Robotic Plaster Spraying: Crafting Surfaces with Adaptive Thin-Layer Printing
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Date
2022-01-09
Publication Type
Journal Article
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yes
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Abstract
Embedded in a long tradition of craftsmanship, inside or outside building surfaces, is often treated with plaster, which plays both functional and ornamental roles. Today, plasterwork is predominantly produced through rationalized, time-, and cost-efficient processes, used for standardized building elements. These processes have also gained interest in the construction robotics field, and while such approaches target the direct automation of standardized plasterwork, they estrange themselves from the inherent qualities of this malleable material that are well known from the past. This research investigates the design potentials of robotic plaster spraying, proposing an adaptive, thin-layer vertical printing method for plasterwork that aims to introduce a digital craft through additive manufacturing. The presented work is an explorative study of a digitally controlled process that can be applied to broaden the design possibilities for the surfaces of building structures. It involves the spraying of multiple thin layers of plaster onto a vertical surface to create volumetric formations or patterns, without the use of any formwork or support structures. This article describes the experimental setup and the initial results of the data collection method involving systematic studies with physical testing, allowing to develop means to predict and visualize the complex-to-simulate material behavior, which might eventually enable to design with the plasticity of this material in a digital design tool.
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Publication status
published
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Editor
Book title
Journal / series
Volume
9 (3)
Pages / Article No.
177 - 188
Publisher
Mary Ann Liebert
Event
Edition / version
Methods
Software
Geographic location
Date collected
Date created
Subject
robotic plaster spraying; adaptive fabrication; thin-layer printing; visualization of material behavior; data-driven prediction models
Organisational unit
03708 - Gramazio, Fabio / Gramazio, Fabio
03709 - Kohler, Matthias / Kohler, Matthias
03891 - Flatt, Robert J. / Flatt, Robert J.
02284 - NFS Digitale Fabrikation / NCCR Digital Fabrication
02602 - Inst. f. Technologie in der Architektur / Institute of Technology in Architecture
Notes
Funding
141853 - Digital Fabrication - Advanced Building Processes in Architecture (SNF)