Monday, September 29, 2014

The Evolution of Shell Lace Structure by Tonkin Liu


Tonkin Liu has published a new book titled The Evolution of Shell Lace Structure, coinciding with an exhibition at the Royal Institute of British Architects.

Shell Lace Structure is a tailored, single surface structural technique invented by the London based architecture practice Tonkin Liu. The result of five years of intense practice-based research in collaboration with engineers at Arup, the technique integrates structural principles expressed in 500 million years of variation in shells, the ancient art of tailoring, and cutting edge digital manufacturing technology, resulting in ultra-strong, lightweight, and visually unique architectural structures. 

Book | The Evolution of Shell Lace Structure by Tonkin Liu

RIBA Exhibition | Tonkin Liu: The Evolution of Shell Lace Structure

RIBA | Show & Tell Tuesdays: The Evolution of Shell Lace Structure, 09/09, 30/09, 07/10. Reserve place through Tonkin Liu: press@tonkinliu.co.uk | twitter: @tonkinliu


The exhibition has been extended until October 18th. And there is now a talk at the RIBA on October 7th at 6:15, which can be booked through the RIBA.

Loop: The Environmental Summer Pavilion 2



This interdisciplinary project is the team work of students from the Faculty of Art and Architecture at the TUL in Liberec and the Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences at the CZU in Prague, under the leadership of Marie Davidová (FA CTU in Prague / Collaborative Collective), Šimon Prokop (Collaborative Collective) and Martin Kloda (Archwerk). It is the continuation of the project pareSITE, the Environmental Summer Pavilion published here a year ago. Its goal is to evolve the performance of solid pine wood. The PareSITE project was absorbing humidity during the night while evaporating it during hot summer days. The panelling supported this by warping – increasing the humid air circulation. This year's project took the concept further. The panelling was organised spatially. Left and right sides of the panels in tangential section were combined. Thanks to this, as well as the shape of the structure, the pavilion performed much better.

The concept evolved from origami folded ellipse that was 3D scanned and used as a base for a Grasshopper for Rhino 5 model that generated fabrication drawings. The individual pieces for the structure were cut on a Hundegger Speed-Cut 3 CNC saw at Eurodach and the panelling on HOMAG Venture 06S 3-axis milling machine at the Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences at CZU in Prague, where the structure was also mounted by the students.

The Loop Pavilion served as a meeting point and podium for the EnviroCity festival, creating a pleasant environment for its visitors and presenters.

Grasshopper for Rhino 5 model:

The model was created solely in Grasshopper (and its plug-ins) using only two guiding curves in Rhinoceros 5 taken from the 3D scanner. This helped the team to work on the structure even before the final shape of guiding curves was determined. Due to the spatial organization of panels and the nature of pavilion's construction there was a fair amount of data structure to work with besides the geometry. All the elements were simple planar planks, however, the overall shape is perceived as a double curved surface.

Since the shape was complicated in the terms of statics, the team used a plug-in called Donkey to analyse possible weak spots in the construction. Simultaneously, the joints were analysed in different force constellations to find the optimal positioning of fasteners. Another Grasshopper plug-in, Ladybug, was used to estimate the sun's position and energy gain on each panel on the actual site during the installation period so that the panel size could become another layer of complexity.

All participating students learned Grasshopper basics.

List of participating students:

Alena Novotná, Anna Hrušová, Antonín Hůla, Barbora Slavíčková, Jakub Kopecký, Jiří Fáber, Jiří Pokorný, Petr Tůma, Tereza Jílková, Radim Sýkora, Eliška Antonyová, Tereza Lišková, Filip Janata, Tomáš Kytka, Marie Kortanová, Vojtěch Holeček, Martin Vaníček, Jakub Hlaváček and Petr Havelka

Sponsors:

Stora Enso, Rothoblaas, Nářadí Bartoš, Eurodach, Lesy ČR, Nadace Proměny, Natura Decor


For further information, please follow our blog at http://environmentalpavilion.tumblr.com/ 

Thursday, September 25, 2014

Metallic Freeform Structures workshop - Athens, Greece


Faberarium workshop: 
Metallic Freeform Structures
Athens, Greece

Phase I: September 27-28
Phase II: October 3-5
Phase III: October 10-12
Conference : October 16

During the  workshop, we will investigate the concepts and the design techniques for the development of a coherent design methodology which challenge the traditional perception of the object by raising an open framework for thinking about design as a way of accumulation of different possibilities. We will explore how the design intentions and strategies can be embedded deeply in the formation of design, through a set of local interactions, geometrical systems and surfaces. The participants will explore the creative potential of the emerging and dynamic phenomena through the use of a series of algorithmic strategies (Grasshopper + plug-ins) for interactive simulation and design optimization. Having  the opportunity to experiment with a range of computational tools we will design and fabricate a small pavilion focusing on the properties of aluminum profiles and Etalbond composite material to demonstrate in an artistic way the construction logic of a sustainable and energy saving facade system. The goal of the workshop is to combine technological precision and creativity and connect the architects with the local industries and companies which provide the material and machinery. The contemporary digital fabrication techniques and the case of CNC (computer numerical control) machines, provide effective connection between design and production and enable the construction of projects into scale 1:1.


