Toward a taxonomy of architectural robotics

Abstract

Robotics in architecture is a fast-emerging area of research and design today. The current research and practices of robotics in architecture tend to be, to a great degree, techno-positivist and framed by a narrowly defined instrumentalist view. The paper presents comprehensive taxonomy of a broad range of robotic applications so as to meaningfully guide, systematize, and clarify multi-faceted design or research explorations in architecture and beyond. The paper advances four frameworks: role of robotics in architecture; modes of interaction between robots, humans and architecture; the Vitruvian framework; and robots classified by form; all of which point to new avenues of potential exploration while also revealing the gaps and biases in the current research and design in the discipline.