Universität Stuttgart
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Item Open Access Environmental impact of a mono-material timber building envelope with enhanced energy performance(2022) Bucklin, Oliver; Di Bari, Roberta; Amtsberg, Felix; Menges, AchimBroader adoption of timber construction is a strategy for reducing negative greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions created by the construction industry. This paper proposes a novel solid timber building envelope that uses computational design and digital fabrication to improve buildings’ energy performance. Timber beams are sawn with deep slits that improve thermal insulation and are milled with various joints for airtight, structural connections. To minimize embedded energy and to simplify disposal, the envelope is assembled without adhesives or metal fasteners. The building envelope is evaluated for thermal resistance and airtightness, and fabrication is evaluated for duration and power output during sawing. Finally, a Lifecycle Assessment (LCA) is carried out. The Global Warming Potential (GWP) is compared to that of other wood envelope systems with similar thermal conductance. Compared to other timber constructions with similar building physics properties, the proposed system showed lower GWP values (-15.63 kg CO2 eq./m² construction). The development and analysis demonstrate the potential to use digitally controlled subtractive manufacturing for improving the quality of solid timber to achieve higher environmental performance in building envelopes. However, further design and fabrication optimizations may be necessary to reduce required materials and production energy.Item Open Access Computational optimisation of urban design models : a systematic literature review(2024) Tay, JingZhi; Ortner, Frederick Peter; Wortmann, Thomas; Aydin, Elif EsraThe densification of urban spaces globally has contributed to a need for design tools supporting the planning of more sustainable, efficient, and liveable cities. Urban Design Optimisation (UDO) responds to this challenge by providing a means to explore many design solutions for a district, evaluate multiple objectives, and make informed selections from many Pareto-efficient solutions. UDO distinguishes itself from other forms of design optimisation by addressing the challenges of incorporating a wide range of planning goals, managing the complex interactions among various urban datasets, and considering the social-technical aspects of urban planning involving multiple stakeholders. Previous reviews focusing on specific topics within UDO do not sufficiently address these challenges. This PRISMA systematic literature review provides an overview of research on topics related to UDO from 2012 to 2022, with articles analysed across seven descriptive categories. This paper presents a discussion on the state-of-the-art and identified gaps present in each of the seven categories. Finally, this paper argues that additional research to improve the socio-technical understanding and usability of UDO would require: (i) methods of optimisation across multiple models, (ii) interfaces that address a multiplicity of stakeholders, (iii) exploration of frameworks for scenario building and backcasting, and (iv) advancing AI applications for UDO, including generalizable surrogates and user preference learning.Item Open Access Towards digital automation flexibility in large-scale timber construction : integrative robotic prefabrication and co-design of the BUGA Wood Pavilion(2020) Wagner, Hans Jakob; Alvarez, Martin; Groenewolt, Abel; Menges, AchimThis paper discusses the digital automation workflows and co-design methods that made possible the comprehensive robotic prefabrication of the BUGA Wood Pavilion - a large-scale production case study of robotic timber construction. Latest research in architectural robotics often focuses on the advancement of singular aspects of integrated digital fabrication and computational design techniques. Few researchers discuss how a multitude of different robotic processes can come together into seamless, collaborative robotic fabrication workflows and how a high level of interaction within larger teams of computational design and robotic fabrication experts can be achieved. It will be increasingly important to discuss suitable methods for the management of robotics and computational design in construction for the successful implementation of robotic fabrication systems in the context of the industry. We present here how a co-design approach enabled the organization of computational design decisions in reciprocal feedback with the fabrication planning, simulation and robotic code generation. We demonstrate how this approach can implement direct and curated reciprocal feedback between all planning domains - paving the way for fast-paced integrative project development. Furthermore, we discuss how the modularization of computational routines simplify the management and computational control of complex robotic construction efforts on a per-project basis and open the door for the flexible reutilization of developed digital technologies across projects and building systems.Item Open Access 4D printed hygroscopic programmable material architectures(Stuttgart : Institute for Computational Design and Construction, University of Stuttgart, 2022) Correa, David; Menges, Achim (Prof., AA Dipl(Hons))Developing Materials that can change their shape in response to external signals, like heat or humidity, is a critical concern for architectural design as it enables designers to develop building components that can be programmed to transform