Computer-Aided Design
The subject for this week is focused on computer-aided design. This kind of matter are quite common for me and I feel comfortable enough with it.
I usually work with computer-aided software both 2D as 3D. I have used AutoCad since I was an architectural student but nowadays I use Rhinoceros besides. There are two main reasons for it, first Rhino is based on NURBS ( I do not really know if AutoCad use this kind of mathematic in the very last versions). So, you can manage high complexity geometries at the same time you can get an agile and flexible visualisation system. The second one but not least important, is the possibility to use Grasshopper.
Grasshopper is a extremely useful tool. It is defined as an algorithmic modelling for Rhino. It means the posibility to parametrize instead of get only drawings or simple virtual models. I have been using Grasshopper during last years and I think that the use of parametric proccesses could serve as an important contribution in any kind of subject related to design.
In this way, it has aroused my curiosity the use of Antimony, I just tried for a while, but I have run short of time to test it enough.
Continuing with the project development I have modeled the geometry using Grasshopper and specially a powerful tool that runs over it. I refer to Kangaroo, it is a Live Physics engine for interactive simulation, optimization and form-finding directly within Grasshopper.
Kangaroo is a great tool in order to get a good approach about the physical behaviour of special kind of forms closely related with movement, weigth, wind and many other phisical actions. However the geometry obtained through this aproaching proccess could be a bit inaccurate because dimensions could be distorted, so I have modeled the geometrical development accurately using Rhino+Grasshopper.
Special issues to solve:
I have to solve the movement of this piece using the minimum number of motion elements. Regarding with this I am thinking about a motor fixed on Z-axis.
The thickness of the triangles leads to think about the folding system. It is necessary to design such a king of hinges that allow the rotational movement of the pieces.