Fibrous Architecture

Research Area

The fibre research area investigates novel methods and processes related to the design, engineering and fabrication of large-scale fibre composite structures aiming for new digital building systems. One particular focus is a novel process called coreless filament winding, which is based on the process of formation of free-spanning fibres without relying on a mould. It significantly reduces material expenditure through load-adapted fibre arrangements and covers a wide range of material systems, from carbon and glass fibre composites to experimental natural fibres and bio resins.

Related Research Projects

Hybrid Wood-Naturalfibre Composite Building System

Natural Fibre Structures

Material Culture - Maison Fibre

Cyber-Physical Prefabrication Platform for Fibre Composites

Computational Design for Fibre Composite Building Systems

Long-span Fibre Composite Structures

LeichtbauBW Innovation Challenge

Construction-oriented Fibre Composite Systems

Additive Manufacturing Methods for Composite Structures

Combining industrial robotics with autonomous flying vehicles

Related Thesis Projects

Cyber Physical Macro Material

Mobile Robotic Fabrication System for Filament Structures

Related Research Demonstrators and Prototypes

Fibrous Tectonics

livMatS Pavilion

Maison Fibre

BUGA Fibre Pavilion 2019

ITECH Research Demonstrator 2018-19

Elytra Filament Pavilion, WAIC West Bund Shanghai

Cyber Physical Macro Material

MoRFES_01: Mobile Robotic Fabrication Eco-System

ICD/ITKE Research Pavilion 2016-17

Elytra Filament Pavilion, Vitra Campus

Elytra Filament Pavilion, Victoria and Albert Museum

Mobile Robotic Fabrication System for Filament Structures

University of Stuttgart Fair Stand

ICD/ITKE Research Pavilion 2014-15

ICD/ITKE Research Pavilion 2013-14

Leichtbau BW Installation

ICD/ITKE Research Pavilion 2012

Related Research Tools

ABM Framework

Selected Publications

  1. 2024

    1. Chai, H., Orozco, L., Kannenberg, F., Siriwardena, L., Schwinn, T., Liu, H., Menges, A., & Yuan, P. F. (2024). Agent-Based Principal Strips Modeling for Freeform Surfaces in Architecture. Nexus Network Journal, 26(2), Article 2. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00004-024-00765-0

  2. 2023

    1. Yang, X., Lehrecke, A., Tucker, C., Estrada, R. D., Maierhofer, M., & Menges, A. (2023). Spatial Lacing: A Novel Composite Material System for Fibrous Networks. In C. Gengnagel, O. Baverel, G. Betti, M. Popescu, M. R. Thomsen, & J. Wurm (Eds.), Towards Radical Regeneration (pp. 556--568). Springer International Publishing.
    2. Zechmeister, C., Gil Pérez, M., Knippers, J., & Menges, A. (2023). Concurrent, computational design and modelling of structural, coreless-wound building components. Automation in Construction, 151(July), Article July. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.autcon.2023.104889
    3. Zechmeister, C., Gil Pérez, M., Dambrosio, N., Knippers, J., & Menges, A. (2023). Extension of Computational Co-Design Methods for Modular, Prefabricated Composite Building Components Using Bio-Based Material Systems. Sustainability, 15(16), Article 16. https://doi.org/10.3390/su151612189
    4. Gil Pérez, M., Mindermann, P., Zechmeister, C., Forster, D., Guo, Y., Hügle, S., Kannenberg, F., Balangé, L., Schwieger, V., Middendorf, P., Bischoff, M., Menges, A., Gresser, G. T., & Knippers, J. (2023). Data processing, analysis, and evaluation methods for co-design of coreless filament-wound building systems. Journal of Computational Design and Engineering, 10(4), Article 4. https://doi.org/10.1093/jcde/qwad064
    5. Schlopschnat, C., Pérez, M. G., Zechmeister, C., Estrada, R. D., Kannenberg, F., Rinderspacher, K., Knippers, J., & Menges, A. (2023). Co-Design of Fibrous Walls for Multi-Story Buildings. In K. Dörfler, J. Knippers, A. Menges, S. Parascho, H. Pottmann, & T. Wortmann (Eds.), Advances in Architectural Geometry 2023 (pp. 235--248). De Gruyter. https://doi.org/10.1515/9783111162683-018
    6. Forster, D., Kannenberg, F., von Scheven, M., Menges, A., & Bischoff, M. (2023). Design and Optimization of Beam and Truss Structures Using Alternative Performance Indicators Based on the Redundancy Matrix. In K. Dörfler, J. Knippers, A. Menges, S. Parascho, H. Pottmann, & T. Wortmann (Eds.), Advances in Architectural Geometry 2023 (pp. 455--466). De Gruyter. https://doi.org/10.1515/9783111162683-034

