DIVA is Awesome and Everyone Should Use It
We’ve been playing around with the DIVA plugin for Rhino and Grasshopper for the past month. DIVA stands for Design Iterate Validate Adapt which is similar to the approach that we take with parametric modeling.
By looking at a large number of iterations it often is possible to tease out patterns of performance which can help to find a “satisficing” solution and help designers to develop a better intuition about how to approach a problem.
Grasshopper Canvas with Kinect Interaction: Part 1
In a previous post, we elaborated on how more real estate for the Grasshopper Canvas can be beneficial and usable with Wiimote interaction. Since then, we have been toying around with the Microsoft Kinect (more so after the release of the beta version of the Kinect SDK for the PC), looking to identify a more [...]
ACADIA/FLATCUT Competition Entry
A few of us in the office (kbeck, scrawford, svandyck) put together an entry for the partition category of this year’s ACADIA/FLATCUT competition. We made it into the group of finalists (despite formatting our boards incorrectly), but unfortunately we were not selected as the winner (probably because we formatted our boards incorrectly, only kidding). The competition put forth an interesting challenge: use both rigid and flexible sheet materials to create an assembly (light, furniture, or partition) that highlights the properties of each material while minimizing the amount of waste. Included are the images and text from our submission as well as the final boards.
Med Mart 5: Panel Fabrication
As we developed our precast panel surface geometry, we found ourselves increasingly pushing the limits of our rendering engines. We knew that natural light could potentially reveal different effects on the complex surfaces, and physical models would be the only trustworthy method of study to ensure a more predictable final product. The fabrication process of the model paralleled the fabrication process for the full size panels. Our close collaboration with the form-liner and precast fabricators helped to fine tune the design beyond our initial assumptions.
Med Mart 4: Facade Design Coordination
The ambitious schedule of the Cleveland Med Mart project required us to reexamine and retool some of the ways we design, document, and deliver a project. As the leaders of the design effort, we knew that we would need to find and build smart connections between our generative design tools and our documentation process in order to not only meet deadlines, but also adapt to the parameters that were developing throughout the design-assist process. This post outlines our linking of Grasshopper and Revit – through a custom utility called Cricket …
Med Mart 3: Daylighting the Atrium
In this post, we move into the interior to talk about how we are using daylight inside the building. A major feature of the design is a large central atrium with a four-story structural glass wall facing the Mall. While providing a good amount of natural light to the atrium, this entirely glazed edge also contrasts greatly with the three other non-glazed walls. We knew we needed a strategy to more effectively balance the light levels throughout the space, and our goal was to achieve that with natural lighting.
Med Mart 2: Panel Texture and Geometry
While studying the overall configuration of the Medical Mart facade, we were also developing textural concepts for the surface of the precast concrete panels. We were interested in using the surface texture of the precast concrete panels to build increasing layers of detail to what will be a very large scale facade. With very little time to execute the study and produce a constructable solution, we knew we needed to develop a faster way of generating ideas. Our working process developed rapidly into a focused study of rectangular surface forms.
Form Finding with Flexible Modules
Panelizing free-form surfaces is usually done using a large number of uniquely shaped pieces. A free-form surface can also be approximated using a predetermined module. The advantage is being able to limit the number of unique pieces necessary to fabricate that surface.
For this experiment, the module was flexible between panels, but each panel is rigid. A set of forces are then established between each module to control the relationships between modules once they are pulled to the base surface.
Med Mart 1: Generation of Facade Geometry
From the beginning of our design work on the facade system for the Cleveland Med Mart, we desired to develop a system that would give the building multiple layers of varied, unifying texture, legible from multiple scales. Initial explorations of this concept focused on the textural capacities of precast concrete panels and later move on to studying the process for panelizing the entire facade with precast and glazing units. Parametric modeling allowed us to explore many iterations of the facade while also keeping control of the information needed for fabrication.
Med Mart: Introduction
This is the first in a series of post that will describe LMNts involvement in the design of the Cleveland Medical Mart. In February of 2010, a joint partnership between Merchandise Mart Properties (MMPI) and Cuyahoga County chose LMN Architects as the designer for the Cleveland Medical Mart and Convention Center project. The Cleveland Medical Mart and Convention Center is the city’s most prominent effort to date in reinventing itself as the country’s hub of medical research and trade activity.
3D Printing Flexible Grids
We’re constantly looking for new examples of what we can print using our 3d printer. I tend to enjoy the prints that have lots of little parts that can move. It’s great to print something with over 600 parts, and not have to put all of those pieces together. We worked on a part in the past that had a ball and socket joint and we found that we could minimize the gap between two pieces to .1 mm (.00394″) and they would still be separate after printing. Recently we made a Grasshopper definition that used the grid components to create a set of flexible grids.
Grasshopper Analysis Key
This is a quick post about a definition that we’ve put together to create an analysis key in the Rhino viewport. The key will automatically update to the current view when the timer component is activated. There is the ability to control the size, position and colors of the analysis key.
CNC Model Base
Digital fabrication tools are increasingly becoming part of design education and by extension the professional design process. A question that LMN is currently struggling with is to what extent we want to integrate these tools into our design process.
Objet Alaris30 3D Printer – Update
In a previous post, we promised an update of the Objet Alaris30 3D Printer after we had used it for a couple of months and put it through the paces of a regular production workload. After four months of regular use, there are a number of things we’ve learned…
Sightlines and View Obstructions
This Grasshopper definition takes any potential point of view and simulates a spectator’s quality of view based upon what areas on the stage would be blocked from view.
University of Washington Digital Design and Fabrication Certificate Program
The University of Washington’s College of Built Environments will be offering a certificate in Digital Design and Fabrication this fall. The certificate program is a three quarter exploration of using digital design tools like Rhinoceros, Grasshopper, and Solidworks in combination with lasercutters, CNC routers, plasma cutters, and 3d printers.
Grasshopper Contour Tool
This definition was written to speed up the process of creating a contour model while limiting the amount of waste generated during the fabrication of the physical model. An interface was developed within Grasshopper where all of the important settings can be controlled, allowing those who know little about grasshopper to still use the definition. [...]
Surface Patterning with UV Coordinates
Developing a patterned surface can be fairly simple when the surface you are working with is flat, but if you were to develop the same pattern from scratch on a curved surface then things become a little more difficult. Luckily, there is a way to convert a flat pattern to a curve pattern through the [...]
Grasshopper to ANSYS
If you’ve played with Grasshopper then you know how much fun it can be to throw the sliders back and forth and watch your geometry change. What if you wanted to get analysis data for everyone of those iterations? Parametric modeling eases the task of generating multiple iterations, but it can be a bit laborious [...]
Grasshopper to Excel Exporter
One of the amazing things about working with Grasshopper is the ability to generate lots of information, a key part of Building Information Modeling. However, it can sometimes be difficult to get that information out of Grasshopper in an organized form. Damien Alomar’s work with GH and Excel served as the initial inspiration for this [...]
Grasshopper Space Planner
Projects will often start off with a period of program analysis, part of which requires each of the program spaces to be drawn to get a graphic sense of the project’s pieces. This information tends to be provided in the form of a spreadsheet which categorizes the spaces in addition to specifying the room’s name, quantity, areas, and other relevant information. With a few modifications, this spreadsheet can be used to generate all of the space geometry through the use of a Grasshopper definition.