Drawing-to-Factory Process - Using freehand drawing to drive robotic assembly of brick walls

Abstract

The developments of digital technology applied to architecture in the recent decades has allowed for direct communication from the studio to fabrication. However, this process is typically dependent on complicated computational processes, enlarging the distance from the benefits of the traditional drawing approaches employed by architects. This research intends to explore possibilities of reenacting the drawing as a means of computational generative design which feeds automated systems of construction. By using a Cobot directed by an algorithm which reads a simple drawn curve on paper, an automated brick wall is built, as demonstrated in two exhibitions. This mixed approach allows for technology in architectural design and construction to be more accessible to a wider audience, while blurring the boundaries between concept and materialization.