Flexible Grids in Self-Structure Exhibition
Our flexible grid research project is currently being exhibited at Le Lieu du Design in Paris. While preparing materials for the exhibition we decided to try and build a longer version of the flexible grid. Our previous grid prints were sized to take up roughly half of the print bed (5″x7″) of our Objet Alaris30, but for the exhibit we wanted something bigger. We ended up being able to get an 8″x20″ version, and learned a number of lessons along the way.
3D Printer Reproduction Continues
Assembly of the RepRap Mendel coming along slowly but surely. The physical assembly is nearly done. We’ve been using the SolidWorks model as our guide. After building one or two of the individual assemblies (the Z-drive or the Y-guides, for example), you begin to perceive the design logic behind the RepRap: get close, assemble, adjust, repeat. This is the second in our series of posts on building the RepRap Mendel.
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.
3D Printer Reproduction Begins
We’ve begun 3D printing our second 3D printer. We are using the Objet Alaris to print the parts for the RepRap Mendel, the second generation of open-source self-replicating 3D Printers. So far, we’ve managed to print most of the parts and gather most of the off-the-shelf hardware necessary. We’re ready to start putting it all together.
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.
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.
Symposium: Craft Kraft craft
The UW College of Built Environments is hosting a two day symposium on High Performance Craft. The event will bring together a number of practitioners and thinkers working at the intersections between emerging technologies and building materials, new and old.
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.
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.
DIY Glowflake
Shortly after we posted our 2010 Holiday Card video, we had many people ask us for the patterns and a how-to manual for making spherical, “glowflake”-style shapes. Fortunately, making a “Glowflake” isn’t hard or time consuming. We’ve posted both the Grasshopper definition as well as the 2D pattern for our Glowflake below. Just follow the simple instructions and you too can be the proud owner of a custom magnetic light fixture.
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…
Happy Holidays from LMN
Happy Holidays from everyone at LMN.
This Holiday Season, we made “Glowflakes” …a hybrid of snowflakes and LED throwies. Glowflakes!
Xenakis’ Reynolds House
We recently had the opportunity to produce a physical scale-model of an unbuilt design of Iannis Xenakis. Xenakis was the Greek/French composer, music-theorist, and architect, best known for his use of mathematical models, stochastic processes, and game theory in his composition. Xenakis was an important influence on the development of electronic music and he also [...]
Objet Alaris30 3D Printer
We have spent our first week with our new Objet Alaris30 3D Printer and it’s an impressive piece of hardware. There are upsides (accuracy and ease-of-use) and downsides (noise, smell), but overall this is a very impressive entry-level 3D printer that is certainly architectural office-friendly. Read on for our first-impressions…
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.