Complete details and registration at http://faberarium.org/ 

Tuesday, September 23, 2014

The Louvre in Abu Dhabi



Recently, at the F#unctional Londoners meetup group, Goswin Rothenthal presented how he used F# application scripting to construct an associative digital 3D model for the cladding of the Louvre Abu Dhabi Dome. The F#unctional Londoners is a newly launched meetup group whose purpose is to bring together Londoners with an interest in functional programming with F#.

The Louvre Abu Dhabi was designed by the architect Jean Nouvel. The complex dome construction is contracted to the Austrian steel specialist, Waagner Biro.

The geometric openings in the dome were inspired by the interlaced palm leaves traditionally used in roofing material. For the cladding of this dome more than 450,000 individual cutting and drilling patterns of custom aluminum extrusions were described and automated. Goswin Rothenthal developed an F# application to represent and organize all the dome's cladding elements. He used Rhino and its .NET API to host the F# DLL for drawing and visualization. With this, they had an integrated work flow in a single parametric model, from the main geometry set down to the manufacturing data.

Read more on the architecture of the Louvre Abu Dhabi ....


Thursday, September 18, 2014

New! Rhino 5 for Mac Online Training



Level 1 Rhino 5 for Mac Online Training
October 1-8, 2014

This is our first official Rhino 5 for Mac training. Please join us and help shape the future of Rhino 5 for Mac training. Sign up for our first class and receive the $99 promotional price.
  • Orientation: Wednesday, October 1 (9 am - 11 am Pacific)
  • Training: Thursday/Friday, October 2-3 and Monday-Wednesday, October 6-8
    (9 am -1 pm Pacific)
Details:
  • You will need the latest Rhino 5 for Mac version installed. Rhino 5 for Windows will not be acceptable for this class.
  • You will need a stable and fast Internet connection.
  • You will need the Rhino 5 Level 1 Training Guide and Models as well as the Rhino 5 for Mac User Guide. You may print the PDF for your reference. Download here.

Thursday, September 11, 2014

Bongo 2.0 Service Release 4 now available



Bongo 2.0 SR4 is now available from:
The complete list of bug fixes and changes can be find found here.
Enjoy!

Online Level 2 Rhino begins next week


Image credit: Kyle Houchens, The Outside

Our Level 2 Rhino 5 online course begins next week. The class is scheduled for September 15-25. We have a few seats still available if you'd like to register. The course will consist of seven sessions, a brief orientation on Monday followed by six half-days of Rhino 5 training.

Dates/Times:
  • Orientation: Monday, September 15, 9:00AM -10:30AM
  • Training: Tuesday-Thursday, September 16-18 and 23-25, 9:00AM - 1:00PM
    Note: All times listed are Pacific time zone. Calculate your time zone.
All sessions are instructor-led and will be recorded for later viewing.  If you cannot make a session, watch the video and catch up before the class meets again.

Wednesday, September 10, 2014

HatchKit 2014 for Rhino - New hatch pattern editor

What does HatchKit 2014 for Rhino do?
  • creates and edits hatch patterns with Rhino pattern format
  • can be installed on three machines
  • attaches to each machine
  • allows reinstallation to the same machine
  • will not install on a virtual machine or Windows Server
  • prohibits sale of patterns or pattern libraries
Demonstration download...

Thursday, September 4, 2014

Welcome to Rhino 5 for Mac




Join us for a webinar on September 12

Space is limited. Reserve your webinar seat now!





Kyle Houchens of The Outside Design Digital Design will introduce you to the basics of modeling in Rhino for Mac. Kyle will show you how to design and model a water bottle completely in Rhino for Mac. Rhino tips and tricks will be covered throughout the presentation.

The presentation will take approximately 1 hour, and questions will be taken at the end.

The presentation will be recorded.

Please email Mary Fugier if you have any questions.

Welcome to Rhino for Mac
Friday, September 12, 2014
9 am - 11 am PDT

After registering you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.

System requirements

PC-based attendees - Required: Windows® 8, 7, Vista, XP or 2003 Server

Mac®-based attendees - Required: Mac OS® X 10.6 or newer

Mobile attendees - Required: iPhone®, iPad®, Android™ phone or Android tablet

HILA pavilion in Kiikeli island, Oulu, Finland


University of Oulu students in collaboration with DigiWoodLab project
Kiikeli island, Oulu, Finland
2014

HILA pavilion is part of the summer workshop series at the University of Oulu, Faculty of architecture. The students of architecture created the concept and constructed HILA at the Kiikeli island, located right in front of the city center, in summer of 2014.

Hila pavilion is a synthesis of a three dimensional wooden lattice structure (hila in Finnish) and architecture, in which the rectangular base form is carved by a freeform inner void. The revealed wooden structure creates a lace-like appearance inside the pavilion, which is amplified by the complex shadows it forms. Viewed from inside, the openings on the sides of the pavilion frame beautiful views towards the river delta area, and the pavilion itself is shown as a prominent landmark towards the city.