Papers by alicia nahmad vazquez
From DfMA to DfR: Exploring a Digital and Physical Technological Stack to Enable Digital Timber for SMEs
Lecture notes in mechanical engineering, Oct 6, 2023
The research presented in this paper focuses on utilizing local resources and innovative construc... more The research presented in this paper focuses on utilizing local resources and innovative construction methodologies to create novel, high-performance buildings through deployable digital design and fabrication techniques. Customized design and fabrication workflows are developed as a robust strategy to support prosperity and community re-settlement on a remote island. The research prototypes a health and education facility as proof of concept of the proposed digital design and localised fabrication workflow. Located off the coast of British Columbia, Canada, Hope Island is explored as a site to prototype the design and fabrication workflow proposal. The Tlatlasikwala people -original inhabitants of the island -have expressed an interest in re-occupying it after being wrongfully driven off the land 1 . The strategy proposed through this research aims to augment and support them by enabling an economic model that promotes community localism. It integrates cutting-edge technology with local skills and knowledge to ensure efficient materials use through customized robotic fabrication systems. The strategy reduces carbon emissions by engaging with local material properties, minimizing the need to transport a wealth of equipment and materials offshore, and promoting circularity. The design of a health and education facility is used to apply material and fabrication research in a prototypical way. Additionally, it addresses the island requirement for a local clinic and classrooms for children, both essential for the residents to establish a life on the island. The design is developed with programmatic flexibility allowing for expansion and change. However, the focus is on an efficient design to fabrication workflow based on local resources and form-found geometries. This research project directly responds to the principles of the AIA framework for design excellence by engaging with design for equitable communities and design for local resources. The building application fosters human interaction and sociability, while the custom-designed fabrication process ensures that the community is engaged in the construction and takes ownership of the project. Bringing digital fabrication to the remote island up-skills the community in an engaging way that showcases technical innovation augmented with local skills. By deploying a strategy that uses architectural geometry and digital fabrication to capitalize on local natural resources while minimizing materials waste, the island is provided with a process that can efficiently support the growing community socially and materially for years to come.
ACADIA proceedings
This research presents a machine learning-based interactive design method for the creation of cus... more This research presents a machine learning-based interactive design method for the creation of customized inserts that improve the fit of the PPE 3M 1863 and 3M 8833 respiratory face masks. These two models are the most commonly used by doctors and professionals during the recent COVID-19 pandemic. The proper fit of masks is crucial for their performance. Characteristics and fit of current leading market brands were analyzed to develop a parametric design software workflow that resulted in a 3D printed insert customized to specific facial features and the mask that will be used. The insert provides a perfect fit for the respirator mask. Statistical face meshes were generated from an anthropometric database, and 3D facial scans and photos were taken from two hundred doctors and nurses on an NHS Trust hospital. The software workflow can start from either a 2D image of the face (picture) or a 3D mesh taken from a scanning device. The platform uses machine learning and a parametric design workflow based on key performance facial parameters to output the insert between the face and the 3M masks. It also generates the 3D printing file, which can be processed onsite at the hospital. The 2D image approach and the 3D scan approach used to initialize the system were digitally compared, and the resultant inserts were physically tested by twenty frontline personnel in an NHS Trust hospital. Finally, we demonstrate the criticality of proper fit on masks for doctors and nurses and the versatility of our approach augmenting an already tested product through customized digital design and fabrication.
2015 TxA EMERGING DESIGN + TECHNOLOGY 9 8 MACHINE derstandings of matter, new ways of organizing,... more 2015 TxA EMERGING DESIGN + TECHNOLOGY 9 8 MACHINE derstandings of matter, new ways of organizing, and new complex and irregular relationships that expand material processes to create new non-linear workflows and can lead to a new language characteristic of the robotic era in architecture. Using a new material technology within a pop-up process, based on patterns that embed the shape into the material rather than prescribe it, requires an experimental approach, as the material exhibits probable but not certain behavior. Thus, a new path, based on feedback loops, is proposed toward the design of curved, thin, flexible structures in concrete without the need for complex formwork that would be otherwise required (Kotnik and Weinstock 2012). Our shaping system allows for complex curves to be created through a combination of the concrete sheet material and the embedded pattern. In the context of robotic fabrication of concrete, projects to date have been divided into four major areas of exploration, each with a unique set of limitations: 1. Concrete 3D printing: Over 10 years ago, researchers at the universities of Southern California
Architecture is going through a new phase of consolidation after a paradigm shift on how architec... more Architecture is going through a new phase of consolidation after a paradigm shift on how architecture is conceived and produced. It includes an increase in interdisciplinary approaches, a deep relationship between architecture and technology, a new era of trial and error – of prototyping in theory and in practice – and, most importantly, a change in the relationship between thinking and doing. Work within architecture research laboratories has focused on connecting parametric models with robotic manufacturing tools and materials that allow the production of many different, customised parts. This idea stems from viewing robots as precisely controlled machines for fabrication and has led to the current scenario of relatively unchanged models of human-machine interaction and design processes. However, evolution in the field of human–robot collaboration suggests that the implementation of technological change should not be viewed simply as an engineering problem. It is crucial to unders...