  3. 2022

    1. Stieler, D., Schwinn, T., Leder, S., Maierhofer, M., Kannenberg, F., & Menges, A. (2022). Agent-based modeling and simulation in architecture. Automation in Construction, 141, 104426. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.autcon.2022.104426
    2. Tucker, C., Yang, X., Lehrecke, A., Maierhofer, M., Duque Estrada, R., & Menges, A. (2022). A Collaborative Multi-robot Platform for the Distributed Fabrication of Three-dimensional Fibrous Networks (Spatial Lacing). Proceedings of the 7th Annual ACM Symposium on Computational Fabrication, 1–18. https://doi.org/10.1145/3559400.3561995
    3. Abdelaal, M., Amtsberg, F., Becher, M., Duque Estrada, R., Kannenberg, F., Sousa Calepso, A., Wagner, H. J. J., Reina, G., Sedlmair, M., Menges, A., & Weiskopf, D. (2022). Visualization for Architecture, Engineering, and Construction: Shaping the Future of Our Built World. IEEE Computer Graphics and Applications, 42(2), Article 2. https://doi.org/10.1109/MCG.2022.3149837
    4. Menges, A., Kannenberg, F., & Zechmeister, C. (2022). Computational co-design of fibrous architecture. Architectural Intelligence, 1(6), Article 6. https://doi.org/10.1007/s44223-022-00004-x
    5. Gil Pérez, M., Zechmeister, C., Kannenberg, F., Mindermann, P., Balangé, L., Guo, Y., Hügle, S., Gienger, A., Forster, D., Bischoff, M., Tarín, C., Middendorf, P., Schwieger, V., Gresser, G. T., Menges, A., & Knippers, J. (2022). Computational co-design framework for coreless wound fibre-polymer composite structures. Journal of Computational Design and Engineering, 9(2), Article 2. https://doi.org/10.1093/jcde/qwab081

  4. 2021

    1. Wagner, H. J., Garufi, D., Schwinn, T., Wood, D. M., & Menges, A. (2021). Three-Dimensional Fibre Placement in Wood for connections and reinforcements in timber structures. In S. A. Behnejad, G. A. R. Parke, & O. A. Samavati (Eds.), Proceedings of the IASS Annual Symposium 2020/21 and the 7th International Conference on Spatial Structures. IASS.
    2. Mindermann, P., Bodea, S., Menges, A., & Gresser, G. T. (2021). Development of an Impregnation End-Effector with Fiber Tension Monitoring for Robotic Coreless Filament Winding. Processes, 9(5), 806. https://doi.org/10.3390/pr905080
    3. Duque Estrada, R., Kannenberg, F., Wagner, H. J., Yablonina, M., & Menges, A. (2021). Integrative Design Methods for Spatial Winding. Advances in Architectural Geometry 2020, 286–305. https://thinkshell.fr/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/AAG2020_15_Duque.pdf
    4. Born, L., Möhl, C., Kannenberg, F., Melnyk, S., Jonas, F. A., Menges, A., Knippers, J., & Gresser, G. T. (2021). Semi-automated braiding of complex, spatially branched FRP-structures. Composite Structures, 276, 114551. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compstruct.2021.114551
    5. Bodea, S., Zechmeister, C., Dambrosio, N., Dörstelmann, M., & Menges, A. (2021). Robotic coreless filament winding for hyperboloid tubular composite components in construction. Automation in Construction, 126, 103649. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.autcon.2021.103649
    6. Dambrosio, N., Zechmeister, N., Duque Estrada, R., Kannenberg, F., Gil Pérez, M., Schlopschnat, C., Rinderspacher, K., Knippers, J., & Menges, A. (2021). Design and development of an FRP-Timber hybrid building system for multi-story applications in architecture: Maison Fibre. In B. Farahi, B. Bogosian, J. Scott, J. L. García del Castillo y López, K. Dörfler, J. A. Grant, S. Parascho, & V. A. A. Noel (Eds.), Realignments: Toward Critical Computation - ACADIA 2021.

