Abstract
Although the field of robot design goes back many years, the use and study of robotics in architecture is still relatively in its early stages. The reliance on hardwired or battery-powered electricity as well as the burden of installation and maintenance costs bring serious criticism to the use of these products. At the same time, similar kinetic systems that do not require electrical energy or Artificial Intelligence for instruction are being developed. These passive-active systems can provide redundancy and alternatives to the range of robotics available in buildings today.
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Notes
- 1.
Wise Computing is an area of study where “the computer actually joins the development team as an equal partner—knowledgeable, concerned, and proactively responsible”.
- 2.
Programmable Matter, according to Tibbets, is the study of physical matter that has the ability to change precise form and/or function by design.
- 3.
Definition of Automaton: a mechanism that is relatively self-operating; a machine or control mechanism designed to follow automatically a predetermined sequence of operations or respond to encoded instructions; or, an individual who acts in a mechanical fashion (Merriam-Webster Dictionary 2017).
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Acknowledgements
This chapter has profited from the contribution of several team members and collaborators working on the presented projects:
BLOOM: Doris Sung (PI), Dylan Wood, Kristi Butterworth, Ali Chen, Renata Ganis, Derek Greene, Julia Michalski, Sayo Morinaga, Evan Shieh, Garrett Helm, Derek Greene, Kelly Wong (design team), IngalillWahlroos-Ritter (Design Consultant), Matthew Melnyk (Structure Consultant)
INVERT: Doris Sung (PI), Adelfrid Ramirez, Stephanie Truong, Justin Kang, Ramsey Young, Belinda Pak, Thomas Gin (design team), Karen Sabath, Scott Horwitz (commercialization team), Joon-Ho Choi (USC), Steve Selkowitz (Lawrence Berkeley Labs), Thomas Auer (Transolar) (engineering consultants)
EXO: Doris Sung (PI), Dylan Wood, Hannah Woo, Evan Shieh, Jessica Chang, Dennis Chow, Carter Shaw (design team), RoelSchierbeek, Gregory Nielsen, Laura Min (ARUP) (structural engineering), Alex Rasmussen (Neal Feay Co.) (fabricator)
LINK: Doris Sung (PI), Justin Kang (design team)
BOX: Doris Sung (PI), Isaac Chen (design team)
SPHERE: Doris Sung (PI), Thomas Gin, Ryan Thomas, Geoffrey Ford (design team)
CRITTERS: Doris Sung (PI), Elizabeth Phillips(design team)
Photo Credits: Derek Greene, Brandon Shigeta (Fig. 9.1), DOSU Studio Architecture (Figs. 9.2, 9.3, 9.4, 9.6, 9.7, 9.8, 9.9) and Alex Blair (Fig. 9.5).
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Sung, D.K. (2018). A New Look at Robotics in Architecture: Embedding Behavior with Smart Materials. In: Bier, H. (eds) Robotic Building. Springer Series in Adaptive Environments. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-70866-9_9
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