in response to changing environmental conditions. However, developing a stimulus-responsive material requires the architect to extend its level of engagement from the macroscale of the building into the much smaller scale of the material’s micro- and meso-structure. In this thesis, a novel approach for the 4D printing (4DP) of hygroscopic responsive shape-changing mechanisms is proposed and analysed. This approach engages the design of mesoscale technical structures, via a precise material deposition, that harness the anisotropic properties inherent to the fabrication process and the constitution of the printing material itself. Organization models from biological organisms, such as motile plant structures, are abstracted into smart 4D printed techniques to preprogram water induced shape-change using copolymers with embedded cellulose fibrils. This principle enables expansion or contraction forces, whose direction and strength are dependent on the architecture of the 3D printed structure. A series of experiments are described that validate the transfer of known hygroscopic bilayer principles from lamination processes to 3D printing (3DP). They demonstrate the increased programmable control of the 4DP technique through functional gradation, moisture control and multi-phase motion; and present the augmented kinematic capacity of the novel 4DP technique. In addition to the self-shaping mechanisms, the possibilities and challenges of using 4DP structures in architectural applications, such as aperture assemblies and flap mechanisms are discussed. The presented techniques, and bio-inspired approach to material organization, demonstrate the first successful application of differentiated Wood Polymer Composite (WPC) 3DP for programmable hygroscopic shape-change. The experiments can help to form the basis for complex stimulus-responsive building components capable of performing autonomous transformations in technical applications for thermal and moisture regulation.Item Open Access A systematic approach for developing agent-based architectural design models of segmented shells : towards autonomously learned goal-oriented agent behaviors(Stuttgart : Institute for Computational Design and Construction, University of Stuttgart, 2021) Schwinn, Tobias; Menges, Achim (Prof.)Segmented shell design constitutes a novel and promising research area in shell design that has emerged over the last 10 years. The prospect of dividing a continuous shell surface into segments is to resolve some of the constraints of continuous shells that have limited their application in building practice. As part of large-span surface structures, segmented shells have shown to possess similar desirable features, while allowing for a high degree of prefabrication. The geometry of individual building elements and global form are, however, complex, which poses a challenge to designing and building segmented shells. One of the challenges of segmented shell design in particular is meeting multiple interrelated, sometimes conflicting, evaluation criteria: geometric validity, structural stability, and producibility. In segmented shell design geometric validity and producibility are aspects that can be considered locally, meaning on the level of the individual building element, while structural stability needs to be evaluated globally and can be conceived of as the global effect of the properties and interactions of all segments in the shell. Agent-based modeling and simulation (ABMS) provides the opportunity to bridge the gap between local characteristics and global performance. By focusing on the detailed description of the individual building elements and their interactions and by conceiving of the global form as the result of a myriad of local interactions of virtual agents representing building elements, the global design problem can be solved in parallel on the level of the individual building elements. The work thus proposes a methodology for developing agent-based models of buildings where agents constitute building elements. The research pursues and synthesizes two investigative strands: on the one hand, generalizing findings from previously built plate shells as part of a case study-based, inductive research approach, which is geared towards building a catalog of validated design principles for plate shells; on the other hand, systematizing the agent-based modeling approach for architectural design-oriented applications in general, and plate shell design in particular.Item Open Access Advanced timber construction industry : a quantitative review of 646 global design and construction stakeholders(2023) Orozco, Luis; Svatoš-Ražnjević, Hana; Wagner, Hans Jakob; Abdelaal, Moataz; Amtsberg, Felix; Weiskopf, Daniel; Menges, AchimThere has been a multi-storey timber construction boom since the start of the millennium. While there is now a body of research on trends, benefits, and disadvantages of timber construction, there is not yet literature on the wider market or the impact of stakeholders on it. This research investigates the (i) architects, (ii) engineers, and (iii) manufacturers involved in the realization of 300 contemporary multi-storey timber buildings from an existing survey. The analysis is based on data sourced from stakeholder websites and the building survey. It evaluates the perceived level of timber expertise of stakeholders based on service categorization and stakeholder type and relates them to the buildings they worked on. The research uses quantitative methods to answer qualitative questions on the connection between architectural variety in timber construction and the stakeholders