DYNAMICS IN EXTREME ENVIRONMENTS

ETH CAAD and Chalmers Faculty: Manuel Kretzer, Stig Anton Nielsen

IAAC Faculty: Areti Markopoulou

IAAC Assistants: Alexandre Dubor, Carlos Bausa

External Guest: Raul Nieves, Prototipolab

In collaboration with: MaterFad

In traditional architecture, a change in a material’s property, such as its volume or elasticity, was generally seen as a potential problem affecting the performance of built structures. Static planar surfaces related with stability or even durability have long dominated the architectural vision. When, as a consequence to the introduction of domotics, design disciplines started to explore kinetic and dynamic performances to increase efficiency, this was done following mere rules of mechanical actuators and heavy motor or servo-based systems plugged-in in whichever material surface.

Today, progress in novel and advanced materials coming from disciplines such as medicine or aerospace engineering raise the challenge of adaptation following smart, active or reactive materials that are able to alter their properties reacting to external stimuli. Changes in state, colour, and volume take place with no need of any computing device or mechanical actuator; rather the material itself has all these functions programmed into its persistence on a molecular scale.

In parallel, the 21st century challenges related with global warming, i.e. global temperatures that rise and cause climate change and global urbanization, raise new questions regarding our way of building and inhabiting. Architecture, will have to respond to extreme weather conditions, especially the rise of temperature in densely urbanized areas and smart materials will play a critical role in the architectural process of dealing with the current challenges of the global context.

Which architectural systems can be dynamic and react to environmental conditions such as temperature shifts?

Can buildings and cities perform as environmentally integrated living organisms?

How can architecture remember and learn from previous experiences, therefore evolving with embedded intelligence?

The workshop introduced students to a series of “smart materials” such as polymorph plastics, shape memory polymers, bioplastics, thermochromic pigments, temperature-sensitive and electroconductive materials for 3d printing.

The project proposals explored active materials and developed dynamic architectural proposals for extreme environmental conditions where temperatures in urbanized areas surpass 70 or 80 degrees Celsius. Such extreme temperatures are able to activate a series of smart materials that can change state when heated in high temperatures.

Project 1

Project Name: Thermoteam

Students: Alina Kvirkveliya, Ji Won Jun, Josep Alcover, Jose Algeciras, Matteo Silverio, Yoko Gotoh

Project 2

Project 3

Project Name: Thermoluminescence

Students: Nina Jotanoivc, Panagiota Sarantinoudi, Farah Alayeli, Apostolos Apostolinas, Lubna Alayeli, Ceren Temel

Project 4

Project 5

In collaboration with: 

The main purpose of the European Art Science and Technology Network (EASTN) Initiative is to contribute to make digital creativity more accessible, by promoting the development of a deep and collective knowledge of the current artistic movements and of theirs tools. Digital technologies play a significant and increasing part in artistic creation, from generating the substance of a work of art to broadcasting it. Nevertheless, because of a profusion of possibilities and because of the speed of evolutions, the inherent concepts of these tools are often overlooked by the general public, and even by the artists themselves. In order to ensure that Europe fully participates in the Cultural Revolution rising from these technologies and that European citizens are encouraged to be more than just isolated consumers, specific actions must be undertaken.

The central theme of 2014‐2015 is about Tangibility, which is at the heart of a major evolution in the creative field. Indeed, nowadays, new methods of interaction with the information and with digital medias are proposed, relying more on senses and gestures in a way to connect real and virtual worlds. In this way, the body resumes its predominant place in the act of creation, and the publics are able to achieve a better assimilation and utilization of the digital creation tools.

The missions of the network are:

_To support creation and artistic exchanges through residencies and workshops

_To conceive and realize digital tools in relation with tangible objects encouraging digital creativity

_To promote European digital creation to the general public

Sense-It explores the potentials of materially-directed generative fabrication through an integration of research in robotic sensing, plastic deposition, and generative code. This approach tests the limits of a machine-material-sensor interface to act autonomously, without direct adjustments from an observing operator, and capitalizes on sensor responsiveness and material agency to produce unpredictable outcomes. This workshop moves away from optimization and efficiency as the primary drivers of digital fabrication in pursuit of a model where materials assume maximum agency in the fabrication process. Feedback loops between machining parameters, real-time sensors, and plastic deposition will infuse the workshop results with both intelligence and an intentional instability, where the outcomes can be guided but never fully predicted.

The Workshop participants are working in groups of three to four with Arduino microcontrollers, basic electronic components, and sensors to developing their own logic for the workshop’s unique sensor-deposition workflow. Manipulating simple code in Kuka Robot Language (KRL) and Arduinos, each group is testing physical deposition patterns using the sensor of their choice. Through design strategies comprised of small adjustments to the workflow’s many parameters—robot movements, speed of actuation, limits of sensor data, etc.—catalogue of possible outcomes is being created.

IAAC | Fab Lab Barcelona with fabtextiles.org and pratipo.orginvite you to a first open and free session: Introduction and demo

We are proposing a workshop directed to all those who wish fully develop a project that combies digital fabrications technologies and interactive capacities (physical computation).

Since in the 30′s modern reprogrammable computers were theorised, these have gone from mainstream to cellular and from isolated machines to nodes of the Web. These two propoerties – miniaturization and hyperconectivity – announce a new state of invisible ubiquity for devices that consume+produce information. A state of fusion with a tangible world that surrounds us, where our body is the last border.

Digital fabrication technologies allow us to prototype this integration between wearables and technology towards information|interaction.

Fileds of Application: 

Fashion and product design, interaction design, performance and scenographic arts, sports science, health science, prosthetics, pedagogy, material engineering, etc.

Requisits:

No technical knowledge is needed.

