M3 journal

DIGITAL DESIGN + FABRICATION SM1, 2015 M3 JOURNAL - PLANT SUPPORT Siyun Yang & Zihao Guo

698893 & 683552 Tutor Name: Paul Loh

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Introduction

The failed M2 prototypes have alerted us that the personal space is essential for designing the second skin project. Thus in M3 Journal, the refinement of digital models and fabrication of prototypes are both based on the measurement of personal space, which corresponds to the scenarios of library (for selfstudy in silent) and when if walking in the street (to avoid people).

The personal space focus on the upper body of female, where is to protect the body off the unnecessary physical contact. A series of continuous tube form the structure of this second skin project, the more process of developments will be explored by the following pages.

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Design development Since the problems occurred in M2 Journal, the modification of digital models in accurate scale is the most essential portion through the development from M2 to M3. The personal space has measured in this stage, and three different volume of personal space with individual group of people will have different privacy space.

These problems need to be solved in M3 Journal: the parallel continuous lines have to be developed by adding the crossing lines to support the structure stand up; the materials such as the junction should be tested in several experiments; and, digital models must be based on the accurate personal space.

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Design development + fabrication of Prototype V.2

At this stage, we refined the digital model by using sectioning and contouring tools to make the model more precise from the personal space in a well-scale. And therefore, we can use the intersection that form by sectioning tool instead of drawing each individual line in Rhino. This is also can be used for the later fabrication process, and because it is more accurate than draw by individual line, the structure will be more stable.

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Design development + fabrication of Prototype V.2

Perspective view on body

Plan

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Reading Response Wk 6 Architecture in the Digital Age - Design + Manufacturing/ Branko Kolarevic, Spon Press, London c2003 Describe one aspect of the recent shift in the use of digital technology from design to fabrication?

According to Kolarevic(2003), there are three findemental techniques for frabrication including two-dimensional fabrication, subtractive fabrication and additivbe fabrication.

In order to fabricate our design from digital model to hysical model, we are using twodimensional fabrication to obtain components and assemble the components instead of spiliting solid or adding layers by the 3D system. For the two-dimensional fabrication, there are also some production strategies including contouring, triangulation, using of developable?undevelopable sufaces, and unfolding. For our design, we are choosing the contouring and sectioning which creates a series of planar sections which are able to be used diretly to articulate structural components. And those series of sections can be manipulated to create geometry and a complete abstraction of the building’s structure.

With this approaches components can be connected from different pieces while temporary might be needed.

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Reading applied to design How does the fabrication process and strategy effect your second skin project?

Refer to Kolarevic’s reading, we decided to create a sturctue that is able to be held by the planar section components themselves by crossing each other and form ‘grids’ . In order to get the planar sections of the structure, we firstly built a mesh or surface for our personal space area which we measured. After that, we used the contouring tool and sectioning tool to get the planar section from the personal space’s surface. Some of those sections might need to be intercepted each other to create a structure that is able to hold itself with those structural members.

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Reading Response Wk 7 Digital Fabrications: architectural + material techniques/Lisa Iwamoto. New York: Princeton Architectural Press c2009

Describe one aspect of the recent shift in the use of digital technology from design to fabrication?

The development of digital design is one giant leap for architects to design the complex geometry components easier. It shortens the time between original design and final stage, and it is convenient for designers since it can make the model more accurate.

One of the methods with the computer modelling is called ‘sectioning’. The technique of sectioning is to take numerous cross lines on the object, and it can immediately form parallel lines on the surface.

‘Playa Urbana/Urban Beach’ by William Massie is one of the examples that used sectioning in digital construction. The sectional ribbing, parallel stacking, and waffle-grid are the techniques that constructed through sectioning.

Apart from it, the digital fabrication and the material techniques will calibrate the process between the virtual model and the physical model. The physical model can be assemble with the reference of the digital model for either dimension or the design’s forms. And some feedback can be reflected to the digital model processing when making the physical model in terms of material property, assembling issues and some visual response. For the processes of design and making. the visual model and the physicasl model making might need to be be interacted with each other.

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Reading applied to design Referencing from the lectures and readings, what is the implication of digital fabrication on your design ?

According to the Design and making techniques from the reading, we kept doing our prototype by refering to the digital model from getting fixxing points and dimension for the tubes. At the same time, we got some feedback from the the material property to the digital model. We kept doing the processes in a loop to refine our design.

During the processes, we found our material itself (the tube) is not strong enoung to hold a structure especially with the longer components as they got their own weight and gravity. As a result we decide to create more interceptions between the tubes and shorter the components to provide more tension for the structure to make the strurure more strong and reinforced. In addition, we build a ‘hat’ structure on top of the human head with parrel tied tubes to attach the design to the human body with a more continous structure instead of the the separate inner support structure for the heavy outer structure.