involved. Interconnectivity between stakeholders and projects is visualized in an interactive network graph. The study shows a segmented mass timber market with relatively few impactful design and construction stakeholders, mostly located in central and northern Europe. It also identifies fabricators as the largest group of innovators advancing the industry and enabling the construction of more complex projects. It reveals the importance of collaboration and knowledge sharing for the industry’s growth.Item Open Access Computational Design Methoden für die Gestaltung von Automobilen(Stuttgart : Institut für Computerbasiertes Entwerfen und Baufertigung, Universität Stuttgart, 2020) Reichert, Steffen; Menges, Achim (Prof.)In dieser Dissertation wird die Anwendbarkeit von computerbasierten Gestaltungsmethoden jenseits klassischer CAD-Modellierung für das Gestaltungsfeld des Automobildesigns untersucht. Formgenerierende Algorithmen und dazugehörige Anwendungsstrategien werden systematisch im Hinblick auf ihre Anwendung im Automobildesign und ihre charakteristische Formensprache vergleichend betrachtet, praktisch erprobt und experimentell erforscht. Weitergehend wird untersucht, zu welchem Zeitpunkt algorithmische Methoden im Gestaltungsprozess einsetzbar sind. Anfänglich wird die Arbeit in den historischen, methodologischen und theoretischen Kontext der Entwicklung von Computational Design gestellt. Einleitende Grundlagen sowie der Stand der Technik werden erörtert. Anschließend werden syntaktische Bestandteile virtueller Formerzeugung und Formveränderung auf prinzipieller Ebene diskutiert und in Form eines konzeptionellen Gerüsts zusammengefügt. Dieses generalisierte Gerüst soll als Rahmenwerk zur Einordnung der Fallstudien, sowie als generelle Beschreibung eines Gestaltungsystems dienen. Eine Kollektion aus sechs Fallstudien bietet einen Überblick über Möglichkeiten von Computational Design und die Vielfalt ihrer Anwendbarkeit im Automobildesign. Die Fallstudien umfassen (1) algorithmische Methoden zur Erzeugung von Mustern, (2) die Erforschung einer generativen Methode zur algorithmischen Erzeugung von dreidimensionalen Fahrzeugkörpern, (3) Umformungsmethoden von Gestaltungen, um geometrische Körper mit erhöhtem Freiheitsgrad deformieren zu können, (4) Methoden der algorithmischen, dreidimensionalen Modulation einer Körperoberfläche, (5) Methoden der algorithmischen Bildung von Entwurfsvarianten, sowie (6) eine empirische Studie zur Validität von Computational Design im praktischen Entwurfsprozess eines Konzeptfahrzeugs. Aus den Fallstudien ergeben sich eine Reihe übergreifender Erkenntnisse über den Nutzen von Algorithmen und computerbasiertem Entwerfen im automobilen Gestaltungskontext. Es wird diskutiert, welche Arten von algorithmischen Methoden in welchen Gebieten und zu welchen Zeitpunkten Anwendung finden können. Dabei wird aufgezeigt, dass Computational Design mehr als nur die simple Anwendung von Algorithmen bzw. Programmierung im Designprozess bedeutet.Item Open Access Generative agent-based architectural design computation : behavioral strategies for integrating material, fabrication and construction characteristics in design processes(Stuttgart : Institute for Computational Design and Construction, 2017) Baharlou, Ehsan; Menges, Achim (Prof.)The aim of this thesis is to investigate the generative potential of agent-based systems for integrating material and fabrication characteristics into design processes. This generative agent-based system reflects the significance of behavioral strategies in computational design and construction. This work presents a generative behavioral approach for integrating fabrication processes with material specifications. The development of a computational framework facilitates this integration via an agent-based system. A series of experiments with related case studies emphasizes behavioral strategies within the processes of formation and materialization. This research proposes the integration of material and fabrication processes through an agent-based system. The utilization of this system reflects a theoretical framework in developing an integrative computational method. The implementation of this theoretical framework in practical studies demonstrates the applicability of this research. The practical developments highlight the importance of behavioral strategies to establish integral design computation. Chapter 1 introduces the extended behavioral strategies to integration design. Chapter 2 provides a study about integrative design computation to abstract the main drivers of design integration through agent-based modeling. Chapter 3 presents agent-based systems in architectural design, specifically, in regards to material, fabricational, and environmental principles. Chapter 4 explores experiments and case studies to adjust the development of a generative agent-based system for integrating material and fabrication characteristics in design processes. Chapter 5 explains procedures for setting-up a generative agent-based design computation. Chapter 6 discusses the significance of behavioral strategies to develop different behavioral layers within a generative agent-based architectural design. Chapter 7 concludes the integral behavioral strategies by proposing trends to minimize the gap between formation and materialization through coalescing computational and physical agent-based systems.Item Open Access Computational fiber architecture : co-design of large-scale, load-adapted fiber composite building components for robotic pre-fabrication(Stuttgart : Institute for Computational Design and Construction, University of Stuttgart, 