Baby steps toward a non-uniform 3D cell packing to model bone structure.

Since before I started studying biomimicry I’ve been interested in the structure and strength of bone. From the first time I saw an image of a cross section of  the femur, I’ve understood that the shape and arrangement of the bone and its holes gives bone its strength.

I feel like I’ve been working towards something with everything I’ve been doing, at least in terms of materials and software research.

I’ve been reading a lot about surface subdivision, with voronoi diagrams (we’re going to get sick of them quite soon I think) fractal patterning etc. There has been a lot of work on modeling complex surfaces that are made of individual, non-uniform pieces, particularly in architecture. I would even venture to say that experimental architecture today has succumbed to glossy, spiky, morphed and twisted “render wank”.

The following are my baby steps toward understanding the computer modeling process enough to successfully model bone. Since all the examples that I can find are architectural, you’ll forgive the fact that I too am dabbling in glossy morphed render wank.

Wind, Water and Sun – Power for Gadeokdo

Research for supplying power for the largest island in Busan, Korea.

As part of our design philosophy for the master plan for Gadeokdo, Korea, we feel it important to address issues of energy production, fresh water and waste treatment, and also food security.

Below is some research into renewable energy for the island development. My conclusion is that tidal stream power would be the best solution for this location, given its geography. Wind turbines would require too much space on the island, and we would prefer not to have spine of the island bristling with fans. Solar is too expensive and the return is not high enough, considering that we are already basically building the infrastructure in the water for all the buildings. Given that, the extra cost of tidal power generation is negligible, and will have long term benefits, not only energy saving and the environment, but also it would help further Korea’s experiments in hydro power generation.

Generative Design

I first learned about genetic algorithms used in design from a lecture on design research. The name of the firm escapes me now, but they designed various interactive objects and placed them in homes to see how people live with information. One such object was a television set that picked up the radio signals of planes that passed overhead, and showed on a 3D revolving globe the flight path of that plane. The aerial for the set was designed by NASA, using a genetic algorithm to find the best possible configuration for the aerial.