SPACE FRAMES AND GEODESIC DOMES

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SPACE FRAMES AND GEODESIC DOMES
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SPACE FRAMES AND GEODESIC DOMES

• Objectives
• Students will be exposed to the concepts of
  point, line, plane and dimensions in relationship
  to the triangle.
• Understand the basic structural engineering
  concepts that underlie geodesic dome
  construction
• Understand the advantages and disadvantages of
  modern building materials in dome construction
  and
• Have an increased awareness of more in-depth
  concepts relating to the study of architecture,
  geometry, and structures.

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WARM UP ACTIVITY

• Select a team member that you will plan with to
  complete this project
• Write a four to six sentence Design Statement
  about how your team think the roof of large
  structures (stadiums, gymnasiums, concert halls,
  etc.) are built without columns. Include your
  definitions of a geodesic dome and a space frame.

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Vocabulary

• A polyhedron (many surfaces) is a geometric solid
  in three dimensions with flat faces and straight
  edges.
• A tetrahedron is a polyhedron with four sides,
  but is also called a pyramid.
• A hexahedron is a polyhedron with six sides, but
  is also called a cube.
• A polyhedron with six rectangles as sides also
  has many namesa rectangular parallelepided,
  rectangular prism, or box.
• An octahedron is a polyhedron with eight faces.

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Vocabulary

• Tension is a force that acts to expand or
  lengthen the thing it is acting on.
• Compression is a force that acts to compress or
  shorten the thing it is acting on.

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• SPACE FRAME STRUCTURE

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SPACE FRAMES CAN SPAN LONG DISTANCES
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SPACE FRAMES

• A space frame is a truss-like, lightweight rigid
  structure constructed from interlocking struts in
  a geometric pattern.

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SPACE FRAMES

• Space frames usually utilize a multidirectional
  span, and are often used to accomplish long spans
  with few supports.

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SPACE FRAMES

• They derive their strength from the inherent
  rigidity of the triangular frame flexing loads
  (bending moments) are transmitted as tension and
  compression loads along the length of each strut.

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Simplified space frame roof with the
half-octahedron highlighted in blue
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• Space frames are an increasingly common
  architectural technique especially for large roof
  spans in modernist commercial and industrial
  buildings

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Some space frame applications include

• Hotel/Hospital/commercial building entrances
• Commercial building lobbies/atriums
• Parking canopies

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Advantages of space frame systems over
conventional systems

• Random column placement
• Column-free spaces
• Minimal perimeter support
• Controlled load distribution
• Design freedom
• Supports all types of roofing

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GEODESIC DOMES

• A geodesic dome is a sphere-like structure
  composed of a complex network of triangles.

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GEODESIC DOMES

• Geodesic domes are usually hemispheres (parts of
  spheres, like half a ball) made up of triangles.
  The triangles have 3 parts
• the face - the part in the middle
• the edge - the line between corners
• the vertex - where the edges meet

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The triangles create a self-bracing framework
that gives structural strength while using a
minimum of material.
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DOMES
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A domes design is dependent upon many factors,
including

• Needed area and span, or distance between
  supports
• Budget and building schedule
• Architects and /or clients aesthetic
  preferences
• Forces, such as compression and tension, acting
  on the structure and
• Building materials.

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EXAMPLES OF GEODESIC DOMES

• Spaceship Earth, the ATT Pavilion at Epcot in
  Disney World, Florida, is an adaptation of
  Buckminster Fuller's geodesic dome
• Tacoma Dome in Washington State
• Milwaukee's Mitchell Park Conservatory
• Biosphere desert project in Arizona
• Des Moines Arboretum, a self contained ecosphere

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Engineering Disasters

• Engineers must be concerned about safety at all
  times.  Lives are at stake when bridges,
  buildings, or structures collapse. Engineers
  must design structures to withstand all kinds of
  weather conditions and all types of loads.  While
  the goal is to have no design fail, engineers
  examine and learn from past mistakes to avoid
  such failures in the future.
• Tacoma Narrows Bridge, Tacoma, Washington (failed
  in 1940)
• 10 killed

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Engineering Disasters

• Falls View Bridge, Niagara Falls (failed 1938)
• 18 killed
• Tay Bridge, Scotland (failed in 1879)
• 29 killed
• Quebec Bridge, St. Lawrence River (failed
  1907,1916)
• 45 killed

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Engineering Disasters

• Point Pleasant/Silver Bridge, Ohio River (failed
  1967)
• 75 killed
• Hyatt Regency Walkway Collapse, Kansas City,
  Missouri (failed in 1981)
• 112 killed

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TEAM CHALLENGE ASSIGNMENT

• The team challenge is to build a 3-dimensional
  triangle
• Team members must discuss the concept among
  themselves as they each attempt to build a model.
• 15 minutes

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TEAM SYNTHESIS

• Team members must attempt to join their
  3-dimensional triangles
• Each link should be connected firmly and
  completely
• Repeat the process until four triangles joined
  together in a square.
• 20 minutes

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Rubric For Space FrameProject

• Layout/ Design
• Information
• Contributions
• Quality Of Work
• Following Classroom Guidelines

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Brief Constructed Response

• Student must complete a responding to one of the
  following topics
• You are a hired Engineer designed to build a
  space frame for the new town. Your employers are
  not convinced that your space frame design would
  be successful. Create a BCR that explains how
  your space frame will withstand the forces placed
  on space frames Compression, Tension, Shear, and
  Torsion.

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Brief Constructed Response

• Student must complete a responding to one of the
  following topics
• You are a space frame inspector that has been
  hired to inspect space frames. Create a BCR that
  explains how Live and Dead loads would be
  handled in your space frame design. Use examples
  to illustrate how these loads would be supported.

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HOMEWORK

• Research Buckminster Fuller
• Write about the accomplishments and contributions
  achieved by Buckminster Fuller and explain how
  they relate to todays Architectural structures.
• One to Two Pages

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EVALUATION

• QUESTIONS FOR THE INDIVIDUAL GROUPS
• How did you come up with the initial design for
  your space frame?
• Did your design change as you built your space
  frame?
• Which geometric shapes did you use in your space
  frame? Why?
• How does the strength of the space frame compare
  to the weight of the space frame?
• Would you make any changes in the design of your
  space frame?

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EVALUATION

• QUESTIONS FOR THE WHOLE GROUP
• Which space frame was the longest? Tallest?
  Strongest? Heaviest? Why?
• What materials do you envision being used in
  future space frames?
• How can computers help design space frames?

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LETS START BUILDING!!!!!