Evaluating Team Fluency in Human-Industrial Robot Collaborative Design Tasks
Communications in computer and information science, 2022
Trust, reliance, and robustness have been identified as key elements for team fluency between tea... more Trust, reliance, and robustness have been identified as key elements for team fluency between teams. They are also crucial elements for successful collaboration between humans and robots (HRC). Robot arms have become integral to numerous digital design and fabrication processes allowing new material forms, more efficient use of materials and novel geometries. It will not be long before close proximity HRC design becomes standard. However, little research has been directed at understanding team fluency development between industrial robots and humans (industrial HRC). Even less to understand the evolution of HRC in creative tasks and factors that influence elements like trust to be established between industrial robot arms and designers. Team fluency is a multidimensional construct, heavily dependent on the context. It is crucial to understand how team fluency develops when designers interact with industrial robots. To this end, in this study, a team fluency measurement scale suitable for industrial HRC in design activities was developed in two stages. In the first stage, HRC literature was reviewed to establish a measurement scale for the different team fluency constructs and identify team fluency-related themes relevant to the design context. A corresponding pool of questionnaire items was generated. In the second stage, an exploratory HRC design exercise was designed and conducted to collect participant's opinions qualitatively and quantitative. Questionnaire items were applied to participants. The results were statistically analyzed to identify the key factors impacting team fluency. A set of curriculum recommendations is made, and a team fluency scale is proposed to measure HRC in design activities.
The research presented in this article utilizes industrial robotic arms and new material technolo... more The research presented in this article utilizes industrial robotic arms and new material technologies to model and explore a conceptual framework for ‘robotic-aided fabrication’ based on material formation processes, collaboration, and feedback loops. Robotic-aided fabrication as a performative design process needs to develop and demonstrate itself through projects that operate at a discrete level, emphasizing the role of the different agents and prioritizing their relationships over their autonomy. It encourages a process where the robot, human and material are not simply operational entities but a related whole. In the pre-actual state of this agenda, the definition and understanding of agencies and the inventory of their relations are more relevant than their implementation. The process starts with a description of the different agencies and their potentiality before any relation is formed. Once the contributions of each agent are understood, they start to form relations with dif...
8 MACHINE derstandings of matter, new ways of organizing, and new complex and irregular relations... more 8 MACHINE derstandings of matter, new ways of organizing, and new complex and irregular relationships that expand material processes to create new non-linear workflows and can lead to a new language characteristic of the robotic era in architecture. Using a new material technology within a pop-up process, based on patterns that embed the shape into the material rather than prescribe it, requires an experimental approach, as the material exhibits probable but not certain behavior. Thus, a new path, based on feedback loops, is proposed toward the design of curved, thin, flexible structures in concrete without the need for complex formwork that would be otherwise required (Kotnik and Weinstock 2012). Our shaping system allows for complex curves to be created through a combination of the concrete sheet material and the embedded pattern.
Homes, Communities and Games: Constructing Social Agency in Our Urban Futures
Architectural Design, 2020
The research presented in this paper utilizes industrial robotic arms and new material technologi... more The research presented in this paper utilizes industrial robotic arms and new material technologies to model and explore a different conceptual framework for ‘robotic-aided fabrication’ based on material formation processes, collaboration, and feedback loops. Robotic-aided fabrication as a performative design process needs to develop and demonstrate itself through projects that operate at a discrete level, emphasizing the role of the different agents and prioritizing their relationships over their autonomy. It encourages a process where the robot, human and material are not simply operational entities but a related whole. In the pre-actual state of this agenda, the definition and understanding of agencies and the inventory of their relations is more relevant than their implementation. Three test scenarios are described using human designers, phase-changing materials, and a six-axis industrial robotic arm with an external sensor. The common thread running through the three scenarios ...
