Christian J. Lange will be giving a public research seminar at the Centre for Urban Studies and Urban Planning at HKU. The talk will be centered around the recent research on brick specials in the Robotic Fabrication Lab at HKU. All are welcome.
DATE:
14 November 2018 (Wednesday)
TIME:
13:00-14:00
VENUE:
Room 829,
Knowles Building
The University
of Hong Kong
I am very happy to share the recent outcome of our fall activities in the Robotic Fabrication Lab at HKU. The project entitled “CeramicINformation” is the second larger outcome of the Lab and is part of an evolving series, which aims to reconcile the material intelligence of vernacular crafts with the specificity and flexibility promised by digital design and fabrication technologies.The project is currently on show at the Bi-City Biennale of Urbanism and Architecture (UABB) in Shenzhen, China.
This particular iteration explores the process of construction, and seeks to find an appropriate level of automation suitable for emerging and transitioning economies. Each of the approximately 1000 components that make up the experimental structure is unique and has a specific immanent relationship to its neighbors. This approach allowed the complex construction to be realized using unskilled labor, over a short period, without the need for typical architectural drawings.
As a point of departure, this project examined the ubiquitous terracotta brick – common in modern Chinese construction, and explored it’s potential re-shaping through the process of robotic 3d printing. Approximately 1.5million lines of code were generated – with each brick containing an average of 1400 individual target-points.
The bricks were manufactured over a period of 20 days before the lightweight elements were shipped to the site and assembled into the multifaceted wall. The project not only highlights the new possibilities for architectural expression, but also the capacity these systems have to change the way in which we fashion the built environment.
Credits:
Project Leaders:
Christian J. Lange
Donn Holohan
Research Assistants:
Mono Tung
Kristy Chow
Pamela Maguigad
Funding:
UABB Shenzhen
Project Location:
No. 82 East Zhongshan Street, Wanli Industrial Zone, Nantou Old Town, Nanshan District, Shenzhen
For images on the project please visit also:
http://www.arch.hku.hk/
Very happy to share the recent feature of the ceramic constellation pavilion on Dezeen.
I am very happy to share the recent outcome of our spring activities in the Robotic Fabrication Lab at HKU. The project entitled “Ceramic Constellation Pavilion – Spatial shifts through robotically fabricated terracotta bricks” represents the first research work in the newly formed collaboration between Sino Group and the Robotic Fabrication Lab.
The Pavilion, which was guided by Christian J. Lange, Donn Holohan and Holger Kehne was built by students utilizing robotic technology. The research initiative that supports arts, cultures, and technology is intended to foster cultural awareness of new technologies for the built environment.
In a context that has been largely shaped by standardization and mass production, the project seeks to overcome the constraints of today’s architectural production through the introduction of a structure made entirely of non-standard components.
This inaugural workshop of the “Sino Group Robotic Architecture Series” utilized terracotta clay to test the possibilities and limits within robotic fabrication and to revitalize a material system that has a significant tradition in Asia.
Departing from traditional brick bonds, the 3.8m tall project articulates a load-bearing composite structure with timber – where each of the nearly 2000 3d printed terracotta bricks is unique and different, enabling varying degrees of transparency, morphological shifts, and new experiences.
Around 700 kg of raw terracotta clay was printed over a period of 3 weeks into individual bricks that were then fired at 1025 degrees Celsius. With 2-3 minutes average printing time for each brick, the pavilion is one of the first of its kind in the world that incorporates this specific material system.
All components were fabricated with the equipment in the newly fitted Robotics Lab at HKU’s Faculty of Architecture and assembled during a ten-day workshop by students from the Department of Architecture.
The project was recently on show in the North Atrium of Olympian City, West Kowloon and will find its new home soon on the campus of the University of Hong Kong.
Credits:
Project Leaders: Christian J. Lange, Donn Holohan, Holger Kehne
Research Assistants: Tony Lau, Anthony Hu, Teego Ma Jun Yin, Ernest Hung Chi Lok, Chau Chi Wang, Ren Depei, Mono Tung, He Qiye, Henry Ho Yu Hong
Workshop students: Go Yi, Sisay Sombo, Cheung Hoi Ching, Cheung King Man, Cheung Pak Yin, Ho Pui Lun, Verena Leung, Sharon So Cheuk Ying, Xu Junjie, Zhao Jinglun, Sampson Ip Cheuk Sum, Tan Shaoying, Yeung Tsz Wing
Funding: Sino Group
Structural engineers: Goman Ho &, Alfred Fong – Ove Arup Partners Hong Kong Ltd
For for images on the project please visit also:
http://www.arch.hku.hk/
At last, we can show some photos of the final outcomes of the latest studio taught by Christian J. Lange at The University of Hong Kong. The M.Arch I studio entitled “Elements: Robotic Interventions 0.2 – Towards new territories in Architecture” had two main objectives. On the one hand it was a hands-on investigation on how we as architects can generate new technologies, material systems and craftsmanship with the aid of the robot, and on the other hand, the studio looked in how we can apply those for the development of architectural elements such as the column the roof and the wall.