2023) Zechmeister, Christoph; Menges, Achim (Prof.)The architecture, engineering, and construction sectors are encountering major challenges in delivering livable and affordable environments in light of current demographic shifts and environmental changes. Digital technologies provide promising solutions, disrupting the way to design, construct, and experience physical space. Their implementation demands rethinking design, evaluation, and materialization to leverage material capacities propelled by computational design and numerical manufacturing. Coreless filament winding extends industrial processes to produce lightweight, material-efficient building parts with minimal formwork. However, it creates additional complexity for design and engineering, as it derives its formative capacity from interacting fiber rovings. This research presents a consolidated methodology to co-design coreless wound fiber composite building components for robotic prefabrication based on four main methods. Concurrent design and evaluation of fiber components are investigated using a feedback-based computational method and implemented using multi-scalar digital-physical design and evaluation toolsets. To increase sustainability, methods and toolsets are extended allowing for the replacement of petrochemical materials with bio-based alternatives. To implement the methods at a larger scale, a computational co-design framework is introduced, reconsidering team compositions and integrating interdisciplinary experts deep into design and evaluation workflows. As Co-design relies on the concurrent evolution of involved disciplines, interdisciplinary data sets are analyzed and interrelated, serving as a base for reciprocal feedback between computational design, engineering, and fabrication to increase process reliability, enable future reduction of material safety factors, and further increase material efficiency and sustainability. The methods are demonstrated by three full-scale building demonstrators, exhibiting different fibrous building systems. The BUGA Fiber Pavilion, Maison Fibre, and the livMatS Pavilion illustrate how concurrent multidisciplinary innovation challenges conventional ways of design and materialization. Computation acts as an interface between digital and physical realms, and material capacities become primary drivers in the generation of architectural form, paving the way for sustainable, material-efficient computational fiber architecture.Item Open Access Upscaled, robotic coreless filament winding methods for lightweight building elements for architecture(Stuttgart : Institute for Computational Design and Construction, University of Stuttgart, 2023) Bodea, Serban; Menges, Achim (Prof.)Starting in the 1940s, advances in the chemical industry and composite materials such as Fiber Reinforced Polymers have revolutionized manufacturing enabling new lightweight - high strength applications in the aerospace, automotive, and consumer goods industries. However, composites failed to significantly impact the building industry due to its poor digitalization and low integration of design and engineering methods. Nevertheless, these shortcomings can be mitigated through construction-specific design, fabrication methods, and building regulations for composite structures. Especially, lightweight construction has yet to capitalize on the high strength-toweight ratio afforded by composite materials such as Glass or Carbon Fiber Reinforced Polymers and thus shape its contribution to contemporary high-performance, lightweight architecture. However, 21st Century advances in digital design methods in conjunction with newly-available hardware and control systems allow for automated fabrication approaches to re-imagine established fabrication methods such as Filament Winding(FW). This thesis presents novel upscaling and automation strategies for Coreless Filament Winding(CFW), which is an adaptation of FW to construction applications. CFW is a fabrication method that relies on the anisotropic mechanical properties of free-spanning fibers wound around supports in space to create efficient load bearing structures without requiring molds or dies. These strategies are supported by a state-of-the-art review focused on the technological requirements for robotic coreless filament winding in construction applications. The investigation identified fabrication method scalability and insufficient process automation as research gaps in academic investigation for construction composites. The thesis demonstrates that existing prefabrication methods of Robotic Coreless Filament Winding (RCFW) can be successfully upscaled and utilized for large-scale, long-span loadbearing structures. Furthermore, the thesis presents an approach to advance existing process-monitoring and quality-control methods, named Cyber-Physical RCFW (CPRCFW). The two objectives are investigated through two representative tasks: (1) verifying the RCFW method’s scalability and its industrialization potential, and (2) the development of a CPRCFW method for quality control, integrating winding process automation, process monitoring, data acquisition, and analysis. Each objective is demonstrated through the research and development of hardware, consisting of fabrication setups and tooling and software, comprising CAD-implemented industrial robot motion planning and control algorithms. The objectives are verified through large-scale demonstrators at component and building scale, illustrating how the research findings are conducive to RCFW becoming a valid alternative to industry-verified technologies in composite construction applications.