Aug 4, 2012



The design proposal for the Rio de Janeiro Olympic Villa consists of an urban field whose main parameters are density programs and environmental inputs. From this parametric interaction, four shell typologies emerge as the non-linear product of different structure gradients, from thin concrete shells to grid shell structures.
Efficient system performance results from structure adaptation according to required program density. In low density environments, such as multi-complex areas, structures act as thin concrete shells, while in those of high density, where large-span structures are required such as stadiums, the shells consist of grid structures. A transition between the two extremes is achieved through combining systems of thin concrete and grid structures. This hybrid typology is presented in areas of moderate density where medium-span structures are required such as in residential areas as well as in the Training center. Although each shell typology
can function independently, it is part of the same overall urban grid which is interconnected through the use of smooth spatial transitions.






SG2012

SG2012_MaterialConflicts
 
Image courtesy of SmartGeometry Group

Feb 12, 2012


Continuous Shells_Triple Periodic  Minimal Surfaces 
This research investigates the application of Triple periodic continuous minimal surfaces in the design of shell structures. It presents different formal outcomes derived from the implementation of a computational algorithm which generates Minimal surfaces having a Quadri-rectangular Tetrahedron as a kaleidoscopic cell, as well as derived from the inclusion of those preliminary results into a parametric system.
In the first stage of research, three different precedents of Triple periodic continuous minimal surfaces are given: a preliminary analysis of Infinite periodical minimal surfaces without self-intersections by Allan H. Shoen followed by an example of the partitioning of three-dimensional Euclidian space into Rheotomic Surfaces by Daniel Piker, and finally an investigation of Betting Kelvin´s partition of space from 14-sided polyhedrons, that later is used by Ken Brakke as a kaleidoscopic cell for the generation of minimal surfaces that belongs  to the Batwing family.
In the second stage, different shell morphologies are tested in the parametric system. Distinct formal outcomes are selected according to possible shell structures. Through use of this parametric algorithm and relevant methods, a total of five shell typologies are developed and presented, all of them are based on triple periodic minimal Surfaces from the Batwing family, and finally designed according to the specific program, environment and semiotics.