The participation in this workshop is subject to the previous presentation of a project proposal. The tutors will evaluate the inclusion of the proposals (as participants in the workshop program) and these will be evaluated and accepted in order of reception. There is no limit to the number of proposals per person, but only one proposal will be accepted per person.

For more information, contact us at: info@fabtextiles.org

Tutors: Raul (Pratipo) + Anastasia (FabTextiles)

Places available:

Limited to 8 proposals/participants. The workshop will be developed with a minimum of 4 proposals/participants.

Price:

480€

Calendar:

16 May // Open Session // 19:00

25 May // Deadline for project proposals

June // Tuesdays 18:00 – 22:00 + Saturdays 10:30 – 14:30

Sesión #0 OPEN+FREE

16th May // 19:00 – 21:00

Presentation of Fab Lab Barcelona – Fab Textiles

Presentation of the workshop

Demo/Prototyping a kinetic, reactive, wireless component

No enrollment needed. Participants must be punctual.

The participation does not require any pre-acquired materials, or any subsequent engagement.

IAAC | Fab Lab Barcelona with Flone present Fly Valldaura, a workshop towards the design and fabrication of Open source Drones.

PROGRAM

Engage in a workshop to build a Flone-Drone from a kit of parts. Learning to solder the components, assemble the frame as well as to program the circuit boards.

The group workshop is an intensive 4 days situated in the 140 hectares at Valldaura Labs. Participants will stay at Valldaura with the option of accommodation, food and drone kit included.

The 4 day workshop will also include drone – fu piloting practise as well as a number of lectures and mapping exercises. Participants will take home their own flone- drone and will receive the mapping data that we generate during the event. Both individuals and Groups welcome.

WORKSHOP CONTENT

- Tour of the site.

- Presentations drones Use / History / Future

- Film involving drones

- Mapping, scanning data sharing

- Open Discussion

PRICES

€550 - FLONE MAKER

FLONE KIT + TUITION + ACCOMMODATION

Add anther team member for €300

€350 - TRAVELLER

FLONE KIT + TUITION

Add another team member for €100

SCHEDULE

Saturday 31 _ 05 _2014

Tuesday 03 _ 06 _ 2014

Day 1 - CONSTRUCTION KIT

Day 2 - ELECTRONICS

Day 3 - PILOTING CLASSES

Day 4 - WHAT IF DRONES … ?

CONTACT

info@fablabbcn.org

jonathan@fablabbcn.org

REGISTER

valldaura-events.fikket.com

The workshop was centred around the development of a stair system, through both the creation of a physical model, as well as the generation of a virtual model using Karamba for virtual structural testing. Once generated the virtual model the students then re-elaborated the design of the stair thanks to the new data gained through the generative model with regards to the structural behaviour of the design.

To end the trip to Copenhagen on a lighter and more touristic note, the Students and tutors then had the pleasure of visiting BIG.

The Students are continuing to develop their research and prototypes in the workshop studying the ways of creating tensioned membranes with disconnected bending active elements, stabilising non-elastic membranes locally (for example with the configuration of three linear elements placed in a reciprocal configuration).

Within the workshop a series of questions are being discussed and developed among which: the setup of bending active elements; patterns towards the creation of membranes with local active bending tensioning (regular, irregular, self-organising); topology of skin, single, double, splitting skin; the computation of bending active and tensioned skin; modelling of interdependent models for skin and bending active elements; as well as tools for 3d modelling and pattern cutting of membranes.

The CITA tutors Mette Ramsgaard Thompsen and David Stasiuk also gave a presentation on the evolution of the works produced during the Workshop held in IaaC, by David Stasiuk – digitalization of the physical models for the self parametrization -, Henrik Leander Evers – 3D scanning expert -, as well as the RS3 studio directors: Areti Markopoulou with Mette Ramsgaard Thompsen – CITA – and tutor Alexandre Dubor, and developed with the Digital Matter Studio students, earlier this year. The evolution presented included new generative algorithms to be added in the different stages of the design process, allowing to enhance the self-learning systems, as well as generating an optimisation criteria towards the final development of the 1:1 prototype. Said prototype is to be produced in CITA during an exhibition to be held in 2 weeks from now.

After the Presentation, the Students then presented the work they have developed so far in a Mid-Workshop Presentation, gaining some useful feedback towards the further development of these projects, and finally the 1:1 Prototype.

The Students and Tutors from IaaC also had the possibility to visit the 3XN /GXN, including a visit to the DAC (Danish Center of Architects).

The professors and tutors leading the 4 groups of students, both from CITA and IaaC, are: Prof. Christoph Gengnagel (UDK), Julien Nembrini (UDK), Mette Ramsgard Thomsen (CITA), Paul Nicholas (CITA), Martin Tamke (CITA), Anders Deleuran (CITA) , Areti Markopoulou (IaaC), Alexandre Dubor (IaaC) and Moritz Begle (IaaC).

The workshop is developed to investigate a further an understanding of material systems as being based on discreet energetic systems that negotiate flows of energy. The forces and emerging behaviour of the system are understood and simulated as well as used in a designerly way.

The investigation is centred on how materials and their properties can be modeled, chosen and programmed to influence a material system in a target oriented way.

The overarching concepts and computational techniques are exemplified and investigated in a structural system that negotiates the forces from programmed bending active elements and a tensile surface with variable geometry.

The IaaC students and tutors arrived in Copenhagen on Saturday, and started off their stay with a bicycle tour visiting the VM Houses, 8 taller, VM Mountain, Hotel by 3XN, as well as Christiania.

They then went to CITA where an introduction to the workshop, including the design task and diverse materials to be investigated. The students were then divided into their working groups, and started developing their specific tasks towards the creation of their first models.