Digital Mockup: Steps into the definition of a Friction-Joined System for a Responsive ETFE Façade for Highrise Buildings

Figure 0. Waterjet Cut models of two Façade Systems The inclusion of technological devices in the built environment may eventually have a profound influence on architecture and may lead to new design philosophies that solve tectonically the dialogue between traditional materials and computer networks; this document describes an exploration on a façade system that articulates distributed network computing and flat-cut, friction-joined architectural elements in order to improve the energy-efficiency, flexibility, and visual quality of a high rise building. The exploration takes advantage of the material properties of ETFE foil and of the processing capabilities of a micro-computer unit network in order to propose a new kind of implementation of electrochromic smart windows that allows for changing opacities of the façade elements in response to human touch. An investigation on design tools and the role of physical representation in the design process itself, the work described in this document was developed using a variety of rapid prototyping tools and CAD software. Physical prototypes and plans of two different designs for the system are presented and discussed, followed by a 1in = 25ft scale physical representation of a larger implementation of one of the details along a verisimilar high rise building. The varied range of representations allowed for a critical evaluation of both systems at different levels, contributing to the understanding of the constraints inherent to two-dimensional friction joint assemblies, and revealing problems related to detail representation in rapid prototyping models. While providing a review on electrochromic smart windows and distributed network computing technologies we outline the fundamental principles of a new system that uses ETFE cushions instead of glass as the base for touch-responsive electrochromic smart windows; the study presented in this document proposes a series of discussion points around the use of combined physical and virtual representation strategies in architectural design.