Abstract

Many of the challenges faced in the design and production of spatial structures arise from geometric complexities at structural nodes. These elements are often treated as unique components within a larger standardized assembly that are both time consuming to resolve and expensive to fabricate (Pottmann et. al [1] ) motivating the need for repetition which significantly limits design freedom. We present a method for modelling a class of freeform spatial structures whose inherent geometric properties allow for fabrication via relatively inexpensive 2-axis CNC cutting technology. Building upon principles of graphic statics (Rankine [2]) the method represents a structural network via its dual - a volumetric mesh composed of polyhedra with shared faces. While the structural significance of such an approach has already been detailed in (Akbarzadeh et.al [3]), we demonstrate its advantages as they relate to fabrication through the design and construction of a full-scale prototype (Figure 1) - a self-supporting structural network with high nodal variance composed of modest sheet materials.

Citation

Reeves, D., Bhooshan, V. and Bhooshan, S., 2016, September. Freeform developable spatial structures. In Proceedings of IASS annual symposia (Vol. 2016, No. 3, pp. 1-10). International Association for Shell and Spatial Structures (IASS).