COMPUTATION IN COMPRESSION

FALL 2014 | CRITIC DANELLE BRISCOE

COLLABORATORS: ESCOBEDO CONSTRUCTION

TEAM: ZACH WALTERS & LINCOLN DAVIDSON

​Computational design tools allow for geometric form finding and structural optimization of compression only structures that can be digitally fabricated in limestone.  The interlocking stone blocks form a catenary vault that are divided into a hybrid grid that combines the properties of a UV grid (as is applied to a vault) and a radial grid (as is applied to a dome). The resulting grid is a UV grid that tapers at the apex for structural efficiency and only allows for compressive stresses in the limestone units. In addition, this geometry minimizes the warping of the faces between adjacent hexagonal components so that all of the surfaces can be fabricated with a 3-axis CNC router.