Architectural intelligence最新文献

The present contribution addresses both the topics of the design of timber-to-timber joints and the design of innovative and structurally efficient timber structures with the aid of a computational tool based on vector-based graphic statics (VGS).

First, this manuscript explains how the latest developments of graphic statics and its use applied to both timber joints and structures can improve the design of structures made of this low embodied carbon material. An exhaustive review of timber assemblies focussing on their sustainability and their structural behaviour is presented. Among these is the notch joint specifically identified in the context of digital fabrication and circular use of timber.

Afterwards, the theoretical framework of this research is explained. Taking advantage of the lower bound theorem of the theory of plasticity, the main hypotheses that enable the use of graphic statics and strut-and-tie modelling (STM) for timber are then presented. In addition, the structural behaviour of the single notch joint is evaluated using algebraic dimensioning method. The limitations of this method are pointed out and the article proposes an integrated universal approach to investigate the problem using Strut and Tie Modelling (STM) and stress fields. The results of this theoretical framework are validated trough 1/1 scale lab tests. Finally, the third chapter illustrates the potential of VGS via a Research-by-Design approach. In the aim of testing if designing simultaneously creative and efficient timber structures could be effective while using the VGS, architectural engineering student were asked to focus on both the primary load-bearing structure and the joint-systems.

Traditional method to evaluate outdoor thermal comfort which used indicators (UTCI, PET, SET, etc.) has its limitations. Firstly, emotional factors are not included in the assessment, and secondly, the results lead to less accessibility, and it is difficult for non-experts to understand.

Due to the above reasons, some scholars have investigated how to evaluate outdoor thermal comfort by ‘English vocabulary’, and there is still a gap in exploring the multidimensional semantic assessment of outdoor thermal comfort by using ‘Chinese vocabulary’. This paper established a ‘Chinese vocabulary’ thesaurus for outdoor thermal comfort evaluation through online and on-site questionnaire survey including 63 words, and an outdoor experiment was carried out to validate the effectiveness of the thesaurus. The results showed a significant correlation between the 2-phases results, revealing the effectiveness of the multidimensional semantic Chinese thesaurus. PET value has a wide range when Thermal Comfort Vote (TCV) are the same, and the words people used to describe the thermal environment in 5 dimensions are very different. The results showed that it is necessary to evaluate the thermal environment by the way of multidimensional semantic, which could make up the short comings of the traditional way (thermal comfort indicators).

The field validation experiment of this study was only carried out for 3 days in spring in Shenyang city, thus the result was highly influenced by the experiment conditions and has its limitations. This study could be a fundamental exploration of thermal comfort evaluation by semantic way in Chinese words.

Biosafety laboratories are specialized in handling dangerous microorganisms, but there are cases where contaminants are leaked due to improper handling and other reasons. Therefore, an in-depth understanding of the pattern of infection after a laboratory spill can help laboratory personnel get out of danger as soon as possible and avoid the occurrence of infection events. In this paper, we take the COVID-19 virus outbreak in recent years as an example to explore the probability of infection of laboratory personnel under different circumstances. The study used computational fluid dynamics (CFD) to predict the change of contaminant concentration over time in a typical laboratory, and then analyzed the relationship between contaminant concentration and infection probability by using a metrological response model, and calculated the infection probability of indoor personnel over time in the presence or absence of obstacles in the laboratory and the different locations of contaminant leakage, respectively. The results showed that the probability of personnel infection remained basically stable after 8 min of contaminant leakage; at the same time, the probability of infection was higher when the contaminant source was located below the exhaust vent than in other locations; and the probability of illness was lower in laboratories with obstacles than in laboratories without obstacles under the same conditions. This finding is helpful for laboratory layout design.

This paper proposes an effective approach to realise circular construction with concrete, and shows Unreinforced Masonry as a foundational building block for it.

The paper outlines the importance of circularity in building structures. It specifically focuses on the impact of circular construction with concrete on improving the sustainability of the built environment in a rapidly urbanising world economy. Subsequently, the relevance of principles of structural design and construction of unreinforced masonry to achieve circularity is articulated. Furthermore, the paper presents and summarises recent developments in the field of Unreinforced Concrete Masonry (URCM) including digital design tools to synthesise structurally efficient shapes, and low-waste digital fabrication techniques using lower-embodied-emission materials to realise the designed shapes. The paper exemplifies these using two physically realised, full-scale URCM footbridge prototypes and a commercially available, mass-customisable building floor element, called the Rippmann Floor System (RFS).

The paper also outlines the benefits of mainstream, industrial-scale adoption of the design and construction technologies for URCM, including accelerating the pathway to decarbonise the concrete industry. In summary, the paper argues that URCM provides a solution to significantly mitigate the carbon emissions associated with concrete and reduce the use of virgin resources whilst retaining its benefits such as widespread and cheap availability, endurance, fire safety, low maintenance requirements and recyclability.

