Cad And Robotics In Architecture And Construction

After two decades, data processing has finally, and probably forever, found its niche among civil engineering and construction (CEC) professionnals, through word processors, digitizing tables, management software, and increasingly via drawing software and computer-aided design (CAD), recently, robots have even started invading work sites. What are the main trends of CAD and robotics in the field of architecture and civil enginee ring? What type of R&D effort do university and industrial laboratories undertake to devise the professional software that will be on the market in the next three to five years? These are the issues which will be addressed during this symposium. To this effect, we have planned concurrently an equipment and software show, as well as a twofold conference. Robotic is just starting in the field of civil engineering and construction. A pioneer, the Civil Engineering Departement of Carnegie-Mellon University, in the United States, organized the first two international symposia, in 1984 and 1985 in Pittsburgh. This is the third meeting on the subject (this year, however, we have also included CAD). It constitutes the first large international symposium where CAD experts, specialists in architecture and CEC robotics will meet. From this standpoint, it should be an ideal forum for exchanging views and expe riences on a wide range of topics, and we hope it will give rise to novel applications and new syntheses. This symposium is intented for scientists, teachers, students and also for manufacturers and all CEC professionals.

This volume collects about 20 contributions on the topic of robotic construction methods. It is a proceedings volume of the robarch2012 symposium and workshop, which will take place in December 2012 in Vienna. Contributions will explore the current status quo in industry, science and practitioners. The symposium will be held as a biennial event. This book is to be the first of the series, comprising the current status of robotics in architecture, art and design.

The past decade's surge towards more computationally defined building systems and highly adaptable open-source design software has left the field ripe for the integration of robotics whether through large-scale building fabrication or through more intelligent/adaptive building systems. Through this surge, architecture has not only been greatly influenced by these emerging technologies, but has also begun influencing other disciplines in unexpected ways. The purpose of this book is to provide systems of classification, categorisation, and taxonomies of robotics in architecture so that a more systematic and holistic body of work could take place while addressing the multifarious aspects of possible research and production.

Computer technology has revolutionized many aspects of building design, such as drafting, management, construction - even building with robots. This revolution has expanded into the field of design creativity. Presented in this book is an up-to-date, comprehensive picture of research advances in the fast-growing field of informatics applied to conceptual stages in the generation of artifacts - in particular, buildings. It addresses the question how far and in what ways creative design can be intelligently automated. Among the topics covered are: the use of precedents; the relations between case-based, rule-based, and principle-based architectural design reasoning; product typology; artifact thesauruses; the inputting and retrieval of architectural knowledge; the visual representation and understanding of existing or projected built forms; empirical and analytical models of the design process and the design product; desktop design toolkits; grammars of shape and of function; multiple-perspective building data structures; design as a multi-agent collaborative process; the integration of heterogeneous engineering information; and foundations for a systematic approach to the development of knowledge-based design systems. The papers provide a link between basic and practical issues: - fundamental questions in the theory of artifact design, artifical intelligence, and the cognitive science of imagination and reasoning; - problems in the computerization of building data and design facilities; - the practical tasks of building conception, construction and evaluation. The automation of creative design is itself considered as an engineering design problem. The implications of current and future work for architectural education and research in architectural history, as well as for computer-integrated construction and the management of engineering projects are considered.

This volume collects about 20 contributions on the topic of robotic construction methods. It is a proceedings volume of the robarch2012 symposium and workshop, which will take place in December 2012 in Vienna. Contributions will explore the current status quo in industry, science and practitioners. The symposium will be held as a biennial event. This book is to be the first of the series, comprising the current status of robotics in architecture, art and design.