Architectural Science Review, 2019
This paper presents the initial results and rationale towards the development of human-robot coll... more This paper presents the initial results and rationale towards the development of human-robot collaborative design workflows. An introduction to the basis of collaborative workflows and its impact for robots in architectural design is presented. Key elements, such as trust, reliance and robustness for the successful cooperation between humans and robots are identified and analysed. Human-robot collaboration is a multidimensional construct context dependent, this makes essential to understand how trust and team fluency develop when non-expert designers interact with industrial robots. A design process is then described based on sensor feedback, and phase-changing material formations that encourages human-robot collaboration during the genesis of the design. Two stages of development are presented. In stage one, an exploratory study was conducted to collect designers' opinions quantitatively and qualitatively. The results were analysed and led to the identification of the primary parameters that affect human-robot collaboration in the design process. In the second stage, machine learning is used to enhance the collaborative characteristics of the robotic partner in relation to the formation process of the material. The results reveal insights on human perceptions of robotic collaboration, and also explore neural-network-based feedback to enable expanded collaboration and communication between the robot and the designer.
International Journal of Computational Methods and Experimental Measurements, 2017
New technologies and fabrication tools urge us to explore new materials and their potential for i... more New technologies and fabrication tools urge us to explore new materials and their potential for integration in architectural construction. One such material, Concrete Canvas, is explored in this paper for its hybrid characteristics that blend fabric and thin-shell tectonics. The potential of Concrete Canvas lies in its ability to modify itself from a flexible fabric that when activated with water becomes a rigid concrete structure. Combined with a digitally controlled workflow of on-site cutting and an iterative material feedback loop, the process can serve as a radical alternative to current concrete formwork fabrication techniques. This paper outlines a prototypical design process that combines a phase-changing material, physical computer simulations, robotic fabrication and scanning technologies on a feedback loop between the digital and the physical that allow for customized, free-form, on-site concrete structures to pop-up without the need of a complex formwork. In this process the architect sets the various parameters based on fabrication techniques and material properties and adjusts them iteratively in the physical and digital model during the 'popping-up' process until a balance between material properties, technical requirements and aesthetics is reached, exploring new potentials on digital fabrication processes. The paper outlines the proposed workflow including iterative experiments with robotic cutting of flat patterns, their 'popping-up' into 3D concrete shells, and material phase transitions during its forming process. The established feedback loop consisting of geometry scanning, parametric perforation pattern control, computational analysis and simulation, and robotic fabrication is described in detail. The paper concludes by exploring the potential of this process to enable a dialogue between digital architecture and the process of materialization and discusses the implications of this approach in relation to architectural design and fabrication workflows.
International Journal of Architectural Computing, 2017
The research described in this article utilises a phase-changing material, three-dimensional scan... more The research described in this article utilises a phase-changing material, three-dimensional scanning technologies and a six-axis industrial robotic arms as vehicles to enable a novel framework where robotic technology is utilised as an ‘amplifier’ of the design process to realise geometries that derive from both constructive visions and architectural visions through iterative feedback loops between them. The robot in this scenario is not a fabrication tool but the enabler of an environment where the material, robotic and human agencies interact. This article describes the exploratory research for the development of a dialogic design process, sets the framework for its implementation, carries out an evaluation based on designer use and concludes with a set of observations. One of the main findings of this article is that a deeper collaboration that acknowledges the potential of these tools, in a learning-by-design method, can lead to new choreographies for architectural design and f...
The research-prototype is a 4 x 5 x 2m, "topologically optimized" concrete shell that was designe... more The research-prototype is a 4 x 5 x 2m, "topologically optimized" concrete shell that was designed and built in ten days. The prototype and this ensuing paper aim to extend the rich legacy of form-finding to adequately represent the complexities of scale, digital design systems and delivery mechanisms of contemporary architectural practice. They explore synergies in early design between architecture, structural engineering, and manufacturing.
