A NEW PARADIGM OF DATA VISUALIZATION

Multiplying a colour changing pixel on a skin to display real time data with the technology at hand today a lot of interactive building facades have come into existence. Although some maybe powered by passive means replacing the medium of the visual field itself has rarely been attempted. The idea of our project is to develop a pixel that changes colour in response to environmental changes and to exercise control over this colour change. A composition that could facilitate control through remote interfaces. This research opens up the possibilities of a new paradigm in how we use mechanically powered systems to control visual representation. We believe our project has the potential to contribute more to the concept of smart cities in terms of information sharing and display. Retail outlets could have passive facades that change seasonally which communicate a required message to customers. Skyscrapers could have skins that project any form of visual data to interact with people outside or even with other buildings. Building skins can be passive systems for real time data visualization. Thus smart cities can have smart buildings with communicate through their facades.

Soft Skin is a research project that investigates possibilities of using airinflation in architecture, as an active response to constantly changing parameters in environment. The Skin is a new composite material made of thin layers of flexible silicone rubber and elastic fabric. Material system consists of series of inflatable cells combined in groups, which could be inflated or deflated to change form and appearance. This tunable topography responds to real time data of wind and light. These two parameters determine behavior of the skin that responds with different air pressures inside the system.