Building from Scrap: Computational Design and Robotic Fabrication Strategies for Spatial Reciprocal Structures from Plate-shaped Wooden Production Waste

Abstract

This paper describes an innovative methodology allowing upcycling production waste into legitimate construction material for spatial structures, with minimal change to elements` shape. The system is based on interlocking joints between the boards. The plates are organized around nodes, creating a three-dimensional reciprocal system guaranteeing the stability of the entire structure, without any fasteners. We use an inversed, data-driven design process, in which unique components are defining the form of the structure. The design-to-production workflow consists of measuring and labeling of the elements, creating a data file, data-driven generation of the structure with a custom form-finding algorithm, structural optimization of the form, robotic processing of the scraps and manual assembly. The proposed methodology was tested in public spaces as a temporary pavilion and three wood-clay composite sitting elements, thus practically demonstrating the feasibility of our approach.