This was the first session of Lightweight Structures where the focus is on creating adaptive nesting with waste of the future. We started by going to a neighborhood bazaar to search for materials that we could work with. The materials we thought would be most interesting in terms of assembly where funnels, soft dog balls and cylinder objects such as bins and cups.

We started working with different assembly of those components to work out an optimum solution for our shelter…

Team experimenting with materials

We focused on using the basic element of the funnel and combining them with an elastic element that gave us a compression- and a tension member so our system was embedded with both of the forces as we were inspired to create a bi-stable structure. It has two states of stability and can therefore adapt to a scenario we create.

By using planar elements out of the funnels we worked on designing adaptive joinery that would respond to change in parameters.

Joinery Experiments

In the end of the session we came to the conclusion that we need to make a bead like triangular component out of the funnels and have two types of joinery that can be weaved, rigid and adjustable, using springs. The next step is to make several elements and work out the structure and joints.

Component Exploration

IAAC, Lightweight Structures.

This is a project of IaaC, Institute for Advanced Architecture of Catalonia developed at Master in Advanced Architecture, MAA01 in 2016 by:

Students:

• Thora H Arnardottir
• Fulvio Brunetti
• Utsav Mathur
• Tanuj Thomas
• Connor Stevens

Faculty:

• Silvia Brandi
• Rodrigo Aguirre