changed the connection into a staggered one. New joints were added to the sides of each component and the components became somehow woven together horizontally. The component was enlarged 1.5 times the initial size and the 0.4 wire used was replaced with 0.6 for better curvature and stability.
OPTIMIZING THE COMPONENT | EXPERIMENT 02 STAGGERED OVERLAY After achieving a staggered woven horizontal layer, another layer was made in an inverted manner and the two layers were woven vertically, also in a staggered manner. This result was a very sturdy surface that could be easily extended vertically.
OPTIMIZING THE COMPONENT | EXPERIMENT 02 STAGGERED OVERLAY
OPTIMIZING THE COMPONENT | EXPERIMENT 02 ASSEMBLY To achieve the best end result, the individual components were constructed with improved joints and sliders different in both appearance and function. A sequence of construction was implemented in order for the components to be woven correctly together. END JOINTS
Length : L
3/4 L
SIDE JOINTS
MIDDLE SLIDER
OPTIMIZING THE COMPONENT | EXPERIMENT 02 ASSEMBLY
OPTIMIZING THE COMPONENT | EXPERIMENT 02 ITERATIONS
END JOINTS
SIDE JOINTS
MIDDLE SLIDER
CONNECTOR
OPTIMIZING THE COMPONENT | EXPERIMENT 02 ITERATIONS
OPTIMIZING THE SYSTEM EXPERIMENT 02 [FINAL]
OPTIMIZING THE SYSTEM | EXPERIMENT 02 [FINAL] DEVELOPING COMPLEXITY
OPTIMIZING THE SYSTEM | EXPERIMENT 02 [FINAL] ELEVATION
PERSPECTIVE
OPTIMIZING THE SYSTEM | EXPERIMENT 02 [FINAL] CONSTRUCTION COMPONENTS Units Per Layer
Total Number of Units
Mid Sliders
24
168
Screws
144
768
End Connection Lock
48
336
Side Joints
72
384
Connectors
NA
6
Cross Joint
48
336
Piano Wire
48
336
OPTIMIZING THE SYSTEM | EXPERIMENT 02 [FINAL] ORIGINAL STATE
OPTIMIZING THE SYSTEM | EXPERIMENT 02 [FINAL] MODEL IN ORIGINAL STATE
OPTIMIZING THE SYSTEM | EXPERIMENT 02 [FINAL] INDUCED FORCES
OPTIMIZING THE SYSTEM | EXPERIMENT 02 [FINAL] INDUCED FORCES [SLIDERS IN ACTION]
OPTIMIZING THE SYSTEM | EXPERIMENT 02 [FINAL] INDUCED FORCES [CONNECTORS IN ACTION]
OPTIMIZING THE SYSTEM | EXPERIMENT 02 [FINAL] INDUCED FORCES [SLIDERS & CONNECTORS IN ACTION]
OPTIMIZING THE SYSTEM | EXPERIMENT 02 [FINAL] EXPLORING FURTHER POTENTIAL
OPTIMIZING THE SYSTEM | EXPERIMENT 02 [FINAL] FINAL FORM
FINAL FORM
OPTIMIZING THE SYSTEM | EXPERIMENT 02 [FINAL] FINAL FORM
FINAL FORM
NOVEMBER 2018