  5. 2020

    1. Bodea, S., Dambrosio, N., Zechmeister, C., Gil-Perez, M., Koslowski, V., Rongen, B., Doerstelmann, M., Kyjanek, O., Knippers, J., & Menges, A. (2020). BUGA Fibre Pavilion: Towards Robotically-Fabricated Composite Building Structures. Fabricate 2020: Making Resilient Architecture, 234--243.
    2. Gil Pérez, M., Rongen, B., Koslowski, V., & Knippers, J. (2020). Structural design, optimization and detailing of the BUGA fibre pavilion. International Journal of Space Structures, 35(4), Article 4. https://doi.org/10.1177/0956059920961778
    3. Duque Estrada, R., Kannenberg, F., Wagner, H. J., Yablonina, M., & Menges, A. (2020). Spatial Winding: Cooperative Heterogeneous Multi-Robot System for Fibrous Structures. Construction Robotics, 4(3–4), Article 3–4. https://doi.org/10.1007/s41693-020-00036-7

  6. 2019

    1. Zechmeister, C., Bodea, S., Dambrosio, N., & Menges, A. (2019). Design for Long-Span Core-Less Wound, Structural Composite Building Elements. Impact: Design With All Senses Proceedings of the Design Modelling Symposium 2019, 401--415. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-29829-6 32
    2. Dambrosio, N., Zechmeister, C., Bodea, S., Koslowski, V., Gil-Perez, M., Rongen, B., Knippers, J., & Menges, A. (2019). Towards an architectural application of novel fiber composite building systems – The BUGA Fibre Pavilion. In K. Bieg, D. Briscoe, & C. Odom (Eds.), ACADIA – Ubiquity and Autonomy - Proceedings of the 39th ACADIA Conference 2019.
    3. Gil-Perez, M., Dambrosio, N., Rongen, B., Menges, A., & Knippers, J. (2019). Structural optimization of coreless filament wound components connection system through orientation of anchor points in the winding frames. Proceedings of the IASS Annual Symposium 2019 – Structural Membranes 2019 Form and Force, 1381--1388.

  7. 2017

    1. Prado, M., Doerstelmann, M., Solly, J., Menges, A., & Knippers, J. (2017). Elytra Filament Pavilion: Robotic Filament Winding for Structural Composite Building Systems. Rethinking Design and Construction - Proceedings of the Fabricate Conference 2017, 224--233.

  8. 2015

    1. Knippers, J., La Magna, R., Menges, A., Reichert, S., Schwinn, T., & Waimer, F. (2015). ICD/ITKE research pavilion 2012 : coreless filament winding on the morphological principles of an arthropod exoskeleton. Architectural Design, 85(5), Article 5. https://doi.org/10.1002/ad.1953
    2. Menges, A., & Knippers, J. (2015). Fibrous tectonics. Architectural Design, 85(5), Article 5. https://doi.org/10.1002/ad.1952

Contact

This image shows Christoph Zechmeister

Christoph Zechmeister

Dipl.-Ing., MAS ETH AI

Research Group Leader | Computational Fibre Architecture

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