Spatial Curved Laminated Timber Structures
Lecture notes in mechanical engineering, Oct 6, 2023
Symposium on Simulation for Architecture and Urban Design (SimAUD), 2021
This research explores U-Net deep convolutional neural networks as a way of simulating and predic... more This research explores U-Net deep convolutional neural networks as a way of simulating and predicting material deformation on materials with non-linear behaviours such as concrete impregnated fabric. Traditionally, architects have used physic engines, relaxation and force-based methods for the interactive simulation and form-finding deformation of non-linear materials such as cloth. By replacing a nucleus solver with U-net predictions, the designer time spent finetuning parameters to accurately simulate material behaviour is removed. Further, the simulation system is linked to a 6axis industrial robotic arm's motions plunging the cloth. Coupling material deformation with robotic manipulation ensures precision and repeatability to the physical deformation process whilst enabling novel workflows that merge iterative computational design and digital fabrication to emerge. This paper reports on the processes of digitally simulating the cloth behaviour, robotic plunging, cloth deformation, data collection and encoding, neural network training and validation. The method was validated through a series of tests where the trained U-Net CNN successfully predicted material deformation from 2D flat sheet material to 3D form given different initial conditions and robot configurations. The paper reports the results of the experiments and discusses the impact of this method on design and fabrication processes.
Topologically Optimized Concrete Shell Structure
Acadia 14 Design Agency Projects of the 34th Annual Conference of the Association For Computer Aided Design in Architecture Isbn 9789126724478 Los Angeles 23 25 October 2014 Pp 31 34, 2014
Architectural Science Review, 2019
This paper presents the initial results and analysis of key human elements towards the developmen... more This paper presents the initial results and analysis of key human elements towards the development of human-robot collaboration (HRC) in architectural design workflows. Key team fluency elements such as trust, reliance and robustness for successful human-robot teams are identified to analyse the development of team fluency in the context of non-expert-designers interacting with robots. A design process is then described based on feedback, and phase-changing materials that encourages HRC during the gen-esis of the design. Two stages of development are presented. In stage one, an exploratory study was conducted to collect designers' opinions quantitatively and qualitatively. The results were analysed leading to the identification of primary parameters that affect HRC in design processes. In the second stage, machine learning is used to enhance the collaborative characteristics of the robotic partner. The results reveal insights to human perceptions of robotic collaboration, and explore neural-network-based feedback to enable expanded HRC and communication. ARTICLE HISTORY
The research described in this article utilises a phase-changing material, three-dimensional scan... more The research described in this article utilises a phase-changing material, three-dimensional scanning technologies and a six-axis industrial robotic arms as vehicles to enable a novel framework where robotic technology is utilised as an 'amplifier' of the design process to realise geometries that derive from both constructive visions and architectural visions through iterative feedback loops between them. The robot in this scenario is not a fabrication tool but the enabler of an environment where the material, robotic and human agencies interact. This article describes the exploratory research for the development of a dialogic design process, sets the framework for its implementation, carries out an evaluation based on designer use and concludes with a set of observations. One of the main findings of this article is that a deeper collaboration that acknowledges the potential of these tools, in a learning-by-design method, can lead to new choreographies for architectural design and fabrication.
The research presented in this paper utilizes industrial robotic arms and new material technologi... more The research presented in this paper utilizes industrial robotic arms and new material technologies to model and explore a different conceptual framework for 'robotic-aided fabrication' based on material formation processes, collaboration, and feedback loops. Robotic-aided fabrication as a performative design process needs to develop and demonstrate itself through projects that operate at a discrete level, emphasizing the role of the different agents and prioritizing their relationships over their autonomy. It encourages a process where the robot, human and material are not simply operational entities but a related whole. In the pre-actual state of this agenda, the definition and understanding of agencies and the inventory of their relations is more relevant than their implementation. Three test scenarios are described using human designers, phase-changing materials, and a six-axis industrial robotic arm with an external sensor. The common thread running through the three scenarios is the facilitation of interaction within a digital fabrication process. The process starts with a description of the different agencies and their potentiality before any relation is formed. Once the contributions of each agent are understood they start to form relations with different degrees of autonomy. A feedback loop is introduced to create negotiation opportunities that can result in a rich and complex design process. The paper concludes with speculation on the advantages and possible limitations of semi-organic design methods through the emergence of patterns of interaction between the material, machine and designer resulting in new vistas towards how design is conceived, developed, and realised.
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Papers by alicia nahmad vazquez