Students eventually built three medium scale prototypes that were based on three different traditional timber construction techniques. The first being the “Dou Gong” bracketing system, which usually is the structural network that joins columns to the frame of the roof in traditional Chinese architecture. The second being the reciprocal frame structures that can be found in the timber woven-arch bridges in the Fujian and Zhejiang provinces. And the third being the “Luban Lock” or the so-called “Chidori system” a design concept derived from old Japanese/ Chinese toys, and that elegantly produces a six-legged hidden joint.
credits:
supervisor:
Christian J. Lange
students:
Chau Chi Wang
Hu Zhihao
Hung Chi Lok Ernest
Lau Siu Yan
Ma Jun Yin
Ma Ki Ho
Ng Ka Chun
Ng Ka Lam
Ren Depei
Wong Siu Shan
Yan Ming
Zhou Zhengmian
For the past year Christian J. Lange has been working on the set up of the new robotics lab at the Faculty of Architecture at The University of Hong Kong. The lab was recently installed and consists of two ABB industrial robots, a rotational table and various end-effectors.
In an environment with rapidly growing cities, the robotic fabrication lab has its emphasis on the discovery of new methods, techniques and material assembly systems that have a meaningful and sustainable impact on the high-density build environment in the context of Hong Kong and Asia.
Currently Lange is teaching a March I studio focusing on the opportunities of robotic fabrication in traditional timber construction techniques that are specific to the Asian context. Below are some photos of the recent midterm presentation.
We are pleased to show some photos of the outcomes of the recent Robotic Fabrication Workshop. The workshop took place during late June 2016 at the University of Hong Kong and was led by Christian J. Lange and Donn Holohan. The project took on the typology of the tower as a point of departure to study the potential of low energy timber construction systems in conjunction with robotic fabrication.
credits:
supervisors:
Christian J. Lange
Donn Holohan
students:
Chan Yat Him Gabriel
Kong Ka Yu Christina
Tung Chiu On
Wong Yee Fung, Yves
Lu Chang
Laura Rulianto
Chan Hong Wan Aaron
He Qiye
Christian J. Lange will be teaching a Summer workshop on Robotic Fabrication in Architecture at The University of Hong Kong.The program will take place from June 20th through June 26th 2016
.
Outline:
Robotics in Architecture is a relatively young subject within contemporary design practice. At the Faculty of Architecture we are currently building up a Research Lab that will be dedicated to this new research field. In an environment with rapidly growing cities, the lab will have its emphasis on the discovery of new methods, techniques and material assembly systems that have a meaningful and sustainable impact on Architecture and the context of Hong Kong and the PRD.
The summer workshop “Robotic Intervention” will focus on traditional techniques of timber construction and will be a first test for a novel production method with robotic aid. Participants are invited to investigate on the relationship between material, geometry, computation and robotic fabrication through the design and making of a prototypical structure.
The workshop comprises of a research component on traditional timber material systems, a series of exercises on computational design and robotic fabrication techniques and will culminate in the construction of a 1:1 scale architectural intervention. The workshop will not only increase the student’s architectural skillset to build a structure in real scale, it primarily aims to open up the student’s understanding of the emerging creative uses of Robotics in Architecture.
Program:
– Workshop on Robotics in Architecture.
– Research on traditional timber construction systems
– Computational workshop on component based assembly structures.
– Fabrication and installation of a 1:1 scale intervention at HKU.
Set Up:
Hardware: 1 x ABB IRB 1600
Software: Rhino, Grasshopper, HAL
Previous knowledge required:
Medium level experience on Rhino & Grasshopper
Participants:
12 students of the Faculty of Architecture, HKU, led by
Christian J. Lange, Senior Lecturer in Architecture, FoA
Donn Holohan, Assistant Lecturer – Fabrication Manager, FoA
Registration:
The program is open to all fulltime students registered in the BAAS, March, MLA, MPhil and PHD programs in the Department of Architecture. Interested applicants should send a one page CV to the BAAS secretary Angela Ting by June 11th.
Rocker-Lange Architects’s Shanghai Lilong Tower Urbanism project is featured in the latest issue of AD. Guest-edited by Tom Verebes, the issue includes work by Buro Happold, David Clovers, Arup, Gramazio Kohler, Rocker-Lange Architects, Michael Bell, Elena Manferdini, Neil Leach and interviews with Mark Burry and Kenneth Frampton & and many more.
Christian J. Lange of Rocker-Lange Architects teamed up with Jason Carlow, Assistant Professor at HKU, Ramon van der Heijden and Alan Tai from Front Inc Hong Kong, and Gustav Fagerström from Buro Happold New York for this years Smart Geometry Conference in Hong Kong.
The results of the workshop entitled HK_SmarTowers were on display during the two day conference on July 18th & 19th at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. The project that was developed during the four days looked at how data informs tower massing strategies, structure and organization. Addressing the issue of repetition, standardization, mass production and customization the project utilized intelligent digital design systems to arrive at a set of unique tower structures that were based on different figure ground strategies and ultimately built with a ready made system of kit of parts.
Thanks a lot to all Cluster Collaborators for the great work: Marco Juliani, Megan Ng, Oliver Thomas, Piotr Baszynski, Luca Maccarinelli, Binsun Hu, Amos Chan, Vincent Ip, Albert Lo, Riyad Joucka, Mariane de Souza, Alison Li, Xinliu Huang