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Prototype development

The tube of fish tank has chosen for the material as our en-

The testing of the property of tube is show as above. A seg-

tire structure. The quality of tube is flexible and continuous,

ment of the model is made by a few tubes and pins, and then

and the color is semi-transparent with light purple-blue. When

formed a shell shape and stood by the structure itself.

tubes cross to each other – form as X-shape, they will support their own to stand up.

Therefore, the decision for choosing tube as the entire structure is discussed and made since it achieved to our intended effects – the stable structure can create the volume from the body.

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Figure 1

Figure 3

Some early prototypes have been made out throughout the idea of thinking of design. The inner structures are developed to support the outer structure since the outer cannot hold by itself. Figure 1 is the segment that adjoins the neck to support the back; figure 2 is the shoulder part where adjoins on two arms to support both sides; figure 3 is the front segment that connects the Figure 2

front outer structure.

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Prototype optimisation The effect we want to achieve is to create a privacy space to protect the upper body. The focus is on the neck and head which is the most sensitive part of the body. Therefore, based on the measurement of personal space, a volume is created to refuse other people get close to you.

Also, the supporting structure is created by optimizing the view. It means the dislike people will be block from you sight since you can only identify the shadows if look outward. Certainly, you can still look at the road from the gap in between.

The reason that did not use pins or tape is because cable tie is a strong material that can tie two tubes tightly, and makes tubes cannot tendency to either left or right direction.

And also, when we fabricated the structure, we found that the remains part of cable tie can create a secondary personal space that keep the distance with other and against to the stranger.

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Prototype optimisation

We found that the longer tubes are useless for the entire structure since they cannot both in supporting the structure and create much more self weight. Therefore we removed those tubes and adding up the short diagonal tubes for replacement.

Using parrel tied tubes which are extermly strong on the top to Previous digital design

Current digital design

crrate tensional for to hold the structure

Prototype of current design

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In terms of continuous structure and fluid shape, the property of the material needs to be continuous and also represents the idea of the section and contour. The material also needs to be able to form the structure that can be support by itself.

Only two materials we used in our prototype: cable tie for all the junction, and fish tank tube for the entire structure.

Cable tie is used to replace the pins for typing up two or three tubes at each intersection. It can not only avoid the damage from the sharp end, but also the aesthetics of transparent cable tie.

Two different types of tube are used in the entire structure. One has the larger radius and the other is smaller. The larger one has heavier weight which is one 20 meters continuous tube; the smaller one is split to four different portions of compounds: eight vertical tubes as the connection between the supporting structure and the main structure; six horizontal continuous curvilinear with different lengths; eight oblique tubes for both sides where four tilt to the left and four to the right.

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2nd Skin final design

Right Elevation

Perspective View

Front Elevation

Plan

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2nd Skin final design

Right Elevation

Front Elevation

Perspective View

Plan

The inner structure is deleted since we found that is useless and the outer structure can actually support by the continuous structure on the head.

Hence, eight vertical tubes are then developed to connect the top and main structure.

Therefore, the entire structure provides a great personal space and will not be tied to the body.

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Fabrication Sequence

T1

V1 V2 H3

H2

V3

V4

V5

V6

V7

V8

V9 V10

H1

V11 V12

V13 V14 V15 V16

V17 V18

V19

V21 V20

The diagram shows all the elements we used in the final physical prototype.

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Front view of prototype

Back view of prototype: when meet stranger

middle step of adding up the protection structure

From the development of prototype, we started to make the top portion first. Since the tube is 20 meter long, it is simple to fabricate the shape, and then we started the bottom curvilinear where the base of the protection portion is. The next step is to add up the vertical short tube between the top and bottom. This is because the remained curvilinear can be easier tie up to the constructed structure.

Final verse of prototype

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Assembly Drawing

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2nd Skin

Prototype by itself

Front view: prototype on the body in normal time

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Right view: prototype on the body in normal time

Back view: prototype on the body in normal time

Front view: prototype on the body in self-immerse time (meet dislike people)

Right view: prototype on the body in self-immerse time

Back view: prototype on the body in self-immerse time

The effect we achieve is split into two themes: one is in the normal time, such as walking on the street or talk to someone else; the other is when you do not want to look towards, such as a dislike people just in front of you, or some views that you do not want to look at. The entire structure can be turned under these two themes.

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Appendix Personal Space

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Appendix

Bibliography:

Kolarevic.B., Architecture in the Digital Age - Design and Manufacturing , Spon Press, London, c2003

Iwamoto, L. Digital fabrications: architectural and material techniques, New York : Princeton Architectural Press, c2009.

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