Design Tools and Workflows for Braided Structures

Vestartas, Petras; Heinrich, Mary Katherine; Zwierzycki, Mateusz; Leon, David Andres; Cheheltan, A.; Magna, Riccardo La; Ayres, Philip

doi:10.1007/978-981-10-6611-5_55

Cited by 7 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 10 publications

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“…Here the setup is limited to two dimensions and binary left-right decisions, as growth is limited to a grid of mechanical supports at 45° inclination, and plant decision positions are limited to that grid's bifurcations. Mechanical extensions may include 3D scaffolds and differing materials, to allow for complex shapes 9,19 . The methodology can be considered a system to automatically grow patterns defined by a user.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Robotic Sensing and Stimuli Provision for Guided Plant Growth

Wahby

Heinrich

Hofstadler

et al. 2019

JoVE

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Robot systems are actively researched for manipulation of natural plants, typically restricted to agricultural automation activities such as harvest, irrigation, and mechanical weed control. Extending this research, we introduce here a novel methodology to manipulate the directional growth of plants via their natural mechanisms for signaling and hormone distribution. An effective methodology of robotic stimuli provision can open up possibilities for new experimentation with later developmental phases in plants, or for new biotechnology applications such as shaping plants for green walls. Interaction with plants presents several robotic challenges, including short-range sensing of small and variable plant organs, and the controlled actuation of plant responses that are impacted by the environment in addition to the provided stimuli. In order to steer plant growth, we develop a group of immobile robots with sensors to detect the proximity of growing tips, and with diodes to provide light stimuli that actuate phototropism. The robots are tested with the climbing common bean, Phaseolus vulgaris, in experiments having durations up to five weeks in a controlled environment. With robots sequentially emitting blue light-peak emission at wavelength 465 nm-plant growth is successfully steered through successive binary decisions along mechanical supports to reach target positions. Growth patterns are tested in a setup up to 180 cm in height, with plant stems grown up to roughly 250 cm in cumulative length over a period of approximately seven weeks. The robots coordinate themselves and operate fully autonomously. They detect approaching plant tips by infrared proximity sensors and communicate via radio to switch between blue light stimuli and dormant status, as required. Overall, the obtained results support the effectiveness of combining robot and plant experiment methodologies, for the study of potentially complex interactions between natural and engineered autonomous systems.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Robotic Sensing and Stimuli Provision for Guided Plant Growth

Wahby

Heinrich

Hofstadler

et al. 2019

JoVE

Self Cite

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“…Locking parts were labeled with the codes of their main connectors and corresponding panels, ensuring efficient and accurate assembly on site (Figure 5). For the cutting process, we converted the 3D designs into 2D plans, reorganizing the design information to optimize material use using OpenNest (version 1.5.1), a tool for nesting shapes efficiently [35,36]. This adjustment allowed for efficient arrangement of parts based on their shape, size, and the laser cutter's working area limitations, which are 1300 × 900 mm.…”

Section: Labeling and Nestingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Toward Cost-Effective Timber Shell Structures through the Integration of Computational Design, Digital Fabrication, and Mechanical Integral ‘Half-Lap’ Joints

Porras,

Esenarro,

Chang

et al. 2024

Buildings

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In a global context, where the construction industry is a major source of CO2 emissions and resource use, is dependent on concrete and its risks, and lags behind in digitalization, a clear need arises to direct architecture towards more practical, efficient, and sustainable practices. This research introduces an alternative technique for building timber space structures, aiming to expand its applications in areas with limited access to advanced technologies such as CNCs with more than five axes and industrial robotic arms. This involves reconfiguring economic and ecological constraints to maximize the structural and architectural advantages of these systems. The method develops a parametric tool that integrates computational design and manufacturing based on two-axis laser cutting for shells with segmented hexagonal plywood plates. It uses a modified ‘half-lap joint’ mechanical joint, also made of plywood and without additional fasteners, ensuring a precise and robust connection. The results demonstrate the compatibility of the geometry with two-axis CNC machines, which simplifies manufacturing and reduces the cuts required, thus increasing economic efficiency. The prototype, with a span of 1.5 m and composed of 63 plywood panels and 163 connectors, each 6 mm thick, supported a point load of 0.8 kN with a maximum displacement of 5 mm, weighing 15.1 kg. Assembly and disassembly, carried out by two students, took 5 h and 1.45 h, respectively, highlighting the practicality and accessibility of the method. In conclusion, the technique for building timber shells based on two-axis CNC is feasible and effective, proven by practical experimentation and finite element analysis.

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“…It would further be useful to be able to assign structural performance to the structure, which then could work as input to the braiding process. This challenge is something that we are starting to address in related work [21], [23].…”

Section: Compilation Of Robot Designsmentioning

confidence: 99%

A large-scale, light-weight, and soft braided robot manipulator with rapid expansion capabilities

Støy

Walker

Nielsen

et al. 2021

2021 IEEE 4th International Conference on Soft Robotics (RoboSoft)

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A key challenge in soft robotics is how to design self-supported large-scale soft robots. In order to address this we have created a braided manipulator. The manipulator consists of a biaxially braided cylinder made from twelve glassfiber enforced rods. The manipulator measures 1.38m in height in its equilibrium state and has a diameter of 8.5cm at the top and 20.0cm at the base and only weighs 35g. The manipulator is fixed to a base which weighs 1.9kg in which three stepper motor driven winches are embedded at 120 • intervals. From each winch a string is braided vertically through the braided manipulator and is fixed to the top. In experiments we find that the manipulator can be compressed to 51cm corresponding to 38%. The manipulator compresses in 54s which is determined by stepper speed and winch diameter and expands when the actuators are turned off in 105ms. We also find that the force required to compress the manipulator is constant at 2.6N for most of actuation range. The force generated by the manipulator corresponds to a payload of 265g which is an order of magnitude more then the weight of the manipulator itself. The limitations of the current work is that the actuation, processing, and power is externalized to the manipulator and modelling and control are unaddressed. However, overall we find that the braided manipulator is evidence that braiding holds potential as a construction paradigm for soft robotics as we have demonstrated that it allows for large-scale and lightweight soft robots.

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Design Tools and Workflows for Braided Structures

Cited by 7 publications

References 10 publications

Robotic Sensing and Stimuli Provision for Guided Plant Growth

Robotic Sensing and Stimuli Provision for Guided Plant Growth

Toward Cost-Effective Timber Shell Structures through the Integration of Computational Design, Digital Fabrication, and Mechanical Integral ‘Half-Lap’ Joints

A large-scale, light-weight, and soft braided robot manipulator with rapid expansion capabilities

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