The shift towards bio-economies of architectural fabrication necessitates particular consideration of how characterizing aspects of bio-materials such as heterogeneity and anisotropy impact the designed performance of architectural elements. These aspects must be integrated into the modelling and representation of architecture and must be instrumentalised for digital design and fabrication processes. The use of timber in construction is challenging due to its complex material behaviours, and therefore robust methods for predicting and modelling these are crucial for exploiting the timber resource more effectively. In light of this, we focus on developing a holistic and integrated digital modelling approach for glue-laminated timber construction elements that connects the digital design model to the specific material resource and incorporates its material complexity into design simulation workflows. We question the role of the lamella in the glulam blank and trace its agency through a series of four disparate projects, from an initially silent and generic constituent of the blank to a key, operative actor in the design of performance-graded timber products through the added specificity of material composition and a liberation of its form. The first project develops a modelling approach that connects material specification and lamella sizing to free-form timber element geometries. It uses principles of industrial glulam production and knowledge of the anisotropic nature of timber to speculate on new forms of glulam blanks that could arise from a deeper engagement with the glue-lamination process. The second project looks further back in the timber value chain at the processing of the specific forest resource into tailored building elements, attaching a material specificity to the lamella. The third project expands the modelling and prototyping of non-standard glulam blanks into considerations of timber waste streams and aesthetics. The final project aims to further speciate the lamella by tailoring its form as well as its material composition to respond to simulated performance demands. Through these projects we outline the development of a novel digital framework that begins as a modelling approach for free-form glulam beams and grows to accommodate the mapping and allocation of specific, heterogeneous input material. As the digital framework matures, increasingly detailed and interlinked digital simulations of mechanical performance are integrated.

Sunken square is a semi-open public space that has been gaining popularity in urban planning and designs. Its semi-open design is beneficial to ventilation of the connected underground spaces, but it is also subject to potential exposure to ground-level traffic pollutants. To evaluate the semi-open design’s influence on the balance between underground ventilation efficiency and the pollutant exposure, this study uses large eddy simulation (LES) to simulate turbulent wind flow characteristics and pollutant dispersion in a typical sunken square. The sunken square is connected to two indoor spaces with single-sided opening, and the design features of staircase and arcade are further tested for their influences on the wind flow field. The air change rate per hour (ACH, h⁻¹) is adopted to quantify the ventilation efficiency of the two connected indoor spaces. Results show that the staircases amplify wind velocities for the indoor spaces but also bring higher pollutant concentrations inside together. Moreover, the design of the arcade at the opening prompts the vortex to shift towards the entrance, leading to a heightened concentration of pollutants. Meanwhile, the effective ACH is mostly contributed by the turbulent diffusion (ACHt), while the mean flow (ACHm) has much less effect on the ventilation of the indoor spaces. These findings of this study provide references for sunken square design.

Artificial intelligence invades our lives and professions at an ever-increasing pace and intensity. Architecture, engineering, construction, and operation of the real estate have been joining the trend only timidly and belatedly. The paper overviews the basic concepts, methods, general background, and results of artificial intelligence in architecture to date, discusses the achievements and prospects, and concludes the perspectives on the deployment of machine learning in the field. The record of some of the most recent “famous achievements” in the field is set straight and challenged, the flawed idea of a (truly) creative potential of the technology is debunked. Its roots equidistributed both in a farsighted vision of the next workflow of both productive and creative architectural and engineering designing, and construction and real estate management on the one hand and state-of-the-art machine learning on the other, an ambitious though realistic blueprint for R&D of AI-fostered architectural creativity, building design, planning, and operation is tabled for discussion. The attention turns to open-source patterns platforms, generative patterns processing, generative pre-design, parametric evaluation and optimization, latest achievements in machine learning building on reinforcement learning, imitation-based learning, learning a behavior policy from demonstration, and self-learning paradigms zooming in on the design-development processes instead of only on their results. Leveraging the objectivity of assessments and streamlining workflows, artificial intelligence promises to unleash true architectural creativity and leverage the productivity and efficiency of the design, planning, and operation processes.

Human experience in an architectural space is defined as the state of mind that is reflected on their physiological, emotional, and cognitive statuses. Ergonomic data, as an objective manifestation of quantifiable signals generated by the human body during specific spatial perception processes, serves as a vital foundation for spatial evaluation and guidance for optimization. Electroencephalogram (EEG) signals, as quantifiable sensory indicators directly arising from the interaction between individuals and external stimuli, hold substantial potential as a data-driven force and as a means of optimization assessment in the study of generative design. Although existing research has effectively established a unidirectional relationship between EEG and spatial-environment assessment, there is still a notable deficiency in addressing the creation of a two-way, mutually informative feedback mechanism. This study investigates the applicability of EEG signals as a data-driven basis for generative design across universal methods. It delves into various scales and scenarios of digital design, from the microscopic to the macroscopic, encompassing planar and volumetric visual elements, the design of architectural spatial environmental characteristics, and urban space design grounded in human perceptual sightlines. The research examines the viability and appropriateness of an interactive generative design method based on form generation, predicated on human-factor physiological data exemplified by EEG signals. This paper initially conducts a methodological and tool-based examination of current research in ergonomics-driven design and the use of EEG for design assessment, thereby discussing the objective feasibility of employing EEG in interactive generative design. Subsequently, the study establishes an integrated data flow system encompassing multiple hardware and software components to form a comprehensive workflow. Following this setup, empirical studies based on this method are conducted at different scales of application, yielding corresponding form-generative outcomes. Finally, this paper substantiates the rationality and feasibility of this framework in multi environment design domains.