Assignment B1 - Paulina Gawor - B-Team

BIM, 3D Printing, Structures & the Future of Building Design

Introduction

The development of 3D Printing, or additive manufacturing is a process by which layers of material are stacked to form a 3D object, based on electronic data points. This contrasts the more typical machining methods of grinding or cutting, and allows for more delicate and unique shapes to be formed. 3D printing is often used in product design, or to make small architectural models as a method of rapid prototyping. Currently, it is a slow method for fabrication of larger projects, but some companies are experimenting with the technology.

Construction Applications

Skidmore, Owings & Merrill have demonstrated some success in using 3D printing to develop a green 450-square-foot carbon- fiber-reinforced ABS plastic structure. A benefit of a 3D printing method is the efficient use of material--there is much less scrap than in traditional construction. The printed material was a series of identical C shaped channels, with a grain like that of wood. Post tensioning tendons were incorporated in design to account for lower strength in the grain direction. [1] Interior materials and insulation were produced in a traditional way.

Arup developed a unique shape for street lights in the Hague. Their construction consisted of 1,200 steel pieces, few of which would be identical. Additive manufacture of metals involves using metal alloys in powder form, which are heated with lasers. Unused powder can be collected and reused. The number of unique pieces is difficult and expensive for manufacture, so 3D printing was used. The resulting pieces were some 50% lighter than they might have been if they were produced with traditional machining. [2]

Chinese construction company WinSun constructed a five story 3D printed apartment building. The primary material was a recycled mix of ground construction and industrial waste, around a base of quick-drying cement. The walls were backed with appropriate insulation, and steel members. WinSun estimates this process decreases construction waste by 30-60 percent, and labor costs by 50 percent. [3]

Benefits of 3D Printing

The benefit of 3D printing is that it can produce very complex shapes with great precision. This will make it easier to realize architecturally complex projects including those with organic, curved forms. Printing will likely be most seen in custom building elements, modular elements, or those with great variation in form. Facades are a likely target for additive manufacture. Additive manufacture is also environmentally friendly in terms of material use--there is very little or no scrap material, as only what is needed is custom made. 3D Printing can be used to develop cheap disaster housing, easily replicated, and produced around the clock.

Limitations of 3D Printing

Still, the technology to print a complete building system is still some years away. Printing structural elements is what there has been most development in, both as accessory components, and larger members. We do not yet have the technology to print insulation, glazing, piping, ductwork, or electrical equipment. Even once we have the technology to print these elements, we will have to test them extensively to ensure they meet the same technical requirements our traditionally manufactured materials do. Even if all of these materials are printed successfully, there will still have to be a great deal of assembly on site.

Resources

[1] http://www.architecturalrecord.com/articles/11652--d-printing

[2] http://www.asce.org/magazine/20140624-engineers-testing-3-d-printing-of-steel/

[3] https://www.cnet.com/news/worlds-first-3d-printed-apartment-building-constructed-in-china/

B1 New Application in HVAC and Future technologies

New Application in HVAC

Keen Home’s Smart Vents can control airflows for individual rooms. Each vent is embedded with sensors that measure temperature and pressure. All procedures could be easily accessed by using the Keen Home app. The app creates different profiles for individual rooms using various colors with red stands for warmer and blue stands for colder. The users could simply assign profiles to each air vent. For example, if a vent is assigned to the office. The default setting for the office profile would be applied. The vent would be turned on from 9am to 6pm and would be turned off during the rest. If the user decides that he/she wants to work for one extra hour for a day or for a week, he/she could easily adjust the setting through the app. Furthermore, Smart Vents also remember users’ habits and intelligently operate and shut down. Initial studies show this cuts down the run time on air vents by an average of 22%. [1]

Keen Home App

Future Technologies [2]

Here is a list of major future upcoming technologies and some of their applications:

1.     3D printing

·      3D printed replacement teeth. It can print inside the mouth.

·      Scan and 3D printed customized clothing and shoes at retail stores.

·      Trash can be recycled and turned into 3D printing materials.

·      3D printed construction materials and structures.

2.     Virtual/Augmented Reality

·      VR experiences of Theme park rides.

·      Full-length VR movies and live broadcasts of sports games.

·      VR and AR used for education and training purposes.

·      VR tours used for various purposes including real estate

3.     Flying/Driving Drones

·      Fast and efficient deliveries by flying drones.

·      Livestock monitoring drones and building and maintenance inspection drones.

·      Drones provide new view angles for the fire department to find entry point and other natural disaster monitoring. [3]

4.     Driverless cars/Transportation

·      Electric cars occupy major market of automobile industry.

·      Driverless cars used for large facilities such as airports, theme parks, and factories.

·      Charging breakthroughs for the electric cars.

5.     Internet of Things

·      Smart furniture such as smart chairs and smart beds that will self-adjust to provide maximum comfort.

·      Smart mailboxes will send out signals when mail has arrived and indicates how important it is.

6.     Artificial Intelligence (AI)

·      AI selection of movies and music based on users’ preferences and moods.

·      AI solve simple and daily tasks.

Resources:

[1] https://www.wired.com/2015/01/brilliant-air-vents-never-knew-needed/#slide-5

[2] http://www.futuristspeaker.com/business-trends/72-stunning-things-in-the-future-that-will-be-common-ten-years-from-now-that-dont-exist-today/?nocache=1

[3] http://dronelife.com/2016/12/02/2-ways-university-maryland-helps-safety-drones/

Comments

Egla Oori

You listed the technologies used for 3D printing from material extrusion to sheet lamination. Before I saw your blog, I thought that 3D printing would just apply one technology to create subjects. Also, the 3D printing applications in the construction industry are very innovative. The most notable advantage of 3D printing is economy. It’s cheap and efficient to accomplish a large project in a short amount of time. 3D printing will be the future for manufacturing industry and construction industry.

Hayley Selden

The ability to learn is the essential property of artificial intelligence. The learning potential is limitless and AI may become smarter than human in the future. People create AI to better serve human, because AI will easily perform simple tasks without making mistakes. I have one question. Should AI have emotions just like human? Will the emotions do good for human or are they threats?

Rachel Frank

You mentioned there will be job loss as AI develops in the future. However, I think there will always be a new market that creates more job opportunities. For example, there will be AI technicians and other related markets.